Task Performance

Article:

The Negatives and Positives of Tradition

Diversity; it is a beautiful concept. Diversity is what makes us different, distinguishable, unique

and special. Without diversity, we would all just be the same person. But to this, God says that
we are created in His own image, under different cultures and traditions. As an ethnic Korean,
there are both negative and positive traditions that I must carry through every so often.

Principally, there are some but few negative traditions that need to be carried through at times.
The worst tradition, in my opinion, that our family has is that the father is the literal head of the
family. In this case, I do not mean my dad, but rather my grandfather. My grandfather is the one
who provides the financial support for food, shelter, and clothing and approves of family
marriages. This is not at all a very serious matter, but in our family, I find that natural and
relaxed communication is very hard between my grandfather and other members of our family.
Our relationship with my grandfather is just very difficult. Also, I think that the fact that you are
one when you are born is a negative “tradition” that the Korean culture has. It is not so much
that it is something that is bad; it is just that it is really confusing. I did not know that trying to
know how old you were could be so hard. Therefore, there are negative traditions that I have
had to carry over the course of my life.

On the other hand, there are also traditions to look forward to in our family as well. For example,
on days such as Chuseok and the Lunar New Year, I love how these are chances for the family
to just get together. Also, I enjoy cooking and setting up the table with food with my aunts,
uncles and grandma on special occasions like these. I also like the fact that when we greet and
say farewell to our elders, we bow to them instead of waving. This shows a distinct difference
from how people from American cultures greet each other. Moreover, when talking to older
people, we tend to put a different ending onto our sentences. I love how there is a great sense
of etiquette between the Korean cultures because this also sets us apart from other cultures as
well. Therefore, there are quite a few positive traditions in our family.

All in all, tradition is what makes our Korean family so diverse. Though some of these traditions
may be negative, I believe that these are what make our family particularly unique. Without
traditions, I can imagine that the relationships between members of my family would have been
so much more different. After all, what you practice from tradition does show up in daily life.
Thus, tradition has been a very important aspect of my life that has heavily impacted me to
shape me into the person I am today.

https://medium.com/@christinetai/the-negatives-and-positives-of-tradition-29daffb52875?
fbclid=IwAR2WS52_NQikXCGX-9KZLti7HHDIAYbYpYCV-CcwRDDvF2KwU5jbR1N04j4
Reflection:

Diversity and universality, the terms that might be sound contrasting but are always paired and
will never be apart.

Back in Senior High School, our Literature Teacher taught us about universality and diversity in
terms of literature. Despite the differences that we have, there are particular aspects that we
have something in common. The same thing applies with other fields which mirror people such
as culture and tradition.

I often look to South Korea as incomparable to the Philippines. South Korean culture and
tradition are well-preserved and highly celebrated as being portrayed on mainstream media. But
after reading the article entitled Positive and Negative Effects of Tradition written by Christine
Tai, I changed my perspective, and I remembered about diversity and similarities among
different aspects that I could apply to the culture and traditions of the Philippines and South
Korea. Although Philippines are already transforming itself to an equal opportunities and
responsibilities to both gender, we couldn't deny the fact that there still exists gender biases
especially in household in terms of financial aspects, and other obligations which is also
expressed in the article about South Korean culture.

Also, respect to other people are also valued here in the Philippines and other countries, South
Korea particular. In the Philippines, po and opo, and pagmamano are expressions of respects.
Though there might difference the way it expressed, its sole purpose is genuine.

Lastly, family is also important to the life of every Filipinos as well as South Koreans. Families
get together to every special occasions where its a time to bond, and enjoy a festive moments.

Although, South Korea is far distant from the Philippines, I could say that they've shared a lot
but not in all aspects. Thus, despite diversity that every country has, there are similarities that
are reasons for unity.

Question:

Does it make you a “Traitor of your own culture and religion” if you change your culture and
religion with the new one that is introduced in a society where you belong? Explain well.

 For me, I would not be a traitor if I changed my culture and religion. You will only be a
traitor if you have really forgotten what culture you are from. You will not only be a traitor,
you will be ashamed. So it's ok to explore as long as we don't forget where we came
from. It is important to adopt new cultures and religions because they help us live a
dignified life and that will increase our knowledge and make our lives more valuable.