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802.258.3212
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Tunisia: Popular Culture and Globalization in the Arab World
Program Overview
In the SIT Study Abroad Tunisia: Popular Culture and Globalization in the Arab World, students explore the impact of globalization on popular culture in one of the Arab world’s most rapidly changing economies and societies. In this rich intellectual and cultural setting, students have the opportunity to study and engage in debates about Tunisia’s shifting identity and the benefits and challenges of living in a globalized age.
The program gives students the opportunity to study a region as it is undergoing profound cultural transformations. Through interdisciplinary coursework and research, students gain factual information and a theoretical framework about globalization in Tunisia and the Arab world, and engage with the cultural and social environment through their stays with host families in Tunis and excursions in and around the city. Students experience firsthand Tunisia’s cultural richness and variety as well as gain insight into the relationship between popular culture and political ideology.
At the cusp of cultural change
More forcefully perhaps than any other Arab country, Tunisia has opted to modernize its economy and society as a strategic political choice since gaining independence in 1956. Today, Tunisia embraces modernization’s latest form, globalization; the impact of this choice can be seen in the widespread changes in popular culture, industry, and religious and social expression. Though some social groups have resisted this choice in the name of authenticity, others have embraced it, prompting a lively, ongoing debate about what constitutes Tunisian identity.
The Tunisia: Popular Culture and Globalization in the Arab World program is based in Tunis, political capital of the country and a city of about one million people. Comprised of two main quarters, a modern European city and the ancient medina, Tunis is home to the parliament, ministries and government offices, embassies, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Tunis also serves as the cultural and intellectual center of the country, and students will discover its ancient palaces and mosques juxtaposed with Internet cafés, cinemas, ATM machines, and all the amenities of modern life. This setting provides numerous opportunities for students to examine issues regarding the effects of globalization on Tunisian culture, from the rise of Arab pop music to the debate on Arabic language use in North Africa and the upsurge in religious identity.
