There's nothing better than travelling and living abroad to help us start questioning every tradition, both those of our receiving culture, and those we were brought up with. From personal experience, it has taken me courage, and a specially welcoming, open-minded environment, to be able to voice my thoughts on local traditions, and often I've done so at my peril. Culture is a process, and I think it's important to allow our young ones question the wisdom of continuing with customs which no longer make sense in the context of modern living, if we are to make room for them as an active part of society.
Traditions are not arbitrary, but I agree that they can be negative if misused. A deeper look at the history and purpose for traditions might be interesting.
There's nothing better than travelling and living abroad to help us start questioning every tradition, both those of our receiving culture, and those we were brought up with. From personal experience, it has taken me courage, and a specially welcoming, open-minded environment, to be able to voice my thoughts on local traditions, and often I've done so at my peril. Culture is a process, and I think it's important to allow our young ones question the wisdom of continuing with customs which no longer make sense in the context of modern living, if we are to make room for them as an active part of society.
Traditions are not arbitrary, but I agree that they can be negative if misused. A deeper look at the history and purpose for traditions might be interesting.