CAFTIMES, January 23, 1997
Student from Senegal experiences the differences between
the myths and the realities of American culture
Mandy Souchack
Contributor
He wanted to improve
himself as an intellectual
while also "following that
myth" of what it is 1 ike to be
in America. He left his
homeland, his family of si x
brothers and sisters, mother
and father, and his friends
behind as he boarded the air
plane for a seven-hour flight
from Dakar, Senegal, to New
York City, NY.
Babacar M'Baye came
to the United States last year
to be a French teaching assis
tant at Ursinus College while
earning a master's degree in
American 1 iterature and civi -
lization. He completed his
bachelor of arts in American
Studies at Universite de Saint
Louis, Senegal
When he first arrived
at Ursinus College, M'Baye
wanted to connect with his
students but "had trouble
finding an attention-getter."
People had misconceptions
about Africa and African peo
ple and cultures. By wearing
clothes, bracelets and sharing
his music from Senegal, more
people began to talk to him
and open up.
As he began to inter
act with Americans, he want
ed to "avoid a cultural faux
pas" because the U.S.A. has
different values," than his
own. By sharing their cul
tures and values, M'Baye said
he showed his friends that
Africans do not live in trees,
and he learned that not all
Americans are cowboys.
M'Baye blames the
media for misconceptions
between the two continents.
The Senegalese view NBC,
ABC, and CNN regularly, and
are exposed to much of the
same advertising as we are.
He smiled and said,
"If you come to my house, I
would offer you a Coca-Cola
and a Marlboro [cigarette].
This i f what 'TV teaches us."
The educational sys
tem in Senegal is much dif
ferent from that of the United
States. "In Africa, the pro
fessor is like a king. You
would never challenge him,"
said M'Baye. Professors are
also independent, and wil I
fail a student if they feel it is
necessary, he said
The courses and
requirements are different
from U.S.A. programs.
African students cannot take
courses outside of their dis
cipline, which is the opposite
of American universities. In
addition, while studying in
the United States, students
may participate in inter n
ships which are not normally
offered in Africa.
While he was defend-
ing his first master's thesis
at Ursinus College, M'Baye
applied to the University of
Richmond and the
Pennsylvania State University
to earn his second master's in
American studies. Upon
being accepted at both, he
chose Penn State University
because, "Penn State is
famous in the world." With
the opportunity to go to a
superpower, as he described
it, he arrived in Middletown
in August.
His friends in Senegal
recognized the name and were
jealous that he would be
studying there. They see
America as a superpower,
with the most important lan
guage in the world.
"You cannot be in this
world and not hear of
America," M'Baye reflected.
With this opportunity,
he got the chance to experi
ence what he is studying
firsthand. "There is a myth
of America, a hardworking
spirit and patriotism that I
wanted to be a part of."
Although American
media does portray the U.S.A.
as the TV show "Dallas," he
has seen the differences.
M'Baye conveyed that some of
those differences are the peo
ple and their social habits.
In Africa, when you
greet someone on the street,
or out socially, it is a much
longer interaction, asking
FEATURE
about yourself, the other,
your mother, the other's
mother, your father, the
other's father, and your addi
tional family members. He
has found, that a "Hi, how are
you?", "Fine, and you?" is the
extent of a cordial greeting in
the U.S.
language in Senegal. The
dominant local language of
Saint Louis, where M'Baye's
home is, is Wolof. M'Baye is
fluent in French, which he
learned in school, Wolof, his
mother's native tongue,
Pulaar, his father's native
language, and English and
Spanish, which he learned in
high school. Swahili is the
only African written lan
guage, which he also has
learned.
According to M'Baye,
Dakar is the New York City of
Africa. I f someone wants to
come into Africa, they must
travel into Dakar first. It is
the "opening door to Africa,"
he said
Other differences that
M'Baye has found include the
social attitudes of those in
Africa versus those in
America. There is no racism
in Africa, where there is
much here. "Race is such a
big deal here," he said, "and
many people share the idea of
Pat Buchanon."
In addition, polygamy,
French is the official
which i s
having
more than
one wife, i s
a common
practice in
Senegal and
with the
Muslim
people
More wives
equals
more ch i 1-
dren, which
equals
more
wealth,
because
there are
more hands
to help in the fields. The tra
dition in Africa is "work,"
and more children add to the
possibility of being immor
talized, to carry one's name
M'Baye said that
unfortunately, some take
advantage of the Muslim tra
ditions, and have many wives
all over the country. M'Baye
considers this terrorism. He
says that the men who prac
t ice polygamy and do not have
jobs or fields or businesses
are taking advantage of a tra-
dition and belief system
After this year,
Babacar M'Baye plans to
return to his homeland of
Saint Louis, Senegal to teach
at a university. With the
Photo by Debbi Malick
completion of two American
studies master's, and a B.A.
in American studies, he feel
he may teach the youth more
about America. If he doesn',
get a job with a university,
would like to work for an
international organization
"In my country, so
much is Americanized, but
people do not understand th
culture. If you go out to a
club in Senegal and cannot
rap dance, you are not
respected. I will never get
away from the American cul
ture, because it is all over t
world. But now, with my
degrees, I have a better
understanding."