Role of Visual Culture in the Contemporary Cultural Diversity - Research Proposal Example

In their articles, Mirzoeff, Ruby, Sturken, and Cartwright argue despite being instrumental in globalization, the impact of visual culture in the assimilation of cultural diversity is still debatable. Therefore, there is need to conduct a research that answers the following questions: 1. What is visual culture in the context of classical and contemporary cultural diversity? 2. How has visual culture enhanced globalization? 3. Has globalization changed the contemporary perspectives of cultural diversity? 4. Has visual culture enhanced assimilation of contemporary cultural diversity?

Literature Review Different authors and scholars have had varied views on the role of visual culture within the multi-cultural society in the contemporary world. In both his works, Mirzoeff (“An Introduction” 3; “Visual Culture” 4) argue that visual culture depends of the circumstances under which various images are made and this may not have a significant impact in changing the perceptions of the viewers in relation to accepting and assimilating cultural diversity. Ruby (1345) also adds that stakeholders in the visual culture are only concerned with the personal interpretation of the image presented.

Consequently, the viewers are likely to have varied perceptions especially given the negative and positive feelings created by the image thereby acting differently as in the example of the fetish (Fusco 368). This explains why some countries or regions would censor images to avoid the negative feelings and interpretations (Sturken and Cartwright 390). The idea of having varied feelings brings about the idea that regions and people are different and so are people. This has only worsened the situation in the assimilation of cultural diversity perspectives especially in the contemporary world.

Another argument by varied authors and scholars on the impact or role of visual culture towards enhancing assimilation of cultural diversity is the idea of individualism. There are studies proposing that instead of inspiring communalism and acceptance of the diversity in culture, visual culture has actually inspired individualism based on the magnification of contrasts that exist between regions or people. Sturken and Cartwright (389) argue that there has been an increase flow of foreign ideas courtesy of globalization.

Such ideas tend to bring new information, new perception, and create more contrasts, which only lead to the acceptance that regions and people can never be equal (Mitchell 298). However, Mirzoeff (“An Introduction” 3) argues that despite the liberty of receivers to interpret the images in relation to cultural diversity, the receivers have continuously interpreted the images negatively and this invokes the idea that no regions or people can ever be equal. Ruby (1345) discusses the barrier of visual culture to enhancing assimilation of culture diversity on the on the basis of impact of current culture in the lives of people.

The current culture has had significant impacts on the lives of people with reference to the cultures of the other people. This creates the idea of differences between various cultures. In addition, there has been an increasing tendency to make comparison and contrast, which only lead to the widening of the gap between different cultures. Consequently, it becomes difficult for the viewers or receivers to interpret visual culture on a neutral ground. The lack of neutrality continues to widen the gap between various cultures, which make visual culture to be a barrier in the assimilation of cultural diversities.

Nevertheless, Rose (25) and Dikovistskaya (71) argue that through visual culture viewers and receivers have been