Saudi and US cultures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Saudi and US cultures - Essay Example We don’t know each other personally, but at least the Sheik who connects us. If someone from the tribe has a problem, he will collect money from people who want to contribute. The role of everyone in the tribe is to support his\her relatives because the more together we are, the stronger we become. In America, however, people’s family usually just refers to their immediate, â€Å"nuclear† family – or maybe to grandparents. Many people with the same name do not consider themselves related. So Saudis have a broader conception of family than Americans do. Another different thing is a wedding. Saudi Arabia’s weddings cost men an arm and a leg because they have many obligations before and after the marriage. For example, men must pay a dowry for women, who they want to marry, which costs them at least seventy thousand riyal (more than seventeen thousand dollars). Also, the expense of the honeymoon is all on men which is going to cost around twenty thousand Rails (six thousand dollars). In America, however, weddings can be whatever the couple wants and can afford, and often costs are split amongst the people getting married. It is less formal (sometimes) and also subject to a lot of different cultural or religious values, whereas in Saudi Arabia things tend to operate in a similar way every time. People there get married at earlier ages. The average age of marriage is between 23 and 25 years old, so this amount of money is not easy to get. In other words, when a starting salary is your primary income, this dowry is difficult to make. In this situation, you need support from your relative, and they always do help. For instance, when my brother got married three years ago, he received a total of sixty thousand Rails (sixteen thousand dollars) from our relatives. We call that a marriage support. Without needing this money, American people can get married whenever they can