eXPLORING STEREOTYPES
Exploring Stereotypes
Stereotypes are just stereotypes, and all of them are not 100% true, smart person should understand, that they are based on something real. Being a smart person, in that case, means do not stereotype everybody under the same line, but be able to understand and distinguish what the nature and reasons of the stereotype are. Being a foreigner in USA, I have had to struggle against stereotyping because of my nationality. The same way in the Se Habla Espanol novel, Tanya Barrientos shows the same way of stereotyping based on ethnicity. This paper will explore some stereotypes in popular culture and what impact they may have on people.
Another way people are stereotyped similar to nationality, is by their ethnicity. This kind of stereotyping is demonstrated by Barrientos in her novel ”Se Habla Espanol”. Besides being stereotyped by other people because of her Latino background, being kept away from her ethnic identity, made her struggle and stereotype herself because of Latino roots. Barrientos states, “To me, speaking Spanish translated into be poor. It meant waiting tables and cleaning hotel rooms”. She always was happy when her surrounding told her, that she did not seem Hispanic. The author states that comments, such as “It made me feel American. It made me feel white”, and others. That sad story of Tanya Barrientos life shows how significantly stereotypes can cause an individual to doubt its own identity and challenge themselves.
The media is the most common and influential way to widespread stereotypes. Recent Disney’s movie The Lone Ranger brought a huge controversy between Native American community and filmmakers. The new image of Tonto, the way he looks, the way he acts, his broken English, ominous music and many other things became very offensive to a lot of people. That stereotypical portrayal of Indians in The Lone Ranger has become a source of anger and disappointment to many Native American people, who treated Tonto as their
Stereotypes are just stereotypes, and all of them are not 100% true, smart person should understand, that they are based on something real. Being a smart person, in that case, means do not stereotype everybody under the same line, but be able to understand and distinguish what the nature and reasons of the stereotype are. Being a foreigner in USA, I have had to struggle against stereotyping because of my nationality. The same way in the Se Habla Espanol novel, Tanya Barrientos shows the same way of stereotyping based on ethnicity. This paper will explore some stereotypes in popular culture and what impact they may have on people.
Another way people are stereotyped similar to nationality, is by their ethnicity. This kind of stereotyping is demonstrated by Barrientos in her novel ”Se Habla Espanol”. Besides being stereotyped by other people because of her Latino background, being kept away from her ethnic identity, made her struggle and stereotype herself because of Latino roots. Barrientos states, “To me, speaking Spanish translated into be poor. It meant waiting tables and cleaning hotel rooms”. She always was happy when her surrounding told her, that she did not seem Hispanic. The author states that comments, such as “It made me feel American. It made me feel white”, and others. That sad story of Tanya Barrientos life shows how significantly stereotypes can cause an individual to doubt its own identity and challenge themselves.
The media is the most common and influential way to widespread stereotypes. Recent Disney’s movie The Lone Ranger brought a huge controversy between Native American community and filmmakers. The new image of Tonto, the way he looks, the way he acts, his broken English, ominous music and many other things became very offensive to a lot of people. That stereotypical portrayal of Indians in The Lone Ranger has become a source of anger and disappointment to many Native American people, who treated Tonto as their