Differences in a culture vs stereotype.

[ReFur]

Many times in various posts, a nationality will be grouped together as being "one attitude" For instance, someone saying "that is so American." When Americans read that we laugh. Because we know how very different we are. It is like saying that London represents the UK, or there is not difference in some from England and Ireland.

 

I thought this might be a good topic to help different countries understand how one country or area of the world differs so much.

 

For instance in US a person in New York, Dallas, Chicago, or LA would have different views. In the US a person that lives in a small town has a very different view that one who lives in a city. A person who grows up in an ethnic neighborhood would have a very different experience than someone who grew up in the suburbs. A person who is of a different race will view things differently within the same country.

 

Also, age and sex will cause different generations to view the world so differently. If you have lived outside the US you again will have a different view of the world and the United States. If you are a second generation American you will also view the world differently.

 

I am sure this is true in the UK and Europe.

 

I would love to hear how different cultures and areas of the world differ.

 

Hopefully we can learn more about each other this way.

 

Please limit your comments to YOUR country and how you see differences. I will be moderating for this!

 

Linda

[Ravens8]

Erm........ I dont understand Linda,.....Are you trying to tell me that London DOESN'T represent the UK?

 

OMG I've been living in a bubble of ignorance all my life

[Ravens8]

Seriously though ( and that last post WAS tongue in cheek guys, before all you Yorkshire people, Cornwall people, and everyone else, not forgetting the Welsh of course, write me pms on that).

 

seriously though, I think for this to be meaningfull there need to be categories to compare, otherwise its too broad. What those categories are I've no idea. Even then categories would vary in the way Linda points out.

 

It's an interesting idea though, so if anyone has some ideas as to how we can compare cultures like for like, perhaps we could get this going.

 

Irrespective of whether we understand or misunderstand other cultures, I think the important thing is tolerance. And it's here that many Western cultures seem to go wrong. You dont hear many other countries trying to impose their cultural beliefs and lifestyles on others, (except maybe for infingements with their border- sharing neighbours, and yet the wealthy Western countries seem to assume that they can export their culture to others, if not militarily then by stealth through trade.

 

I'm not singling out the US for this. The Uk is grossly guilty of this, (the empire for example) , as are many other European countries. It tends to be the wealthy ones bent on continued growth that requires greater and greater resources that are the culprits.

 

In many cases this is not intentional intolerance, but it is intolerance nevertheless. A greater knowledge and understanding of each others national characterirstics and cultures, can only be a good thing.

 

Who knows Linda, you may have sown a seed that may one day influence governments. And it started here on the fur den. .

[White Fox]

We in Canada are just like the US actually eh?

 

We colour our language in just the same way, and spell things the same and such. We both drive about the same number of kilometers to get to our food stores and up until modern times would give our kids a swat with the meter stick.

 

Actually in 1812 we were at war with the Long Knives but it turned out to be a draw. Well, there was that little thing where we burned the American White House and kidnapped the president for a day eh? You would not believe it but they painted that burned out old house white, and it has stayed that way ever since. We thought it would be a good joke to give them their president back eh, but they still haven't realized that was a joke.

 

Well, we took pity on them and left. We really wanted that war to be a draw because we wanted to keep driving to Florida to spend our winters.

 

White Fox

 

P.S. I'll reply in more detail later. Sorry Linda. It really is a good topic here for a genuine post. It is just that I could not resist. I'll make a proper reply later. A more serious one.

[ReFur]

John,

 

I know how very different Canada is than the US stereotype. I actually think that where you live in Canada and where I live in Michigan has more similarities than many places inside the US.

 

When I lived in the Middle East most thought my accent was Canadian.

 

As for cultures impressing their beliefs on other cultures. I agree it is wrong. But, sadly this did not occur when one of our countries was founded. Look through our history. Over and over again we repeat the same mistakes.

 

I need to better explain the original meaning of this thread. This is not a thread of how we disagree with other countries and cultures, or even what is wrong with them. The intent of this thread is about how we explain how our own cultures are different than our stereotype. Does that make it clearer, ravens8?

 

Linda

[White Fox]

Still only have a few minutes here, but...

 

One of the things that strikes one so much as you travel through Europe, is that when you cross a border, suddenly the colour of the roofs change. Indeed, people who live so close together think differently, and it is not always easy to separate out all to understand each other.

 

I told someone just this morning. An old Lawyer friend of mine used to talk about his trips to England. He said " You can go to a place once and actually learn quite about it. Go a second time and learn a lot more. It is not until you have lived there for a few months or visited it many times more that you mind begins to become clouded by the facts!

 

And in regards to my message above, I am sure none here will take that wrong. The US and Canada are on the best of terms and will be for a long, long time. (Even after we kidnapped their president! ) It is surprising how minor our differences are and yet they are there. And one thing one learns from traveling across our vast countries is the huge differences in people in these lands. As Linda mentioned, they are probably closer to us in our way of living than many people in Canada!

 

But... it is those differences that make places great in the long run. Be it Europe, US and Canada, or South America. We can all learn from one another.

 

W

[ReFur]

I am resurrecting this thread.

 

There is one rule: Only post about YOUR culture - Not what you think about another culture. Politics is not part of this.

 

The thread will be moderated for violations!! This is my thread. If you want to start your own please feel free. Just don't hijack mine. 8)

 

We want to learn what different stereotypes are "right-on" and which ones are not.

 

I am hoping this thread can be fun and enlightening. Maybe we could even find some YouTube videos that could be on topic?

 

Thanks, Linda

[MrC1946]

Regarding White Fox's post: It was easy after all to kidnap President Madison. He was so short you could fit him just about anywhere.

 

Of course if you Canadans really want to do your neibors a favor, how about kidnapping our present president?

 

I used to teach history as well as English. I would ask the students the question, "What was accomplished in the War of 1812?" The correct answer was "Absolutely nothing." The U.S. thought they could annex Canada (fat chance). Britan thought they could reconquer the U.S.(equally fat chance). And the Canadians were caught between two neurotic forces. The burning of Washington was a retaliation for the earlier burning of Ottowa. At least it let Dolly Madison become a hero by saving the national archives and artwork. And Francis Scott Key wrote "The Star Spangled Banner" at the Battle of Baltimore shortly thereafter. (A war is a big price to pay for a song.)

 

After doing considerable damage and killing several thousand people all parties signed a peace treaty which said nothing more than let's all stop shooting each other.

 

All the other issues (such as sea rights, relations with the Native Americans, boarder disputes, and trade issues) were settled with seperate treatys later.

 

Some things never seem to change.

 

MrC

[Guest]

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39922000/jpg/_39922745_stpirans203.jpg Edited April 28, 2007 by Guest

[JGalanos]

Message deleted.

Edited June 30, 2007 by Guest

[Guest]

Edited April 28, 2007 by Guest

[ReFur]

JGalanos,

 

I have never been to Little Rock. Would have never guessed! 8)

 

I knew the area was very beautiful.

 

TOS, I would say most believe clan pride is strong in your area. We in the US had a version you have probably heard of: The Hatefields and the McCoys. They were in the news recently:

 

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/04/05/hatfield.mccoy.disease.ap/index.html

 

Linda