Cultural Stereotypes
We live in a world where cultural stereotyping of any form is an extremely dangerous activity. This is a day and age of keywords like access, and meritocracy, where what is celebrated is 'difference' - with a positive spin. Every institution is supposed to show its diversity, and many often go to great lengths to do so. Symptomatic of this trend is the University of Michigan, who photoshopped one of its prominent black students among spectators at a football match which he just happened to not have attended.
Yet, in my time in the UK, and particularly the time spent working in the lodge, I am afraid to say that at the most general level at least, many of the stereotypes hold a grain of truth of them - and far more often than not, it is the negative rather than the positive stereotypes that fit this trend.
Most common among the widely held stereotypes is that of the rude chinese tourist. This has been borne out many a time at Trinity. A prime example is the group of tourists who had the nerve to open the main gates leading up the driveway from the outside and happily stroll down the lane - after realizing that the College was closed. It wasn't just the daring and utter lack of civility in doing something like that, an act that would be unimaginable for many others, it was utter lack of an attempt to show contrition or to apologize once they had been caught. Instead, they proceeded to insult me in mandarin, assuming I could not understand them. It is always unfair to generalize in any form, but it does seem that many chinese who travel overseas seem to have the attitude that the world should be beholden to them. Given this, it isn't all that surprising that they leave such a negative impression on people.
Indeed, this can be contrasted to the behaviour of other people I have seen over the past few days. British people tend to ask politely whether I knew which other Colleges were open and inquire as to when the College would open. Americans tended to be a bit pushier and would openly express disappointment and inquire whether there was really no way in which they could be let in. Others, particularly the Spanish and Italians would pretend not to see the sign walk in and either act dumb (you really are closed?) or brashly walk back out as if they hadn't done anything.
I am told that it is often fun to sit by a cafe window, enjoying a coffee and observing the people going past, how the human character truly illuminates itself. I do better - I sit in the lodge, warm and heated and I get paid to do it.
Yet, in my time in the UK, and particularly the time spent working in the lodge, I am afraid to say that at the most general level at least, many of the stereotypes hold a grain of truth of them - and far more often than not, it is the negative rather than the positive stereotypes that fit this trend.
Most common among the widely held stereotypes is that of the rude chinese tourist. This has been borne out many a time at Trinity. A prime example is the group of tourists who had the nerve to open the main gates leading up the driveway from the outside and happily stroll down the lane - after realizing that the College was closed. It wasn't just the daring and utter lack of civility in doing something like that, an act that would be unimaginable for many others, it was utter lack of an attempt to show contrition or to apologize once they had been caught. Instead, they proceeded to insult me in mandarin, assuming I could not understand them. It is always unfair to generalize in any form, but it does seem that many chinese who travel overseas seem to have the attitude that the world should be beholden to them. Given this, it isn't all that surprising that they leave such a negative impression on people.
Indeed, this can be contrasted to the behaviour of other people I have seen over the past few days. British people tend to ask politely whether I knew which other Colleges were open and inquire as to when the College would open. Americans tended to be a bit pushier and would openly express disappointment and inquire whether there was really no way in which they could be let in. Others, particularly the Spanish and Italians would pretend not to see the sign walk in and either act dumb (you really are closed?) or brashly walk back out as if they hadn't done anything.
I am told that it is often fun to sit by a cafe window, enjoying a coffee and observing the people going past, how the human character truly illuminates itself. I do better - I sit in the lodge, warm and heated and I get paid to do it.
posted by Caleb Liu | 12:33 PM
1 Comments:
Chinese tourists get a bad name everywhere they go. I wonder if they didn't react the way they did to you because you looked Chinese yourself. My mother was once verbally abused by a Chinese person for doing something that her white companions were also doing - and yet they didn't get so much as a second look.
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