As my weekend trip to Canada comes to an end, I can't help but think of all those American-made stereotypes of Canadians. The most popular ones describe our northern allies as brainless eskimos, alcoholics, white-trash, hockey adorers and obsessive syrup consumers. Oh, how can I forget the over-usage of "eh"?Due to the fact that none of the listed stereotypes are true, it's easy for an avid traveler to Canada such as I to forget. In fact, the vast majority of these stereotypes are false. The only ones that come to mind that might be true are the ones that mention their different pronunciations of certain words. Other than that, I can safely say that all others are not valid. The funny thing is that Canadians are so much like us Americans. We both cherish freedom, value education and Canadians almost always take the same political stance as the general consensus of the US (meaning they are neither right nor left-leaning).
When I tell people that I am going to Canada, I almost always get a funny look. Typical responses include, but are not limited to: "Watch out for polar bears", "Why would you waste your time up there?", "Fail", "Don't forget your parka" and even "Bring me back some beer". Even though I'm very much entertained by these laughably ignorant comments, I don't know if the feeling is mutual with the Canadians themselves. Many of my northern relatives used to highly respect the American population. Thanks to a series of nasty stereotypes becoming more and more accepted in American media (which gets plenty of air-time north of the border), many Canadians have developed stereotypes of us. Now, we have become the butt of the joke. I just hope that tensions don't surmount the great, long-standing relationship we have with the Canadian government.I thought this video would be a great example of what Americans think of a number of different countries:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZMwKPmsbWE
I believe your statement, I just hope that tensions don't surmount the great, long-standing relationship we have with the Canadian government" is a little too late. I found an article that helps provide my opinion. The article, "U.S. warned of 'insidious' stereotypes on Canadian TV, WikiLeaks shows", Clark states that American's have already started a "new war" with Canada. On shows like The Border and Little Mosque on the Prairie provide, '“the kind of insidious negative popular stereotyping we are up against in Canada'". To add to your comment Jason, the United States is aware of the importance of keeping Canada's long-lasting relationship. The article also notes, "U.S. officials not only mentioning the inferiority complex, but explaining to colleagues in Washington the U.S.’s “overwhelming” importance to Canada and complaining about the increasingly negative stereotypes of the U.S. government on Canadian TV'".Overall, I think it is impossible to eliminate stereotypes throughout the world. The article website: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/us-warned-of-insidious-stereotypes-on-canadian-tv-wikileaks-shows/article1820643/
ReplyDeleteI agree! I think it's absolutely ridiculous what the stereotypes of Canada have become. I go to camp in Ontario and it is ridiculous some of the things I hear when I tell people I'm going. I used to believe that they were all pointless, but recently I noticed that while Canadians learn all about American history, it is barely mentioned in our American textbooks. So while these jokes of Canada used to be harmless, I wonder if something is truly changing? Do Americans really believe that we are so superior that we allow ourselves to be ignorant about our neighbors?
ReplyDeleteHi Jason,
ReplyDeleteThis seems to be a good start for an effective blog post, but is not quite there yet. Think about how you could better reference the video in the heart of the post. Instead, it just feels like an afterthought.
Too much of this feels like just interesting personal observations. How does this relate to larger American themes or something current in the news? Links to other sources might anchor this better.