What is a cultural stereotype? What kinds of stereotypes can you remember? What cultural stereotypes can be found in the documentary “Stephen Fry in America”?

Cultural stereotype – allusion or reference to a generalised kind of cultural information. These are beliefs, values, attitudes or principles specific to a certain national, rather than the international, community. Kinds: Cultural stereotypes are usually intimately connected with the country’s history, economy, and politics, and are the products thereof.

Examples:

Positive stereotypes

• Fry about primaries in New Hampshire: all Americans have a sense of connection and pride about their democratic beginnings, involvement in the democratic process.

• Jimmy Wales: American culture is built on old inspirational values. Freedom of speech, the idea that ordinary people can come together and build something, can-do spirit.

Negative stereotypes

• The U.S. government is associated with “ venality, corruption, incompetence, lying, cheating, philandering, filibustering, gerrymandering. ” This stereotype is reflected in the performances of satirical groups like Capitol Steps.

Other stereotypes

• Ice-cream is “as American as Apple Pie”

• Jimmy Wales is thought to be rich because of the grand scale of Wikipedia project, as noted by Fry “I'm not talking to one of the famous dotcom billionaires then?” In reality, Wikipedia is a non-profit organization, only ten people work on it, others are volunteers.

5) What is an assumption? What is a belief from an intercultural perspective? What assumptions and beliefs can be found in the documentary “Stephen Fry in America”?

Cultural stereotypes include beliefs, values, attitudes or principles specific to a certain national, rather than the international, community.

Assumption - a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof (OED). Assumptions: certain expectations from something; somebody is expected to do something or to behave in this or that way in certain kind of situations. Some phrases mean different assumptions for people from different countries. For example, for a Russian ‘cup of tea’ means a hot drink accompanied by a wide variety of cakes, various snacks, while for an American this phrase means just that – a cup of tea, with, perhaps, a lonely cookie for company.

Belief - something one accepts as true or real; a firmly held opinion (OED).

Stephen Fry in America

Assumptions

Big portions of food. Ben and Jerry’s ice-cream has real pieces, chunks, not just little bits, big hunks of chocolate.

Maine, Eastport - the lobster capital of the world.

New Hampshire is well-known for its role in the US presidential primaries.

Groton in Connecticut is home to the US Navy nuclear submarine force,

Newport, Rhode Island - enormous houses, or cottages as the rich call them. Now, they're mostly owned by the Preservation Trust that tries to keep them from falling down because the kind of multi-billionaires who live now don't want to live in this style.

Old money is "the inherited wealth of established upper-class families" or "a person, family, or lineage possessing inherited wealth". The term typically describes a class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, often referring to perceived members of the de facto aristocracy in societies which for historical reasons lack an officially established aristocratic class.

New York – a lot of immigrants. Manhattan is just being cleansed of a lower and middle class that are moving out to Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. Queens – mostly Italians. The British here are pretty invisible, they don't look like a community. The only place you'll find them in numbers is one of the pubs downtown if there's football on.

Atlantic City is the gambling capital of the eastern seaboard.

Delawareans will tell you proudly that theirs was the first state to be incorporated into the Union.

Washington DC is a mix of imposing architecture, nationalistic symbols, broad boulevards, the 19th century grandeur of Lincoln's memorial, the White House and Capitol Hill. It feels more European, a product of the enlightenment. Politics is the main industry here.

 

Beliefs

Democracy. All Americans have a sense of great connection and pride about their democratic beginnings, and their sense of being involved in the democratic process (politics on the stump, house parties).

Freedom. Witchcraft is a legal religion in the USA (Salem).

Freedom of speech. Satirical groups make fun of the US politicians (Washington DC).

Equality. All men are created equal (American dream).

Gender equality. There is only one submarine force left that hasn't incorporated women because there isn't room for extra facilities and so on.

Business. Two hippies started making ice-cream in Vermont (Ben and Jerry’s). Ordinary

people can come together and build something - can-do spirit (Wikipedia).

Strong puritan work ethic. You have to work hard to achieve success. (Hard workers in Maine).

Money. People still aspire to enormous wealth, money's not a bad thing. Puritans were not afraid of money at all.

Simplicity. One of the many things one can say about America is that Americans dislike complexity, so they will make simple solutions to everything that they possibly can. Even when the complex answer is obviously the correct answer, or intriguing answer, they want a simple yes or no.

 

 

6) Comment on some of the mainstream American values. (Where Russians go wrong …, Stephen Fry in America or individual answers)

Stephen Fry in America.

Beliefs:

Democracy. All Americans have a sense of great connection and pride about their democratic beginnings, and their sense of being involved in the democratic process (politics on the stump, house parties).

Freedom. Witchcraft is a legal religion in the USA (Salem).

Freedom of speech. Satirical groups make fun of the US politicians (Washington DC).

Equality. All men are created equal (American dream).

Gender equality. There is only one submarine force left that hasn't incorporated women because there isn't room for extra facilities and so on.

Business. Two hippies started making ice-cream in Vermont (Ben and Jerry’s). Ordinary

people can come together and build something - can-do spirit (Wikipedia).

Strong puritan work ethic. You have to work hard to achieve success. (Hard workers in Maine).

Money. People still aspire to enormous wealth, money's not a bad thing. Puritans were not afraid of money at all.

Simplicity. One of the many things one can say about America is that Americans dislike complexity, so they will make simple solutions to everything that they possibly can. Even when the complex answer is obviously the correct answer, or intriguing answer, they want a simple yes or no.

 

Where Russians go wrong in spoken English

Positive Thinking means possessing a relentlessly positive attitude towards life and other people, the belief, that, thought there may be setbacks, in the long run things will work out. In America a whiner is a loser. You should show a positive face to the world. positive thinking is reflected in the language: life-affirming experience, downsizing/ rationalizing. An American is told to keep smiling. The American attitude is “better luck next time”.

Individualism. For the American, everything in life depends on the individual, who must shoulder full responsibility for his words and actions and “go for the gold”. Blaming others or one’s surroundings for various misfortunes wins no sympathy.

Aggressive self-presentation. Everyone should look healthy and energetic. At job interviews you have to present yourself in a positive light, self-praise.

Consumerism. Positive thinking is continually fueled by a consumer culture. An unhappy client will not make purchases or buy a house. One goal of advertising is to make undesirable and useless products look desirable and useful.

America feels it controls its own destiny. In a society based on individualism, each person bears ultimate responsibility for his life and actions. An individual cannot assign responsibility to someone else or to external forces (The buck stops here). In America a fatalist is considered to be a passive, lazy individual. In America the linguistic-cultural universe stresses the active, positive, rational an predictable nature of an individual’s life. “Fate” is applied to individual episodes (She was not fated to marry him). To indicate a positive fate they use the word “destiny” (He was destined to be elected president). In Russian fate is irreversible and inexorable.

 

The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States, the set of ideals (Democracy, Rights, Liberty, Opportunity, and Equality) in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward social mobility for the family and children, achieved through hard work in a society with few barriers. The American Dream is rooted in the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims that "all men are created equal" with the right to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

 

7) Comment on some of the mainstream English values. (Where Russians go wrong…, Stephen Fry in America or individual answers)

 

Lynn Visson:

1) Think positive, show a positive face

• fine/great (Great, see you on Tuesday. It was great to see you.)

• keep smiling

2) Everything in life depends on the individual

• Tomorrow is another day.

• Go for the gold.

• Believe in yourself.

3) Tendency to be honest and straightforward

• fraud and lies are unacceptable

• Вы говорите неправду rendered as “That’s not the case/not true/ I think you are wrong/in error/mistaken.”

• Ой, вру! (когда ошиблись) – I’m mistaken/that’s wrong/sorry.

• I don’t doubt your word…

4) Active attitude towards life. Americans don’t believe in the power of fate

• Don’t just stand there, do something!

 

 

8) How do the English/ Americans/ Russians come across abroad? (Where Russians go wrong … or individual answers)