American Stereotypes

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Yep, that Rick Mercer bit is definitely funny. But once in a while I got the feeling that the people he was talking to had their tongues firmly planted in their cheeks when they responded.

 

gotto love the kid "hang on, canada has got provinces!"

 

Well, don't ask New Zealanders anything about Australia. We know pretty much bugger all about our closest neighbor as well. All we know is that it is a country that is bigger than ours, is mostly desert, has next to no mountains and loves America... holy crap... sound like an opposite of Canada, huh?

 

That's a good point about languages. Sad to say, but it is true that most Americans do not have as strong a need as most Europeans to speak a second language. In Europe knowledge of foreign languages is almost essential, as you have close neighbors that speak other languages.

America only has two close neighbors - Canada and Mexico. Most Canadians are native English speakers. Those who are not, are typically native French speakers. However of the vast majority of the French Canadians I know (which granted isn't very many) alos speak passable English. So from Canada it isn't a problem.

Mexicans have Spanish as their predominant first language. But, just as is the case with the French Canadians, the vast majority of them speak passable English. If everyone you can have contact with on a regular basis can speak at least some English, then why learn other languages.

There is another element however in America that prevents people from speaking other languages fluently - since English is used so frequently, there is little chance to practice a foreign language. Take me for example. I studied German in both high school and college. However, one major problem is that I don't know anyone who speaks German. So, once it became unnecessary to speak German (as in when I no longer had the class), I stopped speaking it entirely, mostly because there was no one to speak it to. It has now been 10 years since there has been any need for me to know any German, and I can say with confidence, that I only remember a handful of German words, and barely remember basic sentence constructs.

 

Staying a tad off-topic, I have always thought the teaching of foreign languages here in the U.S. was pointless for exactly the same reason Aldeth mentions. We have no need for them and even less opportunities to use them. Sure some people love to travel and speak native. Good for them. I have already decided I'm going to push Little Snook away from foreign languages. Instead I'm planning on having him learn sign language. The parents of a kid in his grade are deaf and I figure he is far more likely to run into deaf people than non-english speakers.

 

Other than travel (which is a good reason to learn a foreign language), the other good reason is that it teaches you a whole lot more about your original language. Given that they don't seem to teach English properly at school anymore, most of what I know about verbs, adverbs, pronouns etc comes from my studies of French and Italian. But I agree about the sign language. Sign language is great to teach to babies because they can pick it up long before they can speak so you can communicate with them earlier. Sorry - going way off topic. Um, if more Americans learned foreign languages it would help them learn more about other countries too, which is something that they probably don't get to learn enough from TV or the news. Whenever I have been in the USA I have never been able to find anything out about major events in other parts of the world because all the news was so inward-looking.

 

The only time I have any real use of English at all is on this board and another one. Sometimes a book, fanfic or comic I read is in English. But thats about it. Absolutely no need to speak it in day-to-day life - other than trying to figure out what our advertisements or some job descriptions are about. Anglizisms are common there.
Trips to other countries wouldnt be enough to keep it alive. Actually, this board, some books etc. are a nice way to work on my English, work with it. Of course, I could avoid it but I choose not to. Knowing English (or any other language) will grant me a better understanding of the native speaker and his/her mentality.

I suppose its a personal choice to do something with the foreign languages learned in classes. Or letting them degenerate.

Then again the US folks are trapped, sort of. Most people will get what they are saying, there is little need to be bi/trilingual, little incentive to expand skills.
Some non-Americans feel there is no mutual interest and curiosity. And that in turn is viewed as rude, ignorant and arrogant, adding to the general resentment that we all know about.

[ August 17, 2004, 01:30: Message edited by: Dendri ]

 

As Aldeth pretty much implied, the same applies to Canada; even though we have two official languages (English and French), the reality is that, outside of Quebec, there is little need to know French, and even in Quebec, if you are in the major centres, you can get by with English-only.

 

The idea that Sweden has ever had the highest rate of suicides per capita is a complete lie invented by Lyndon B Johnson in a spech he held were he was trying to fling dirt at the swedish welfare state because it was socialist.

 

I know that Earl Grey, but you cannot deny that we are not the cheeriest bunch around and we are rather fond of our gloom and anxiety.

The myth have gained more momentum as Sweden and Japan I think are two of the few countries who accurately keep track of their suicide numbers so our are somewhat higher than most others.

Also what I read it was the GOP who started the smearing already before Johnson when there was a rather large movement in the US for moving left which used Sweden as a good example for a socialistic welfare which functioned.

 

Yes, joacqin, perhaps we aren't the cheeriest people on the earth.

Your info on the anti-swedish stuff sounds right, so I'll take your word for it.

 

Methinks that being more focussed on the inside is nothing bad at all. And as a result being not aware of the outside isn't something bad either. It only gets problematic if this is mixed with strong opinions about the outside and oneself compared with the outside. In this case, it can lead to a feeling or an impression of superiority manifested in presumptuous claims. The presumptuousness would then be fueled through the ignorance of the outside.

Just my small theory.

On the other hand, I can't understand this American insistence on being the freest country on the planet.

Everyone knows that Switzerland is the one and only freest country on the planet.

 

Nah, that would be Sweden. We are even so free that voluntarily relinquishes much of our lives to the government.

 

Regullus, I am so glad you made your post. I had the same experience in France that your friend had.
I was told by "intelligent" people that I would hate France because they hated us. I speak no French. Didn't try. Had a phrase book. I did not go on a tour. I went with a friend on a self-guided/planned tour. Met some very nice people. Will never forget a lady at a laundromat who spoke no English but was very helpful. Point is I had a ball and no social problems.

In England we did a self-planned bed & breakfast tour. People actually thanked us for coming because we went off the beaten track of the usual American tourist. Maybe the moral of this is if people from the USA would relax a little and try to get to know the "natives" they might like us a little more.

Italy was no problem because I have family from there. Well, actual a province of Sicily.