Ethnic Stereotyping Research Paper

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Ethnic Stereotyping
Every day, millions of people wake up in a country where the dominant language is not
their own, where signs are a confusing assortment of symbols that they do not understand and
something as simple as buying lunch can become a complicated ordeal. Through watching a
foreign language television program, one can only begin to grasp the confusion that is sometimes
caused by not understanding what anyone is saying. I watched a Japanese serial drama, which I
believe was titled "Misaki Number One." While there were certainly moments in which I felt
that I could understand the actors' emotions, everything else was largely a mystery.
Facial expressions play a large role in how we interpret other's moods and give more
meaning to …show more content…

There are certainly attitudes and emotions that can be expressed by a
smile outside of happiness, such as pride. A smile can even accompany teasing or be considered
mocking in its own right. For example, smiling after saying something hateful is not an obvious
expression of glee.
A second type of expression that can be perplexing is sarcasm and everything that comes
with it. I am not positive if every culture expresses sarcasm or even if most do, but Americans
tend to use sarcasm quite often. Even those with a slight understanding of a language do not
easily understand sarcasm. The tone of voice is generally the only indicator that someone is
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being sardonic instead of serious. Sarcasm, however, is even more difficult to grasp when one
cannot understand the language. I picked up what I thought was a sarcastic tone multiple times
in "Misaki Number One," but the tone certainly could have been something else.
A third cue is body language. Japanese people seem less emotive in certain types of
signals and downright bizarre in others. For example, women tend to cover their mouths when
they laugh or smile, which seems very odd on the surface. My understanding of Japanese …show more content…

Finally, the Japanese language lends itself to a certain confidence. While I cannot be
certain, Japanese seems to be made up of mostly declarative statements. When the actors were
speaking, they seemed very assertive and even dominant in cases; this notion runs very counter
to the stereotype of Japanese people being shy. Of course, one would seem very shy if they did
not fully understand a local language and therefor spoke little, which is most likely where the
stereotype began during the early days of Japanese immigration.
While there are obvious cues one can garner from expressions, language is essential to
understanding other people. What is a normal expression in one region might be completely
meaningless in another, or mean something different entirely. Having experienced living and
working in a country where I did not understand or speak the local language, I have great
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sympathy for immigrants across the world in a similar position. Also having learned a second
language, I am not a supporter of the concept that any immigrant should learn the local language.
Learning a language can be expensive, exhausting, and difficult. The benefits

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