Usually differences of ethnics, cultures and religions lead to sorts of misunderstanding between people from different societies. People are usually judged according to their behavior in public spaces which might be a result of their culture, education, or social class. An article, “The Arab world” (1996), written by Edward T. Hall, an American anthropologist and writer, discusses the cultural misconceptions between Americans and the Arabs. The article points many of social behaviors acted by Arab individuals that seem weird and sometimes astonishing and inconvenient to the Americans and Westerners. In addition, Hall includes examples of plenty of social behaviors that he thinks are the theme of the Arabic culture along with few personal experiences that led him to conclude that it is really difficult for Europeans and Americans to understand Arabs. Despite the presence of some good points, the article is greatly biased and prejudiced against Arabs, and it is clearly noticed that the author has a misconception of the Arabic and Middle Eastern culture.
To begin with, although some of the points mentioned in his article are valid, most of the author’s thoughts are assumptions that are not supported by evidence, researches, statistics or even individual studies. Hall heavily depends on his limited personal experience with some Arab people or so he thinks. He stereotypes these experiences on all Arabs and concludes that Arabs are much different from Americans and are difficult to be easily understood. Hall states that the concept of privacy is not really present in the Arabian thought. In the “Arab World” Edward T. Hall explains his point of view by mentioning a personal experience where he got irritated while sitting in an empty h...
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...trusion, which is more likely the case in most civilized societies. Stopping dangerous action in streets is a civilized behavior is not only acted by Arabs, but by any individual who cares about the safety of people of his society.
All things considered, I think that the author formed a far from reality negative opinion about Arabs in his mind through events he experienced with some Arabs. It is quite unjust to judge around 350 million Arabic individual occupying 22 countries spread along 2 continents based on few personal experience. Arabic culture – just like any other culture – has negative sides as well as many positive sides. People should stop prejudicing others and start learning to think deeply before making judgments.
Works Cited
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Sabbagh, S. J., & American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee, W. C. (1990). Sex, Lies, & Stereotypes: The Image of Arabs in American Popular Fiction. ADC Issue Paper No. 23. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Sex Discrimination in the American Workplace: Still a Fact of Life. (2000, July 01). Retrieved from National Women's Law Center : www.nwlc.org
... another post 9/11. Furthermore, through both Amaney Jamal excerpt Civil Liberties and the Otherization of Arab and Muslim Americans (chapter four), and Nadine Naber excerpt Arab Americans and U.S. Racial Formations (Introduction), we see just how this clash came about pre and post 9/11. That while the aftermath of 9/11 saw the rise in the racialization of Muslim and Arab Americans, we must not forget that these groups of people were not so much invisible due to the fact that America (i.e. “dominant mainstream” (Jamal 119)) has always viewed those they deem as “other” (i.e. minority) as inferior. Due to this framework, they have racialized any group of people that are not considered American as “other.” However (as stated) following an event like 9/11, the racialization of Muslims and Arabs Americans became perpetuated more so; and at an even more dangerous level.
Has the New York Times negatively stereotyped Arab Muslims for the past forty years? The goal of this research project is to reveal the negative stereotypes directed towards Arab Muslims in the New York Times. The critical focus of the research is the consistency of the negative stereotypes. The underlying focus is what theoretical and historical effects result from the negative stereotypes.
Hourani, Albert. A History of the Arab Peoples. Cambridge, MA: Belknap of Harvard UP, 1991. Print.
The last decade has brought two blatant changes to American civilizations in particular and Western civilizations in general. The first is a greater concern about Islam and Muslims, and the second is a much highly visibility of Muslims within those civilizations. Numerous people may have imagined that there weren’t many Muslims living in their communities until recently, but now, one can see visibly Muslim persons often in their veils or robes, walking the streets, shopping in the cities, and going to the schools (Saeed, 2007). There is no doubt that the increased visibility of Muslims has been a matter of some interest (allen,2010). The French have banned people wearing markers of Muslim religion, such as the hijab and niqab, in public, and many Americans have protested against mosques and other expressions of the religion. In addition, numerous Westerners have a stereotyped image of Muslim visibility, for instance, assuming that all Muslim females wear the same style and color, of garb (Ameli & Merali, 2004) Many Westerners associate the visibility of Muslims with non-Western and anti-Western culture and beliefs, including the oppression of women, and therefore hold a very negative attitude and view toward it and them (Briggs, Fieschi, & Lownsbrough, 2006).
The moving caravan of overused stereotypes has been traveling behind the camera for centuries now. It has adopted the culture and color of everywhere it has been, but the final print of this reel project is black and white. Hollywood over the years, has continued to misrepresent the enriched Arab culture and the religion of Islam and it’s people with degrading stereotypes shown in movies which a tremendous amount of viewers watch, questioning the integrity of arabs and muslims. I have been researching this topic due to the complexity of power behind these images we see throughout movies. The question bounces around in my head and I have a hard time understanding why the same stereotypes are continuously used, over and over again. It’s proof that orientalism still exists in modern day, and it affects how people may see Arabs and muslims.
Imagine getting off the plane for the very first time after living the majority of your life in a Muslim country. The first sight you see is a couple being publicly affectionate. This is my grandmother’s very first encounter on Canadian soil. To any Western this is a social norm, but to an Arab woman it is a cultural shock, which is perceived as uncomfortable at the least. Although she is closed minded, it partially is not her fault, as I have lived with her in Tehran and Dubai –two Muslim cities located in the Persian Gulf and the Middle East. (PDA) Public display of affection is forbidden in these two countries. To me public affection is not just “…people making out and touching each other inappropriately…” it is the respect you have for your self and the people around you that is brought about through your identity. (Davis).
America’s role in the establishing of Israel marked the beginning of resentment among many Arabs and Muslims communities (Evara, Stratmann & Natta 2007). With this political stand, the US was forced to adopt policies that conflicted with major political movements in the region, namely secular pan-Arabism and Islamic fundamentalism. Egypt was on the forefront pushing for the first movement; it described its position on the Middle East and the rest of the world. Both the movements called for unity among the Muslim and Arabic community. Consequently they alienated the western countries, to an extent of advocating for violence. In 1991 the relationship was complicated further when the US led the gulf war against Iraq. However the more recent September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on America soil hig...
Joyce, James. "Araby." 1914. Literature and Ourselves. Henderson, Gloria, ed. Boston, Longman Press. 2009. 984-988.
The omnipresence of the American and European culture in the countries of the Middle East is a universally recognized phenomenon. The culture, thoughts and status quo of the people have been and continually are being changed and challenged due the mass spread of American goods and ideas. The American national culture largely revolves around the wants, needs and goals of the individual. As the one of the greatest superpowers of the time, its influence on the global community towards the focus on the individual is nothing short of inevitable. The movies, clothing and new age mentality of America are sending all people regardless of age, upbringing and locale, into a grand scale social transition. The Arabs and Muslims beliefs, traditions and entire state of being are no longer as they were 20 or 30 years ago. The women of the novels, Nadia, Fatima, Umm Saad, Maha, Asya, and Su’ad, each living in various Arab countries with unique situations of their own, all are united on the common ground of American introduced idea and concepts of individualism through such venues as feminism, capitalism, sexism and consumerism which adversely affect their society.
As I started growing up, I decided to conquer those misconceptions and correct them by myself. I began building various relationships with Khaleejis; day by day, I discovered that those notions in mind were all wrong. The Khaleejis fascinated me with how friendly they are as they accept people from other nationalities and get along with them quickly; I found myself highly welcomed in their circle of friends. They never showed any restrictions or placed any barriers in their relationships with others. For example, in the previous term, I decided to join the Khaleeji Club at AUD and volunteer in the National Day. I had no trouble at all joining the club; in fact, my work was remarkably appreciated by the group members as they were proud that a foreigner like me is so loyal to their society. I gained numerous friends from that club; even though the event is over, everyone in the group is still in touch which portrays how gregarious their society is. Also, they are not close-minded as presumed; the Khaleejis are just preservative as they like to hold on their traditions and customs which show their identity. However, when it comes to discussing thoughts or having debates, everyone is ready to listen closely and respect the other’s point of view. As a demonstration, I once had a debate with a Khaleeji friend about mixed
Glazer, S. (1996, July 19). Crackdown on sexual harassment. CQ Researcher, 6, 625-648. Retrieved from http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/
He emphasizes the fact that he is an American as well as a Muslim several times in the article by using phrases such as “as an American myself” and “even though you are part of us (Muslims) and we are a part of you”. His purpose in doing so is to notify the audience that he is not accusing Americans of anything because he belongs to the same group. The writer even agrees that the beliefs Americans have about Islam are justifiable to establish a common ground with the reader. For the first premise, he concurs that it might be perplexing for the audience to believe Muslims are not violent when the media only focuses the extremists of Islam. This general agreement allows him to gradually reveal his statement that the numerous brutalities occurring in Middle Eastern countries are ignored due to media’s biased portrayal. He also makes the bold statement that the political and military systems of the United States contradict with their principles of freedom and human rights and they are the initiators of many Islamic extremist groups. He manages to state this claim without scaring the readers off by agreeing that Muslims also play an integral part in creating them. This technique of agreeing on certain points ensures that the writer does not intimidate the readers. The writer tackles this controversial issue carefully and succeeds in convincing the readers that
Sexual harassment in the workplace has been a huge problem in recent history. It can happen to anyone, and it can happen everywhere. It can affect all types of races, genders and ages. Statistics today show that more and more sexual harassment has become an issue due to the large number of cases presented. Mainstream media becomes consumed covering sexual harassment because of the high-profile cases.