To begin, Ill stick with the positives. Whether we're dropping by the post office or shopping for groceries, we Americans are surprisingly comfortable with wearing our clothes typically reserved for bed out in public. (2) the interlocking nature of oppression; and (3) the importance of Afro-American women's culture. Now, I am not saying that America doesnt have its own cultural cues and certain ways that we act that makes us unique. Included 600 grams of cheese. - B.S. Given that the school-age Asian American population doubled in the . The reality doesn't match the ideal. The United States of America serves as the global symbol of 'madness' and 'non-stop chaos' in the best and worst ways possible. In many instances, the name of a coin will tell you something about how much it's worth. You don't see cheerleaders at the World Cup, do you? America gave birth to these two soulful genres and in my personal opinion from my search that is that the world is very glad, as these genres gave birth to rock, pop, rap, and hip-hop. } For example, we can look at Christmas from the perspective of someone who is not a part of American culture. The growth and diversification of the Asian American population in recent years has been nothing short of phenomenal. Mix it up using almond or coconut milk. teach well, it matters. My American studies courses here have given me the opportunity to observe America from an outsider's perspective and really get an understanding of what Europeans actually think of us. They rip up all of the paper covering the boxes, and leave a mess on the floor. In most countries outside the U.S., vacation time is a highly utilized way to get away from work for a few weeks (or even months) every year. "Body Rituals Among the Nacirema, " by Horace Miner, is an essay written about the Nacirema, or American people, from an outsider's perspective. } ); American culture, they help younger generations avoid changing their personalities to be accepted. Cultural relativism is not the same as moral relativism, however. It has hired big-name stars, including Soledad OBrien and Ali Velshi, from American networks. Such houses, I have observed, draw peoples eyes as they pass by. Eggs are a universal delicacy, but outside of the U.S., they are seldom stored in the fridge. Why go Tall when a Venti is just a dollar more? This one might seem obvious, but what if I told you that having a cup of hot cocoa is more than chocolate powder in warm milk? No, this isn't the standard bottle of wine in the States, but it's a common sight at any American supermarket or wine store and something you'd rarely encounter in the wine countries of the world like Italy or France. Hinton's young adult novel The Outsiders, stereotyping is a significant issue. Extra-Large Food Portions. And after 9/11, the world grieved with America. What may feel totally normal to Americans is often far from it for outsiders. However, if the commercial itself isn't clear, the long list of side effects the narrator rattles off at the end should at least tip them off. Warning: "continue" targeting switch is equivalent to "break".Did you mean to use "continue 2"? So much hard work gone to waste. as well as other partner offers and accept our. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Todd Beer, PhD, is a faculty member in the department of Sociology and Anthropology at Lake Forest College, a wonderful liberal arts college north of Chicago. xhr.setRequestHeader('Content-Type', 'text/plain;charset=UTF-8'); The way its often described to me is that Americans have a very "open mind", and that we can handle having a lot of different people around, even when we don't agree. Covering the United States this way means, for starters, reporting on subjects like infant mortality. As the stage moves on, Claudette has managed to separate a little more of herself from wolf culture by saying "I used my new motor skills. This extraordinary insight highlights the power that outsiders have, forcing us to see ourselves from an altogether different perspective. When Al Jazeera becomes a major U.S. cable channel, as it plans, some Americans are likely to click past it, recalling the alleged anti-American tone by the pan-Arab network during the Iraq war a decade ago, CNN wrote in a not atypical comment. Sure, fried chicken is hardly a foreign conceptbut try explaining chicken-fried steak or deep-fried Oreos to a non-American. Does the eating of the man-shaped biscuits represent some sacrifice? The small and thin trees with exposed branches are often not given a second look and are left with the person selling the trees. Yes, we Americans admittedly like to go big or go homeand when foreigners come to visit, this is a concept that they quickly notice. There's an undercurrent of savagery and violence waiting to be expressed on a grand scale it seems, and I believe it's because American culture is unwittingly pushing for complete atomization of society, people can no longer rely on the elite for virtuous principles and leadership, and that people are starting to realize that . For those who are used to a more leisurely meal with little interruption, all of those check-ins and the waiter's eagerness to bring the bill can be a bit grating. The Socs live on the west side and are known as the west side rich kids who have all the breaks. -- Nionvox, and extreme violence/gore is considered normal, and shown regularly on TV. In every public surveyed - including the U.S. - people ages 18 to 29 are more likely than those ages 65 and older to rate U.S. entertainment as above average or the best. Water, whiskey, sodaif it can be sipped, we put ice in it. Hash browns or home fries? By Beth Anne Macaluso, Adam Schubak and Kara Ladd. You might have been counting down the days until spring, but make the most of these chilly and cloudy days. An etic view of a culture is the perspective of an outsider looking in. We like to eat when we like to eatand if that means going to Denny's at 3 a.m., so be it. An Outsider Looks at Life in America. People are nice but superficial. Remembering that practices are driven by the culture someone is situated in, including our very own practices, is key to avoiding ethnocentrism the mistaken belief that your culture is the standard by which others should be compared. And what do you think of when you think of a typical American? One could almost call them obsessed, as some houses have giant men, white bears, and black and white birds puffed full of air in front of their houses. - Pedro Ivan Gonzalez, 35, Havana, "Technology makes Americans American." [email protected] +44 0330 027 0207 or +1 (818) 532-6908 . Non-Americans of reddit, what aspect of American culture strikes you as the strangest. While many Americans feel their nation is divided as never before, a sampling of the rest of the world reflects a more charitable view. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. . It seems that the boxes were for them all along, not another being or deity. To find out, I thought that I should get a view from the outside of the proverbial white picket fenced, good ol Murican home. First, I began pondering this when I couldnt really think of anything distinctly American. The Outsiders was written by a teenager about teenagers. Once the family has picked out their rather plump tree, they have to go through the challenging and exhausting task of bringing it back to their home. NEW YORK Al Jazeera wants to make its name as American as pizzaburgers. The foreign gaze makes Al Jazeera America treat nothing as obvious. The only way to properly do this is to be comfortable, because why relax when you could relax? I also like a challenge. It's baffling. Suppose we have two cultures in presence. Most European travelers expect to place their order and then be done interacting with their server for the remainder of their meal. "A black-and-white look at the world. - Knut Braaten, 43, handyman, Oslo, Norway, "Everything in America is high tech!" "Here in New Zealand, lemonade generally equals . Burgers, the American dream, choppers, Elvis, cowboys. - Ziva Meizels, retiree, Jerusalem, "I think their patriotism, you know, God bless America. They just don't get the idea of loyalty to the school. ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb. but don't tell them (laughing)." To examine these facts other cultures are taken into consideration to accurately without prejudices towards African Americans. Uhh, that's a huge country. - Summer Abu Ltaif, outside the American University of Beirut, "I think everyone is very tolerant there, in a way that there are all kinds of people, whether from different ethnicities, different countries, different religions. BANGKOK -- The rest of the world may think Americans eat a lot of burgers, have huge shopping malls and are ruled by an arrogant government. For example, the average American may be used to big tips and even bigger portions, but to foreigners, that's all far from the norm. The background. Required fields are marked *. The greasers live on the east side and are known as "hoods". And he said, 'Oh Canada! (New York: Penguin . In the United States, pharmaciesthe closest things we have to chemistsdouble as convenience stores, with aisles upon aisles of food, cleaning supplies, and even makeup products. Mehta, 34, health insurance worker, New Delhi, "America is a land of opportunities. But there is an ideology that unites them all." One habit was found to help keep the brain healthy over time. 20 American Habits That All Other Countries Think Are Crazy. The amount of older people I saw on my trip wearing college gear was insane. Despite the fact that these people are so punctiliousabout care of the mouth, this rite involves a practice which strikes the uninitiated stranger as revolting. The novelty here has at least two dimensions. I found this quite interesting and maybe a bit eye opening, because as Americans, these things are completely normal to us. From the exotic to the ancient, and to the high end cities of the world, we are obsessed. Fair enough! The fellow in line asked me in a very American accent, 'Y'all can't get what in the States?' The reporter, Lori Jane Gliha, made deft use of practiced innocence. The book is about observing American culture from an outsider's perspective, and comparing it to other cultures from across the globe. Fenrir89, I get made fun of all the time in Russia for having an attachment to my college. - Marren Cahilig, 21, bartender, Manila, Philippines, "A friend had an American friend over and he was surprised to see how laid back we are. A European, on the other hand, "will launch into a monologue about their health and wellbeing and ask [how are you?] But when Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based television empire that has long broadcast to . It's like your entire concept of beauty hangs on it. In fact, most of these Americans I have observed highly treasure their material items from under the tree as they pay more attention to them than to fellow Americans. While we face the last couple of weeks of winter there are many things you need to do. You get a vision of their culture and their way of life. I explained it was a joke, I was from Canada. The ones immediately outside their house are apparently not fit. The photo below shows different tools for cleaning ones teeth yes, even the sticks. Our collective workaholism is totally bizarre to outsidersand quite frankly, we can see why. The paper,written by University of Chicago trained anthropologist Horace Miner wasoriginally published in 1956. Another oddity of American advertising are those spots you see for prescription medication during every commercial break. That is curious. They are also unified in the sense that the dream isn't really a real thing anymore. While we do have some American comfort food, especially here in the South, what is there that we created ourselves? - Shitij, 26, sales and marketing worker, New Delhi, "They believe in democracy, in freedom; they are willing to die, kill, et cetera, for that. Many are so flabbergasted by the amount of choices we have in, not only our restaurants, but our grocery stores as well. Is this not a national travesty? In this book, American culture refers to pattern and behavior of the mainstream. Here is a link to start:https://thesocietypages.org/toolbox/nacirema/(Links to an external site. BANGKOK -- The rest of the world may think Americans eat a lot of burgers, have huge shopping malls and are ruled by an arrogant government.And yet the "Ugly American," it would seem, isn't all . Let's move to the music, more specifically, blues and jazz, which are two personal loves of mine. A good book on a rainy day or with calming music is a wonderful way to take a break from the responsibilities of life and escape into another world. Now, Im not talking about Bud Light and the like, Im talking about the large amount of micro-breweries and craft beers we make. What do they think of when they think of America? This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator. This I do not know. But its one thing for big media companies from the prosperous West to make these domestic inroads overseas, and another thing for a network based in Qatar to reverse the flow and give Americans their version of the foreign gaze. Many people's vacation days tend to pile up as the months of 50-hour workweeks roll on. What does it mean to be an American? Oh, and side note, the customer service in America is seen as amazing. Miner describes Americans as "magic-ridden people" (Miner 2009, 507). When first reading this analysis, it is not easy to recognize that Miner is talking about American's culture. - Kanti, 74, travel agency owner, New Delhi. Uber-Friendliness. Americans can come across as self-interested, aggressive and rude to some outsiders. - Knut Braaten, 43, handyman, Oslo, Norway, "I think there obviously is the American dream, the idea that unifies them all. In fact, Al Jazeera may represent something quite new in the business (though not unprecedented): the foreign gaze for domestic consumption. - Gennelyn Escopete, 33, DVD street vendor, Manila, Philippines, "Probably capitalism, but I see it more as freedom that every person can do what he wants, when he wants - true freedom, but it costs a lot I think, and sometimes it brings you lower than takes you higher." 5. -- Countsblink, Made Mac n cheese for my aussie cousins. Stay up to date with what you want to know. - Zhila Gudzueva, university lecturer, Moscow, "My definition of Americans is those who are cheerful, friendly and willing to communicate." It did the same for a story from New Orleans on how murder victims survivors cope with their loss. American culture encompasses the customs and traditions of the United States. Many of the novel's characters, whether they were labeled as Socials (Socs) or greasers . Adam Schubak Partnerships Editor Adam is a writer based out of New . Enter Al Jazeera, which recently sent a correspondent to Cleveland, a city it called Americas infant mortality capital. The question it pursued fused the local and the global: why rates of premature birth and infant death in many neighborhoods exceed those of developing nations.. But while these American traditions might seem normal stateside, they are certainly not universal. Overweight people, Donald Trump, elections, shootings." Why have an 8-ounce steak when you can have a 20-ounce one? I came to realize how many things are truly American and what makes us great people of a great nation. Throughout the novel The Outsiders, readers can see just how harshly culture can change people. What identifies an American? Collectivism stresses the importance of the community, while individualism is focused on the rights and concerns of each person. So yes, they are fortunate, and it is God bless America - that's what makes America, America." Yet, America's admirers have felt betrayed by other shades of the American character: the military interventions in Vietnam, Iraq and elsewhere; the gun violence; the right (inexplicable to many) to carry weapons; the deep and angry racial divisions; and, lately, a presidential nominee calling for harsh restrictions on Muslims and Mexicans. You have your hot chocolate made, playlist downloaded, movie set and books chosen. The second one is "B", the one you're attempting to write about (say, Chinese, Vietnamese, French). These are the kind of zoomed-out, big-picture stories that result from asking the most basic questions and that in other newsrooms might be killed because they are too obvious, or have been done 1,000 times, or dont have a new angle. They are the kind of stories that result from sending reporters out to ask the biggest unresolved questions about their own society from making them think, in short, like a foreign correspondent freshly returned to a now-unfamiliar home. NACIREMA: UPDATING A CLASSIC TO SEE YOUR OWN CULTURE AS AN OUTSIDER. And so when this newspaper or any other writes about Italy or Ghana, Italians and Ghanaians can now read it. By looking at our own cultures as outsiders we can see that we are under the same influence of the power of culture as others are. Contents. - Shitij, 26, sales and marketing worker, New Delhi, "A lot of (consumer) products. var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest(); They're calm and kind and friendly and they like to smile." America stands out because people recognize merit out there." America permeated their lives - through comics and Coke, through Hollywood and Neil Armstrong, and via the internet, iPhone and Facebook. I did not find any discrimination. It's pretty infuriating to live somewhere where something as natural and beautiful as the human body is viewed as taboo and "corrupts" our youth, but a guy getting his head cut off or getting beaten to death is perfectly okay for kids to watch. But when Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based television empire that has long broadcast to viewers around the world in Arabic and English, announced plans to start a U.S. news channel, it ignited a wildfire of controversy. Cultural relativism can be seen with the Chinese culture and their process of feet binding. Once they do, everyone admires the tree even more. So when it is too cold for an ice cream party, you can have a hot chocolate party instead! - Christopher Darroch, 39, actor, Toronto, "I was stunned to see how big everything is over there. For a country that's the center of the global economy, America's currency is pretty dull. For example, 84% of those ages 18 to 29 in Taiwan hold this view . After considering how Black women might draw upon these key themes as outsiders within to generate a distinctive standpoint on existing sociological paradigms, I conclude by suggesting that other sociologists would also benefit Now, I am sure this doesnt just extend to us Americans, but I thought about how each country has their own beautifully unique world of its own. Do people of different nationalities and tongues think of our star spangled flag and hyper-patriotism? I created a Chill Pill playlist on YouTube for some relaxing vibes. Their approach is different from ours we do it because we care about others, they do it because they get tips they were raised that way." they aren't actually looking for an answer. By adding some whipped cream and a cinnamon stick, a regular cup of warm chocolate powder in milk becomes more like a dessert. Sign up for notifications from Insider! The report reflected the networks seeming vision of the United States more generally: as a nation dynamic and promising and, at the same time, brutal in ways that distinguish it from its rich-country cousins. At another moment, she sits beside an 11-year-old as he plays the game, asking him, simply enough, what he likes in it. But one thing for sure, they cannot make beer." The Internet has changed that. What am saying, or asking rather, is what makes us American to non-Americans? I can imagine that persons evaluation would be something like the following: During this holiday called Christmas, families take great care to ensure that they decorate their houses and various shrubs with wires. It's the many electronics we have the bridge in San Francisco." We in Europe have smaller things What I liked when I was over there was the service level, it was very high. Don't get me wrong, dental hygiene is important, but not everyone needs a perfect Hollywood smile. - Summer Abu Ltaif, outside the American University of Beirut, "I think that they are formed by an ideology. But seriously, don't do it. Like so much else in the United States, we go big with our roads, which are a huge contrast to the tight city streets of most European towns and winding mountain roads found in much of the rest of the world. They just like speaking their mind, which is a reason that I don't feel quite comfortable going around with Americans." How big the country is and the amount of time you guys are willing to drive. I encourage others to take a step outside, in any situation, to see the broader view of things because what you find may surprise you. A journalist based in Brooklyn, New York. Read more, CC Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike, The daily body ritual performed by everyone includes a mouth-rite. The culture of the United States includes traditions, regional customs, institutions, art and so much more. To discover more amazing secrets about living your best life, click hereto follow us on Instagram! You can describe American culture in general, as Miner does, or you can describe an American subculture, such as a specific geographical group (e.g., New Yorkers), a . Families also make sure they get a hold of a rather sizable green tree, butthey go outside of their property to find such a tree. Collectivist cultures are usually contrasted with individualistic cultures. xhr.open('POST', 'https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', true); The first is that, for the longest time, reporters from foreign news organizations sent reports back to the countries that dispatched them, and those reports were seldom seen locally. 3Peter N. Carroll and David W. Noble, The Free and the Unfree: A Progressive History of the United States, 3rd ed. Anthropologists conduct their research in the field with the species, civilization, or groups of people they are studying. Romances and horrors are great genres to cozy up to in the dark. But in the U.S., people are happy to just toss their card in a folder with the bill and let the server take it away for swiping. Foreigners, on the other hand, aren't even familiar with the concept. I prefer it here. An emic view of culture is ultimately a . Foot binding was to stop the growth of the foot and make them smaller. I found the people very hospitable, nice and very cordial." She does a great job of describing the US rituals of the Christian holiday, Christmas. To be fair, most Americans don't either. It's not good." Instead, their purple Skittles taste like blackcurrantand while this fruity flavor used to be popular in America, legislators banned the fruit itself in the 20th century because it served as a vehicle for a wood-destroying disease known as white pine blister rust. And yet the "Ugly American," it would seem, isn't all bad. Holding "Trials of the Century". The concept of dancing cheer squads that help support sports teams (or compete against each other) is pretty odd for most non-Americans. Driven by sustained immigration and refugee resettlement during the 1970s and 1980s, Asian Americans have emerged as the nation's fastest growing racial group. Concept of building up the courage to ask someone to a ceilidh is simply ridiculous. I want an outsider's perspective on why this country is so fucked. The collector's view of the artifacts as pieces of art is a product of his own cultural background and does not take into account the cultural relativity of the artifacts. What we know so far about the Chinese spy balloon and other objects shot down by U.S. Whats more is that once Christmas is over, all of the gaudy gems and balls on the tree have to be removed and the tree must be moved out of the house. Everything else, I do not understand.. They believe in the right to have a good life and to help others to have a good life, and I think that's part of what makes them Americans." when we mean "hello", Carding people who are obviously not under 21, Shopping at pharmacies that are mini shopping malls, And prescription drug makers that advertise, Pronouncing the last letter of the alphabet as "zee". A thread on Reddit asks the question: Non-Americans of reddit, what aspect of American culture strikes you as the strangest? They desire a different one, which holds more importance. I read on several different forum sites how things such as the pledge of allegiance and how our flag is plastered everywhere you go is quite strange to outsiders. Search CNNs Web site on the subject, and the links almost invariably carry you to content about beleaguered places like Madagascar. Reducto_Absurdum, Americans are obsessed with straight, white teeth. 'Get away!' I screamed." (234) Claudette resists the urge to use wolf like communication to talk to Mirabella to stop chasing her, and instead uses human communication . Holidays are integral parts of different cultures and by looking at them through the eyes of an outsider, we can see how culture influences perspective. He clearly thought that was more important than spending time with his family or friends. In America, on the other hand, taking time off is often treated like a sin. Al Jazeera America has brought this approach to Chicagos violence, actually arranging a sit-down interview with working gang leaders, openly discussing their drugs, guns and ways. -- KevinDevogel, That the price on things in your stores are not the actual price but the price without tax and such -- 77-97-114-99-111, You guys can't separate nudity from sex. Ethnocentric views are often closely tied to racism. For foreigners, the excessively large cracks in the stall doors in public restrooms are just plain confounding. I threw dirt, I threw stones. I don't understand why other cultures are all so primitive. Here are some of the best: 1. Miner takes the approach of explaining the body ritual among the Nacirema from an outsider's point of view, with no real understanding of the American culture. When done well, this is in the finest tradition of foreign correspondence: a genre that soars when offering sharp, deeply reported answers to seemingly dumb questions dumb because they are so basic and self-evident that the smugly well settled never think to ask them, any more than fish inquire about the water. This termas well as terms used in the United States such as "Native American" and "American Indian"refers to hundreds of culturally diverse groups who inhabited the Americas before Europeans settled there. It is so much work to get a hold of the tree and to decorate it, and it seems very important, yet at the end of the day many of the trees are thrown away. There's the American way and then there's everybody else. American culture is clearly more advanced than all other cultures. Finding creative ways to fry things that probably shouldn't be fried is an American specialty and something that definitely confuses tourists. Through this process, Asian American parents can be transformed themselves, and maybe shift their own conceptions of education towards the one I hold and do their part in encouraging a cultural shift that will benefit future generations, as this new conception of education becomes the one that is passed down. In most other countries, you take the time to at least park the car and walk through the front doors of the place you're patronizingnot in America, though! The idea of being self-sufficient is valued highly in the U.S. Like, for example, in real life, you cant kill people. - Knut Braaten, 43, handyman, Oslo, Norway, "When I was driving to North Carolina I stopped at McDonald's. Even when it's the dead of winter, coffee shops are still serving up iced coffee. xhr.send(payload); I think it comes from two places: sports, and a sense of community. They must be of some great importance or have some great wisdom, which allows them the honor of completing this task. If movies aren't your style or you need a quieter way to relax, pick up a good book.

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