Stereotypes about the Chinese in the United States - Essay Example

number Stereotypes about the Chinese in the United s According to reports of the census, Americans of Chinese descent constitute 1.2% of the total population of the US. Their number is approximately 3.8 million people (US Census Bureau, 2012). Income and social status of these people are quite different. Some of them are well-educated, have good jobs and belong to upper class, while others represent working class and hardly manage to make both ends meet. Level of living, however, is of minor importance when it comes to social stereotypes. Chinese-Americans often face stereotypes, both good and bad. Some of them are quite funny or at least neutral, while others are really offensive. Whatever the case, a lot of stereotypes are unlikely to vanish in the nearest future. In order to understand the origin and nature of stereotypes Chinese people face in the US it is necessary to take certain historical processes into consideration. The first large groups of the Chinese immigrants appeared in the US in the 1820s. Among the main causes of mass migration of the Chinese there were economic instability of China and high demand of labor force in the US. Most immigrants were involved in transcontinental railroad construction. Major gold rushes were another reason – a lot of Chinese worked in mines. Sometime after that a lot of immigrants started to work in agriculture. Thus, it is possible to see that the Chinese, as well as other Asian immigrants in the US, made large contribution to American economy, infrastructure, and general welfare, which is difficult to overestimate. Nevertheless, the Chinese quite often face stereotyping which is unlikely to vanish. Among the worse ones there is the following. The Chinese, especially those of lower social class, are often seen as exclusively self-interested or even greedy people who do not care about welfare of the country they live and work in. The only thing they are concerned about is their own profits and well-being. Thus, a Chinese person was generally seen as a labor unit rather than a sustainable personality. Fortunately, such an attitude no more seems to be as wide-spread as a couple of decades ago. Very few people share this opinion at the moment, though it used to exist earlier. However, it would be wrong to say that all the stereotypes Chinese people face are bad. A lot of Americans generally believe that the Chinese are smart, orderly citizens who managed to become a part of the society. Some people even believe that Chinese Americans are too successful. At the same time, statistics show that average grade of Chinese students in the US is similar to those of American students. Such a stereotype roots in the history of the past several decades too. In order to immigrate to another country Chinese people were supposed to be talented and possess great potential. Among immigrants there always were many successful students on scholarship. What is more, some Americans tend to blame other minor societies for not being as successful as Chinese people. Some Americans say: ‘Look what we did to the Chinese. We discriminated against them, committed violence against them, excluded them from our country, yet they still have achieved. Therefore, if your minority has not succeeded in our land of opportunity, it is clearly your fault’ (Lipin, 2014). This stereotype, however, has its negative side. A lot of Americans see the Chinese as their competitors, which may often give rise to misunderstandings and even antipathy. The largest source of stereotypes is, however, media. For example, it is possible to mention Hollywood movies. Attention should be paid to the image of villains it used to exploit. Villains from China were really popular. It is necessary to mention Fu Manchu, a suspicious character of the early days of sound films. It is interesting that the Chinese embassy in the US delivered an official complaint when the film The Mask of Fu Manchu was released in 1932 (Brook, 2014). The character turned to be especially repugnant. Nowadays it is hardly possible to come across a Chinese villain in American cinema. This may be explained by the fact that China became one of the key markets for Hollywood films. Red Dawn, the war film remake released in 2012, may be also a good example. At the beginning it was supposed to be filmed with Chinese villains, but this idea was soon rejected (Brook, 2014). The film’s success in China could have been put at risk. The movie villains were consequently turned into North Koreans – producers were not afraid of negative reaction of this country as it provides no access for American movies to its domestic market. Thus, modern cinema no longer tends to depict the Chinese as villains. At the same time, Hollywood’s depictions of the Chinese, as it turned out, resulted in quite concrete and palpable consequences. It is possible to notice that both the small and big screen often portrays Chinese people as foreigners speaking broken English, often with funny accent. In such movies the Chinese practicing certain mysterious customs and rituals – other movie characters see them as incomprehensible and strange. This stereotype seems to be especially derisive if to take into consideration that Chinese people have lived in the US for generations. This fact also shows that the Chinese are not considered to be a natural part of the society. Instead, they are posed as an external or ‘foreign’ component. In many films, TV shows, and even commercials the Chinese are portrayed as geeks and computer whizzes wearing huge glasses and neat clothes. Such an image is often exploited in ads of such corporations such Verizon, Staples and IBM (Nittle, 2014). Such commercials appear on the basis of stereotype mentioned above – the Chinese are often considered to be smarter and more successful than Americans. At the same time, such commercials strengthen this stereotype. Gender stereotypes are also common. American median and Hollywood films often portray Chinese women as ‘dragon ladies’, always sexually active and immoral. White men fall in love with them and become victims of manipulation and domination. The Chinese are sometimes also shown as prostitutes, especially in war films. For example, in The World of Suzie Wong an American architect comes to Hong Kong, where a prostitute falls in love with him. Finally, he breaks her heart. In media, it is often possible to see an American man being in relationships with a Chinese woman, but it is hardly ever possible to find a couple of an American woman and a Chinese man. Instead, Chinese men are often portrayed as feminine or sexless (Chiung Hwang Chen, 1996). This is related to historical processes too. As it was mention, Americans used to see cheap Chinese workforce as their competitors, that is why the government has finally barred the Chinese men from a number of ‘male’ industries. As a result, they were associated with ‘female’ works, such as cooking, laundry, and childcare (Prasso, 2005). Stereotypes about Chinese people are very common, no matter which aspect of life is meant. They may be felt on individual level by every concrete person, as well as by people involved in international relationships. Every ordinary student is expected to demonstrate good results in studies. This stereotype may seem to be positive, though in practice it results in difficulties when it comes to acceptance to mainstream American society (Lee, 2013). It reveals in innocent questions like ‘Where are you from?’, but it may also give rise to baseless antipathy and envy. Some people believe it is wrong to pay so much attention to successful student as it would provide them with unfair advantages. Chinese people are also believed to be more successful when it comes to parenthood. They are considered to be strict, always critical, and, not surprisingly, proud of their child’s successes in studies (Lee, 2013). Such an opinion may be found in titles of many essays and even books. For example, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua became a bestseller. It tells why a Chinese mother is superior to the Western one. This stereotype, however, does not seem to be positive too. Although strict parenting is known to produce better-behaved kids, it may exert harmful psychological effects. Stereotyping occurs in the world of business as well, though their nature is sometimes ambiguous. On the one hand, they may be treated as stereotypes and that is all. On the other hand, they may be referred to as cultural codes of dealing with the Chinese, which may even crumb the business deal when neglected. The main principle is to give a person an opportunity to preserve their face. In other words, a person’s honor and dignity should never be undermined. The elder should always been respected. Such an approach roots in Confucianism, though in practice a lot of Americans think their Chinese partners are too arrogant. Otherwise speaking, Americans are sure that the Chinese think they are superior. Such cultural codes are especially essential when it comes to international business affairs and politics. A lot of people believe that the Chinese dislike Westerners, especially when those come to China. However, this is not true. Those people who have been to China demolish this view. In fact, this is a certain sense of suspicion rather than antipathy. It may be referred to historical processes too – Westerners used to mistreat and exploit Chinese people. It is even possible to say that this kind of distrust is what actually Westerners deserve. All the existing stereotypes are generally marked with exceptional stability. Nevertheless, they should be extirpated. It is necessary to get to know more about culture of people we live with. It is not as difficult as it may seem to be. The best way to get rid of stereotypes and discover beauty of another culture is travelling. Unfortunately, not all the people may afford this. The least every person may do is to start learning foreign languages, watching foreign films, and looking for foreign friends on social networking sites. Every person should remember that sometimes it is wrong to attempt to change the world and people around. It is sometimes necessary to start with the own self. Works Cited Chiung Hwang Chen. Feminization of Asian (American) Men in the U.S. Mass Media. Journal of Communication Inquiry. 20:57-71, 1996. Michael Lipin. Chinese Americans: Don’t Call Us Model Minority. Voice of America. Web. 30 Aug. 2014. Nadra Kareem Nittle. Five Common Asian-American Stereotypes in TV and Film. RaceRelations. Web. 2014. Race Reporting for the Asian Population by Selected Categories: 2010. U.S. Census Bureau. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Richard Lee. Asian American Stereotypes. AAPA. Web. 29 March 2013. Sheridan Prasso. The Asian Mystique: dragon ladies, geisha girls, & our fantasies of the exotic orient. PublicAffairs, 2005. Tom Brook. Hollywood stereotypes: Why are Russians the bad guys?. BBC Culture. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. Read More