Stereotypes of an American Male in a European Country - Essay Example

14 October Stereotypes of an American Male in a European Country People from different nationalities have numerous stereotyped images of each other, both negative and positive, and sometimes, these generalized images are used as form of friendly banter. The French, for instance, are known as good cooks and lovers, while Britons are bad cooks. The Americans are stereotyped as aggressive and gun-crazy. This essay will focus on stereotypes of American males in European countries based on what I have heard from personal experience and seen or heard from the media.

In particular, four ethnicities of American males will be discussed: white American, black American, Latino American and Asian American. Asian Americans are stereotyped as submissive, Math or business wizards, black Americans are either thugs or religious fanatics who are good in basketball and rapping, Latino Americans are lazy and dependent on social welfare, and white Americans are aggressive, loud-mouthed, condescending, violent individuals. Asian Americans are often depicted in the media as submissive.

For instance, when speaking with other races, they do not look at them in the eye and tend to bow down. Asian Americans are also portrayed as Math wizards. They often wear large glasses and excel in Mathematics. They are frequently honor students and are severely grade-conscious. Furthermore, Asian Americans are described as businesspeople. They either have restaurants or pharmacies. Many of them become rich doing business. It can be seen that these stereotypes are generally positive compared to other ethnic American stereotypes.

Black Americans are shown in the media as either thugs or religious fanatics. The young black male is often a criminal or juvenile delinquent. In TV shows, they are loud-mouthed and do not excel in their studies like Asian Americans. Sometimes, black males are also shown as religious zealots singing church hymns and attending religious services all the time. Black men are also stereotyped as good in basketball and rapping. People sometimes automatically assume that they have Michael Jordans genes running through each and every black man.

These stereotypes are generally negative and focus too much on the sports abilities of black people. Latino Americans are frequently stereotyped as lazy. The media shows them as enjoying siestas and parties. It seems that all they do is have fun and that they cannot focus on being productive. The media also depicts Latinos as dependent on welfare. Again, this is a negative stereotype that entails their laziness and lack of motivation in their lives. Like blacks, Latinos are also stereotyped as troublemakers.

Many criminals are then racially profiled as either black or Hispanic. White Americans are negatively depicted as aggressive and loud-mouthed in the media and based on some experiences. Europeans tend to think that Americans, for instance, are too aggressive when interacting with people. For example, they think that Americans negotiate using force or coercion, instead of finding win-win solutions. Europeans also sometimes think that white males are too loud-mouthed, which matches their verbal aggressiveness.

White American males brag about their race and achievements too much. I also heard some Europeans saying that many Americans are condescending. A Swiss engineer, for instance, feels that his American counterpart talks down on him during conversations. Americans are also highly perceived as violent individuals, because of their numerous shootings and war involvements. These examples depict that white, American males are aggressive and violent individuals. Stereotypes of the American male are quite heterogeneous, because ethnicity impacts the stereotypes cast on them, where Asian American males are seen more positively as smart business and Math wizards, Latinos are lazy troublemakers, black males are also criminals or religious fanatics who are good in sports, and white, American males are seriously condescending and aggressive people.

These images portray the American male in European society as quite a strong, potentially negative force to deal with. These images, nevertheless, are stereotypes that can never fully capture the heterogeneous nature of individuals. Even when there are American male stereotypes like these, people should not judge them by these caricatures and instead, get to know them also as individuals with different personalities and behaviors.