What stereotypes do people have
about the United States
and its role as a world power? To ask
the question in a forward and blunt manner is to deny any chance of an honest
and meaningful answer. To answer the
main question of this essay, I interviewed twelve people of my
acquaintance. By asking non-directive,
open-ended questions, I was able to gain insight into the stereotypes my
respondents may not be aware they have.
I did not mention stereotypes at all
during the interviews, so as not to inspire my respondents to censor
themselves. I also took steps to ensure
that I did not influence their answers. Unfortunately,
this is an election year, so some bias could no be avoided. After gaining consent for the interviews, I
sent my respondents written copies of the questions I planned to ask them about
living in America, so that they had time to think about their answers before
talking to me. Some of those from whom I
requested interviews were unable to comply, so I have less variance and
diversity in the interviewed population than I wanted. My respondents include: two immigrants from
India, two African-American female single parents, two school aged children,
three males, two non-heterosexuals, and a retired soldier.
What do you like most about living
in America? The children answered that
they enjoyed the freedom, food, and fun.
When asked, they revealed that they believed children who lived outside
the U.S. were deprived of these things, as shown in the ads "Feed the
Children," "Save the Children," and other such media releases. Interestingly, the African-American women and
Indian immigrants valued the number of industrial and career opportunities
most, while the Caucasian women over the age of twenty-one valued personal
freedom above all else.
What do you like least about living
in America? The men and the children
agree that watching political conventions on television is their least favorite
part of American life. The females also
spoke out against politics, but half of them cited policies of lending support
to other nations when our own citizens are suffering, while the rest were
disgruntled by the personalities and views of individual politicians. Not one of my respondents compared the U.S.
system of government to the government of another country.
What does America mean to you? The children answered "freedom" and
did not elaborate. Both men polled
refused to answer this question; I am still unsure what that means. The women's answers were variations on the
theme of 'freedom of choice'. When
further questioned, the women revealed a common belief that true freedom and
independence was only available in this country. They also unanimously supported any foreign
policy that lead to freedom of choice for other women.
The results of my interviews were
not what I expected. People of my own
race and gender were more willing to talk to me than those who were not,
although I have known most of them for the same amount of time. The children gave me the answers that they
were socialized to give, by teachers and media biased in favor of America. The women interviewed were united by their
value of personal freedoms, but their views on politics and the U.S. as a world
power were divided along racial lines.
The Caucasian women supported inroads to the spread of democracy, while
the African-American women favored concentration on domestic issues. Part of what makes this so surprising to me
is that the women live similar lifestyles, economically and geographically;
yet, their answers in the individual interviews deviated in exactly the same
places.
