Mike,
Great posts, man! Good points. I also like they way you constructed social perceptions since it allows for cultural relativism. For instance, the notion of RACE is different in Brazil (ie., a person can be born a poor 'black' but die a rich 'mestizo' or 'white' --same in many latin cultures) as in HAITI where a drop of 'white' blood = white.
Quote:
Originally posted by Mike33
Both culture and physical markers. In a given culture a particular "Race" will have it's own appending charactersitics (if we want to call them stereotypes whether they're true, or false, or self-fulfilling prophecy). In our culture one would include the idea that Asians (chinese/japanese) are generally weak but smart and have a strong work ethic which is something that will be accepted and even esteemed in a culture that prides itself on rugged individualism and capitalism. Whether they're accepted is another issue. If you go to any university campus you'll find that there is a general fear because the Asian population is so large. "Asian Invasion" is a term I heard while on campus. It's like disliking somebody but being envious of them at the same time. It's not contradictory to do so. They're a relatively quiet population not caught up in the forefront of things like civil rights activism so we don't see acceptance or non-acceptance of them as clearly. But clearly, terms like "chink" and "jap" that are well known even today indicates that their was a conscious effort to distiguish them from other groups.
The revulsion of 'white trash' has less claws. It usually just denotes somebody who is considered to be from a small community that has not had enough exposure to the outside world and is thus ignorant of things that are obvious to you and me. The reference is for the most part jovial and doesn't speak to the individuals inherent capabilities but to their upbringing (or lack thereof) and their location ("the backwoods with inbred parents" type thing).
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