by Francelle Machado Viegas
As a girl who has never travelled abroad, I can understand what it is like to “know” a country only by its stereotypes. I’ve always known that Japan has a lot of new technological stuff going on, North American people are really proud of their countries and Italian people are great at making pizzas and pastas. However, despite stereotyped information like these, what do I really know about these places?Stereotypes are created based on true information, but sometimes they go so far that they scape from reality, becoming a simple magnification of not so important aspects of a place’s culture.
It’s important to mention that culture is a mix of local behaviors, traditions, knowledge and beliefs that define and differentiate one place from the other. As I spoke and interviewed some foreigners, I was able to confirm their common knowledge – stereotyped, at first glance – about Brazil, as long as I saw myself in the mirror, looking to all stereotypes I’ve always kept about their countries; it was a really interesting experience. I found out that foreigners do think about Brazil as a happy but violent place, where everyone loves Carnival parties and all people are great at dancing samba. On the other hand, it was nice to realize that my first stereotypes about North American and Asian people were just a small part of their culture, along with other characteristics that bring them together as people of the world, not just of a country locked in its bubble.
An interesting thing about talking to foreigners was how connected I felt to Brazil. I’m not talking about pride or joy on living here (because that would be pushing it too much), but about understanding how big Brazil is to be reduced to just one or two of its cultural aspects; and how other countries deserve the same careful look at its pluralities and characteristics. If I had to summarize my experience in talking to foreigners, I would say that it got me out of my stereotype bubble.
As a girl who has never travelled abroad, I can understand what it is like to “know” a country only by its stereotypes. I’ve always known that Japan has a lot of new technological stuff going on, North American people are really proud of their countries and Italian people are great at making pizzas and pastas. However, despite stereotyped information like these, what do I really know about these places?Stereotypes are created based on true information, but sometimes they go so far that they scape from reality, becoming a simple magnification of not so important aspects of a place’s culture.
It’s important to mention that culture is a mix of local behaviors, traditions, knowledge and beliefs that define and differentiate one place from the other. As I spoke and interviewed some foreigners, I was able to confirm their common knowledge – stereotyped, at first glance – about Brazil, as long as I saw myself in the mirror, looking to all stereotypes I’ve always kept about their countries; it was a really interesting experience. I found out that foreigners do think about Brazil as a happy but violent place, where everyone loves Carnival parties and all people are great at dancing samba. On the other hand, it was nice to realize that my first stereotypes about North American and Asian people were just a small part of their culture, along with other characteristics that bring them together as people of the world, not just of a country locked in its bubble.
An interesting thing about talking to foreigners was how connected I felt to Brazil. I’m not talking about pride or joy on living here (because that would be pushing it too much), but about understanding how big Brazil is to be reduced to just one or two of its cultural aspects; and how other countries deserve the same careful look at its pluralities and characteristics. If I had to summarize my experience in talking to foreigners, I would say that it got me out of my stereotype bubble.