Hello everyone!! We all know as a writer, involving people of different cultures and countries in our writings is very crucial. However, there are certain stereotypes based on where you belong to. It can be very offensive if a writer - knowingly or unknowingly - uses them in his/her works.
On this thread I request you all to comment down your views on this topic, and, if you agree with me, also comment down where you are from and stereotypes that you think cannot be more untrue for the people of your country (and there justification if you may).
This is very true! I think if someone is writing on a different culture they are obviously not they should do research and ask people of that culture.
As a writer I want people to be able to relate with my content. So letās say there is someone of _____ cultural background and while theyāre reading my story theyāre like āThis is so untrueā and so on and so forth.
The solution for this is to get your facts straight from multiple sources!!
and please try to use an other source other than google translate. Iām Latina right, so I speak Spanish. We DONT have the same slang as people from the states or something. For example āGo to Hellā is a American thing (as far as I know) We donāt say āVete a la carcelā (I think I spelt that wrong but it means go to hell. Iām half awake)
From my experience weād probably say something like āVete pa la mirerdaā which has the same meaning but at the same time doesnātā¦if that makes sense.
I agree! The best alternative for google translate is that just freaking ask someone from the forumsā¦it will take some time but at least you will get it right!
That Germans are all Nazis. Itās the total opposite. In fact, Germany has a whole different pledge from Hitlerās old pledge. Itās illegal to use that pledge and itās also looked down upon to like Hitler at all in Germany.
Things to avoid
-Italian mafia leader.
-posh English person.
-smart Asian.
-angry, loud black person whoās always shouting. like fr I see this character all the time as the mc bestie
-a loud Latina.
And. So. Many. More.
Create your own freakinā characters donāt follow these stupid stereotypes which r total bs. It makes u a lazy writer & means u could b potentially offending & annoying many ppl from these cultures.
That all black people are loud, sassy (I heard this stereotype in high school stories as the POC best friend), ghetto, and criminals. Hate it. None of this is true, and please make sure to never include these stereotypes about us in your story.
I think a perfect example of this is Hunter from Him and I, who is black, by default (with monolids for some reason). Near the beginning of the story, he is said to be a gang leader or some sh*t. I felt offended over that, and Iām hoping that wasnāt Meliaās intention on us black citizens, but please donāt display any of us as a criminal of any kind. And off-topic, but Iām tired of seeing Hunter everywhere in Instagram Episode memes.
A lot of people who arenāt from the UK seem to think we talk in queenās English, the posh accent you see on every British character in basically every American film ever. So, Iāve seen some authors go above and beyond to try make their British characters talk very sophisticated where they over-enunciate all their words. This isnāt realistic, most Brits talk very commonly, myself included. Personally, I donāt particularly have a problem with people portraying us like that because in some circumstances it can be comical, but I see some people genuinely write us that way because thatās how they actually perceive us which is worrying.
In reality, accents (and dialect/slang) differ depending on where youāre from. If you live in Scotland, youād have a Scottish accent. If you live in Newcastle, youād have a Geordie accent, and there are SO many more! And each part of the UK have their own fun little sayings and words.
Oh, and also people seem to think we all love tea and eat crumpets for some reason. Idk where that stereotype came from
Iām from Germany, and we have many stereotypes. Some are annoying and, some are highly offensive.
The first offensive stereotype is mentioned and explained by @Anna_Marie.
Yes, neo-Nazis exist in Germany, but itās not the majority! And not every neo-Nazi life in Germany. We are well-educated about the Third Reich, WWII and the Holocaust in school. We are not afraid to talk about it, let alone to educate others about those topics.
Unfortunately, Germanophobia (donāt confuse this with germaphobia) is still a thing.
Another very offensive stereotype is making the German language aggressive and harsh. Some words can sound harsh, but in general, the German language doesnāt sound aggressive at all. German is the language of poets and thinkers, as we like to say. If it helps, you can watch videos by German or German-speaking Youtubers.
Another stereotype that gets in my nerves is that many think that every German wears lederhosen or dirndls. Lederhosen and dirndls are traditional clothes in Bavaria and have nothing to do with general German culture. The REAL Oktoberfest is celebrated in Munich.
And we donāt just eat sausages, pretzels, sauerkraut and drink beer. German cuisine is so much more than sausages.
Not everyone is obsessed with soccer.
Not every German is blue-eyed and has blond hair.
Iām sure there are more stereotypes about Germans. I think Iāve listed the primary stereotypes so far.
Oh I know where the tea stereotype came fromā¦actually I have studied that the British expanded the tea trade and plantations all across the world including India(where I am from) so I am assuming that people think they are obsessed with it which is ridiculous
I can relateā¦the reason is that non-asians assume that since asians have strict parents (which, btw, is also a stereotype), we have to excel in all the āpositiveā and āproductiveā fields
Okay for Caribbean people (also called West Indians) here are some reoccurring stereotypes:
weāre all like lazy and wear dreads
that we all use Jamaican slang and dialect (all caribbean countries have a unique way of speaking and you can easily find examples online)
that we arent diverse, yes, most of us are black (Iām black myself) but there are actually lots of Aisan Caribbean people as well as Hispanics. Hell my aunt is a white Bahamian and some of my friends are south Asian and from Guyana/Trinidad. Caribbean individuals can come in any colour really, while it can be uncommon they exist.
Or the whole stereotype that Caribbean people are uneducated (in fact lots of colleges in north America and England have groups and committees specifically for Caribbean/Latin American people)
We dont only listen to reggae music either, we have lots of different music Genres, itās not limited to reggae (which is mainly a Jamaican music form). Even in Jamaica there are LOTS of different types of cultural music besides reggae.
He also has a terrible relationship w his father & his motherā¦
I hope it was not Meliaās intention to do this & she is not the only one to use these stereotypes, but itās hurtful for so many that black characters r most commonly used as criminals, loud best friends, security guardsā¦ itās so messed up ppl following the stupid cultural stereotypes based off of no truth at all.
Moved to Episode Fan Community since Community is for discussion of specific stories. Make sure to check out our Forum Tutorial for more info about creating topics, and feel free to PM me if youāve got questions.
None of this is true, and please make sure to never include these stereotypes about us in your story.
and some of my friends are south Asian and from Guyana/Trinidad. Caribbean individuals can come in any colour really, while it can be uncommon they exist.