The Southern Stereotype Essay Example for Free

The Southern Stereotype Essay Ever since Scarlett O’Hara struggled to find love and Andy Taylor was elected Mayberry’s Sheriff, filmmakers and television producers have yet to lose any fondness for stereotyping the southern culture. There are many who despise any form of labeling or stereotyping within the media, fearing false characterizations or inaccurate portrayals of southern customs, traditions, and people. Exposure to southern stereotypes through media is an appealing element in the American lifestyle that can render endearing impressions, contribute genuine metaphors, and provide viewers with a unique and fascinating (whether positive or negative) glimpse toward a regional culture. The mass media, or media at large, would include motion picture makers, television producers, news programs, newspapers, radio, magazines, or any source which has the capability to deliver images or messages to the masses. It seems to be common knowledge that the mass media has inundated homes all across the fruited plain for decades with images of southern stereotypes. Ask a few dozen strangers to describe a southerner in sixty seconds or less and the common descriptions most may have of southern folks are reasonably unsurprising. A few details that come to mind when describing a southerner may include the following: a strong accent or drawl, ignorant, lazy, a barefoot mountain person, an inbred, a hillbilly with buck teeth and overalls, a hick with a pick-up truck and a gun rack, and a moonshiner with a big beer belly. Most will also agree that the mental figures or perceptions on hand are those branded in the brain by the mass media, film makers, and theatre companies. â€Å"When you think of stereotypes, you often only think of negative ones. There are also positive stereotypes – the South being a land of nature and holding onto traditions,† said Tom Hanchett, staff historian at the Levine Museum of the New South. (Baldwin 1-2). Hillbilly, country bumpkin, cracker, trailer trash, and redneck are all common labels given or used to perpetuate the southern stereotype. Notwithstanding the practice of political correctness teeming in today’s culture, is considered tolerable and acceptable by movie makers and the media to ridicule those who may fall within the parameters of what is termed as the classic southern stereotype. These are pointed descriptions, but they are true and the American culture loves (and loves to hate) the southern stereotype and it is here to stay. Now what about those who may have that southern stereotypical drawl? Southern accents do not make one stupid; being stupid does. Southerners should be proud of the southern accent. However, the media has managed to cause dismay among many southerners who possess the engaging and attractive drawl. Should a visitor traveling to North Dakota, view a Fargo native as stupid or ignorant because of the distinct accent heard there? Should a North Dakota resident ridicule a person from the Bronx because of the peculiar accent heard there? Somehow people are ashamed of their unique speech patterns rather than being proud of a colloquial accent. The southern stereotype will be here for a long time to come, so love it and embrace it. According to Jack G. Shaheen in his essay titled, â€Å"The Media’s Image of Arabs,† Hollywood producers must have instant kits that contain sunglasses, Arab clothing, tents, and mosques in order to provide a snapshot of Hollywood’s stereotypical Arab (99). Undoubtedly, the same holds true when depicting the typical southern example. Whether one considers it right or wrong, Hollywood, along with the mass media, has poured countless whimsical images of the southern stereotype into our culture. Often, movie makers will focus on undesirable characteristics, but they are almost always based in fact. Much of what is believed to be true of today’s southerners stem from the culture’s ancestors’ actions or beliefs. These likeable characteristics have come to be accepted as widespread truths and a part of American life. Diffused through media broadcasters over the past fifty years, Americans from all regions of the country have welcomed and embraced the southern type along with all the distinguishing traditions, foods, beliefs, apparel, folklore and superstitions. Cartoons, caricatures, comedy sketches, television commercials, advertisements, situation comedies, movies, editorials, news programs, comic books, music, novels, and television dramas have all helped to capture and immortalize this fascination of the southern stereotype. Yearning for a simpler time, society sometimes craves the patriotic, down-home qualities of the good country people. In response, the mass media relents and continues to draw enthusiasts to those television shows featuring southern stereotypes. The Andy Griffith Show, perhaps one of the most adorable and enduring television programs of all time, features a full cast of southern stereotypes (hicks and hillbillies) and re-runs of the popular family comedy just as popular today as they ever were. Other popular and charming television shows centering on southerners include: Hee Haw, The Beverly Hillbillies, Pettticoat Junction, Green Acres, Gomer Pyle U. S. M. C. , Matlock, In the Heat of the Night, The Waltons, and Designing Women. Although the characters are often portrayed as backward, slow, and ignorant, the shows are lined with good nature and moral lessons. Viewers admire their quaint ways with a warm attitude. Joan Voight wrote an interesting piece in AdWeek Magazine regarding advertising and stereotypes. Within the article, Voight cited advertising professional, Jim Ferguson. â€Å"Everything is too politically correct. Humor is always at the expense of somebody, but the only groups you can make fun of anymore are Texans and Italians. † (Voight, 17). America has become a nation filled with the notion that any labeling and stereotyping should be discarded and Americans should be offered rights of protection from anything that may offend or trample on one’s beliefs, feelings, or cultural identity. Unlike other persecuted groups, southerners have made little attempt to diffuse or negate the southern stereotype within the mass media. Should southerners insist that the media apply the same, overbearing rules of political correctness, it may result in a destruction of the true and cherished culture. Doug Nye, a writer for The State newspaper, cites author John Jakes. â€Å"Maybe it’s because southerners just haven’t gotten around to adopting ‘victimhood’ as a policy. They don’t have a lobbying group,† Many of the southerners’ old-fashioned characteristics such as forthrightness, fine manners, hospitality, chivalry, honor, and noble morals could be forsaken and forgotten. (Nye, 2). Believe it or not, Elvis Presley continues to rule and define southern tradition from the grave. Allison Graham, a professor of media and communication studies at the University of Memphis notes that Elvis never appeased audiences with renderings of Shakespeare. â€Å"Elvis veered dramatically from the established path to national acceptance. He stayed unreconstructed to the end of his life. † (Graham, 116). Having been labeled as a howling hillbilly and a hillbilly clown, Americans still embraced this southern Memphis boy and elevated him to a cultural icon. Today, countless followers of this distinguished southerner still flock to his Memphis homestead, attend Elvis conventions, and impersonate his southern style of entertainment. Elvis is one of many who may have fit the media’s stereotype but ignored the criticisms and pressed forward to gain unprecedented favor with America’s culture. Strong into the twenty-first century, the redneck and hillbilly phenomenon continues to thrive. Jeff Foxworthy popularized the genre of southern humor with â€Å"You Might Be a Redneck, If †¦Ã¢â‚¬  jokes that have a universal attraction with nearly all audiences. Mocking his own people, Foxworthy evokes more humor than ridicule from outside entities. Another television example is the animated television show, King of the Hill. This situation comedy appears realistic and true to life as a Texas family are the victims of irreverent satire. Again, television writers and producers have managed to capture and maintain a large viewing audience who find the southern stereotype charming. Although many continue to fight against any portrayal of the southern stereotype, the hillbilly image is here to stay and it should remain within our media and culture for many more decades to come. Is it possible to define American culture without the southern stereotype? It is a part of America’s regional culture, it is an appealing element to the American way of life, and it should be both preserved and celebrated.

FEMINIST CRITISM OF THE STONE CARVERS :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The feminist approach of the Stone Carvers allows us to look at Klara’s role as a spinster in a new perspective. It allows us to analyze the role of a woman in the first half of the twentieth century.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A woman’s role in the early twentieth century still revolved around serving the male members of one’s family. Klara was tied to the traditional role of a female. She would have chores as well as having to make supper for her father, grand father and sometimes Eamon. Klara was more independence than the average woman because she was taught two arts by two masters. She could tailor suits, and carve wood. She had two skills that were named to be man’s skills. Her knowledge gave her the power to control what happened in her life. Klara was respected in her town for her skills because they usually came to her to make suits. Eamon acknowledged her skill and asked her to make a red suit. Her knowledge of these skills gave her more independence, freedom and power. She was one of the few female members in her community who had their own income. She had freedom to do what she wanted with her life but she was still restricted by her society because she w as still a woman. Time plays a key part in the role of women. In the late nineteenth century, Klara’s grandmother was an excellent tailor. She tailored suits for all members of the community as well as for Father Gstir. She always referred to herself as a seamstress because she was a woman and at this time period a woman’s skilled was less valued than the skill of a man. The battle for equality between men and women is clearly depicted by Helga. Klara’s mother always stated that she was a tailor rather than a seamstress. She valued her skills greatly and taught Klara to be proud. Klara can carve and tailor, so she had more power than the generations of women before her time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Klara Becker’s role as a spinster in the novel gives her to have an advantage over other women. As a spinster, society allows her to be a bit eccentric. Taking over the farm after the death of her father and grandfather was considered eccentric for a spinster but madness if it was a widow. This shows that the place of the women in this society is not equal to that of a male.

Incident Analysis and Development Plan Essay

In my previous assignments I have attempted to shed some light on the 3 capabilities which I have identified; which were namely the Leadership skills, Knowledge skills and the Interpersonal Management skills. Each of these 3 skills is crucial for a good manager and each holds its own significance in the building of a solid character. For the purpose of this research paper, I will be concentrating on the Leadership and Interpersonal Management skills upon which I have already talked about before. Harnessing these two characteristics would help growth on the individual level and gives an insight into a person’s overall character as viewed from some external source. Incident Analysis Leadership is a value arousing skill (Heifetz, 1994). Recalling any such moment where I have taken the mantle of leadership I would most definitely have to quote of my academic experiences. Groups and teams are a fact of life during one’s academic years and in said groups and teams there are often conflicts arising which without the presence of a team leader, lead to failed deadlines, substandard work quality and overall unpleasantness among team members (Maister, 2002). I can clearly recall the last time I was part of a group and it was in said group that I got a chance to play the role of the team leader. The decision of me being team leader arose due to my past experience in the topic and when the time came to choose the leader from amongst the team-mates I had the expertise in the subject. Even though I was not experienced much in any leadership position, I was able to do a sufficient job as the group leader and it made me appreciate the tough job that it is to lead people towards a single goal so as to make the achievement a shared vision (Purpose of Leadership, 1997). However, one thing I learned was that Leadership is never static as the role of a leader keeps changing in modern times and anybody who has a proficiency in some skill would take on the leader role when work related to his area of specialization arose. Without any leadership there would hardly be any sense of where the team was headed and it would be meaningless progressing further (Kelly, 2007). Interpersonal skills are also very important in recent times as people of every walk of life have to interact with others to get their jobs done. Previously it was the belief that some jobs required very little interaction with other individuals, such as finance related jobs and other desk jobs where the employees would have minimal socializing (Hayes, 2002). But now the field has changed with people interacting with others for the exchange of knowledge, and for socializing purposes. An incident regarding where I had to demonstrate my interpersonal skills arose when while arranging for a charity event for which friends needed help, I had to visit different markets and deal with numerous people over getting sponsors and getting arrangements done. Through the course of this excursion I had to interact with numerous people and demonstrate communication skills which involved interacting with people at all levels, such as common laborers and store owners. This feature of interacting with people at all levels is beneficial in the sense that it helps later to impress employers (Seneca, 2001). Through the course of interacting with people I was able to get some good contacts that would come in fruitful for future use while also overcoming my dread of speaking to strangers and becoming more comfortable talking to people (Hargie & Dickson, 2003). Self Assessment Measuring one’s leadership skills, one must first recognize the types of leaders that exist. There is some argument as to whether there are 6 types or 7 types of leaders but personally I prefer to side with the 7 types argument. Based on 5 criteria leaders are placed into the types of the transformational leader, the enforcer, the deal maker, the administrator, the visionary, the serial entrepreneur and the spin doctor (Taffinder). The five factors upon which leaders are determined are: impose context, have conviction, generate critical mass, challenge and change and they make and take risks. With respect to the definitions provided, I would rank myself as an Enforcer. This is due to the fact that I am risk averse when groups are concerned and tend to stick to tested and tried guidelines. I am highly confident when taking actions and try to motivate team members in a manner that they have the feeling to achieve something (Brill & Barth, 2008). Â  I avoid taking unnecessary risks since the responsibility of leading a team in my opinion does not permit one the opportunity to take risks. If the risk pays off that’s well and good, but if the risk does not, then the leader is responsible for the outcome of events. This responsibility I believe takes away the liberty that a leader should have and should make him more serious towards leading his followers to attaining the goal (Ball, 2003). Judging anyone’s interpersonal skills is not so easy as it involves feedback from external sources. When others tell one how well they are performing, then one can be any statement regarding the success or failure of it. I would say that I am sufficiently endowed with my interpersonal skills. I would come to the conclusion taking into account the success rate when dealing with others. I have often had to conduct affairs with other external groups and so far I would say that I have done a very good job in carrying out interpersonal dealings. Researchers suggested that self analyzing when related to interpersonal skills should be avoided by researchers since the judgement would always be biased and the answer would be uninfluenced in very rare case (Rubin, Palmgreen, Sypher, & Beatty, 2004). This goes back to the point mentioned that since people are unaware as to most of what they do, determining the efficiency of their success in Interpersonal Communication is very hard to do. A concept known as Self Monitoring usually leads to greater success in determining a person’s interpersonal skills. Self Monitoring is a trait exhibited by famous good public speakers, as they were very receptive of their audiences and could adapt their presentation as per the response from the audience. Many politicians such as Bill Clinton for example have been reported to have strong Self Monitoring skills. Viewing myself through outside eyes I have surmised that in the short time that I have become more pro active in interacting with others, I would say that I am quite successful in interacting with people and can easily carry forward a conversation and can entertain and communicate with others effortlessly (Corbin, Corbin, & Lindsey, 2007). Â  If compared to the extent required in the managerial world and professional world, I would have to say that the skills I possess are somewhere between acceptable and need slightly more improvement. Since leadership is a situational issue, with leadership sometimes being given and other times not, only time can tell how well one has performed. Some situations require more insight and expertise whereas others are relatively simple as all you have to do is inspire your team and it successfully finishes the task on its own (Drucker, 1995)I have usually encountered the former as I haven’t yet witnessed any intense leadership role where I’d have to make decisions which would lead to greater consequences. Interpersonal skills are essential for any business activity and comparing it to the market levels I would say that some improvement, or refinement, is needed. Even though I am not hopeless with my interpersonal skills, it is still a far away from being absolutely perfect. I believe I possess enough skills to at least get the basic jobs done. Development Plans To improve upon my interpersonal skills, I have decided to listen to the suggestions stated. Smiling more often when talking to others, being more appreciative of others comments, paying more attention to others, practicing active listening (applying stuff that I have learnt through listening to others), bringing people together, trying to resolve conflicts, communicating early, and in a humorous manner, trying to see other people’s perspectives and avoiding complaining are some measures that I plan to adopt in order to improve my interpersonal skills (All Business). Following these tips I plan to become more popular in crowds and become more receptive to others when interacting with them. These tips would help me in making a more favorable impression in front of others and become a popular and pleasurable person to talk to. And that in turn would make communicating with others more easier for me and more often. Currently what I’m lacking due to inexperience with interacting with others would be resolved if I strictly follow these mentioned tips. To develop my leadership style I must first note where I fall behind other successful leaders, and in this case, I have identified that I am highly risk averse and in return wind up hindering group from reaching its full potential. Taking more risks, but with the consent and full information being provided to the group so that they can give their feedback as well, I will try to move towards becoming a Transformational Leader who not only gets the job done, but inspires the followers to think of the goals as their goals as well and have a combined motivation towards the job as well. Conclusion Leadership and interpersonal skills are very important for today’s managers as it is the manager’s job to get the tasks done while keeping a strong healthy relationship between all levels of the employees (Koellner, 2002). Currently I am more than capable of handling the simple situations which may arise on a day to day basis, but to actually handle situations which may affect a larger scale, I need to work harder to build my skills so as to become a Transformational leader (Argyris, 1976), who is the best type of flexible leader, and to have good links which can only be forged if the interpersonal relations I have with others are good. Without strong interpersonal skills, no one can actually get the full whole hearted support from others. A person should seek external opinions to actually gauge where he is standing since these are inherent qualities and people are not qualified enough to correctly identify their skills. References All Business. (n.d.). Ten Ways to Improve Your Interpersonal Skills. Retrieved April 28, 2009, from All Business: http://www.allbusiness.com/human-resources/careers-career-development/11134-1.html Argyris, C. (1976). Increasing leadership effectiveness. R.E Krieger. Ball, J. (2003). Managing People. Retrieved April 28, 2009, from http://www.accountancy.com.pk/articles.asp?id=54 Brill, F. S., & Barth, R. (. (2008). Leading and Learning. Stenhouse Publishers. Corbin, C., Corbin, C. B., & Lindsey, R. (2007). Fitness for Life. Human Kinetics. Drucker, P. F. (1995). The Practice of Management. Harper Collins. Hargie, O., & Dickson, D. (2003). Skilled interpersonal communication. Routledge. Hayes, J. (2002). Interpersonal skills at work. Routledge.

Theodore Roosevelt s Role Model - 1140 Words

Rumaysa Sharif 11/03/17 President Theodore Roosevelt is one of the most widely respected and popular figures in history. From his childhood to adulthood, he is an example of great courage, strength, perseverance and success. He once said, â€Å"The only man who never makes mistakes is a man who never does anything.† Despite having a very weak body as a child, he never gave up on himself nor his dreams. He was quite the role model for civilians during his time and even today. As the only president from New York City, his childhood home is in downtown Manhattan. It is obvious that he lead a very wealthy life with a loving family. His parents were very supportive and raised their children in an intellectually stimulating environment. For†¦show more content†¦The ornaments of the parlor which include the glass chandelier is decorated with a great quantity of cut-glass prisms. Growing up, Theodore was a very sickly child. He had a severe case of asthma and would become weak very easily. His fathe r said â€Å"You have the mind, but not the body. Without the health of the body, the mind cannot go as far as it should. You must make your body.† Theodore replied â€Å"I will make my body!† without any hesitation. Thus his father installed a gym on the second floor of their home. He also took up boxing and became very strong and physically active. He served in the Civil War, became an author, historian, explorer, statesman and conservationist. Theodore Roosevelt’s father, Franklin Roosevelt, was part of the Union and his mother, Martha Bulloch, was a Confederate. However, his father did not want to serve in the war because it meant he would have to shoot his wife’s two brothers who were Confederate generals. Therefore, he did what many wealthy men did during that time, and paid two men to take his place. Even though Theodore Roosevelt looked up to his father, this impacted him in a very negative way. Some historians even analyzed that his father buying men to take his place is what influenced him to becoming a soldier and gave him the determination to prove that he was a good one. As a young child, Theodore and his family went on a lot of trips to foreign countries. Exploring these countries had a hugeShow MoreRelatedThe Presidency Of The United States1401 Words   |  6 Pagesthe United States, many were really just caretakers eclipsed in prominence by various industrialists and robber barons. The modern American presidency was actually the creation of Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt who by different means expanded and strengthened the office of the President of the United States. The Roosevelt family revolutionized how the United States operated and functioned. 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