Stereotypes Are Funny?

Please read these stereotypes and tell me which ones you have heard before!

1.  That all white women have flat booties. 
2.  That all Jews are greedy. 
3.  That all blacks are lazy, on welfare, and   don't believe in marriage before child  barring. 
4.  That all Asians are good at math. 
5.  That all Arabs are angry people that like   to  blow up things. 
6.  That all black men are hung like      elephants. 
7.  All white men are hung like squirrels. 
8.  All blacks crave chicken and watermelon. 
9.  All blacks are hostile and will quickly bust a cap in you.
10.  That all Mexicans like to drive around 15-17 deep in a small car. 
11.  That all white people get angry when they cannot get jobs and see others moving ahead. 
12.  That all Asians like to eat rice and drive slow. 
13.  That all Irish people are drunks and eat potatoes. 
14.  Americans are all loud, fat and obnoxious. 
15.  British people are all snobs and have bad teeth. 
16.  French people are all frog-eating, onion-lovers called Pierre. 
17. Jews are all money-grabbing masterminds trying to take over the world. 
18. Irish people are all alcoholics who love scoffing potatoes and beating up their peers. 
19. Muslims are all out to kill "civilised people" by blowing themselves up by plane, bus or train.
20. Mothers are housewifes and take care of the house.

Special thanks to Urban Dictionary to provide me with these general stereotypes.

Let's get to the main point of this blog. The media texts that we consume daily has provided us with all sorts of stereotypes. These stereotypes range from the Whites to Blacks to Jews to Mexicans to Asians and so on. I believe that these stereotypes that exist currently are reshaping the way we think about and act around certain types of people. This includes the stereotype that all black people are dangerous and that you should always should be on alert because something dangerous might occur. Another example can be that if you ever need help in math, the Asian community is open to help you with your math problems which includes graphing functions and solving equations like this f(x)=3log5^3.   

Please watch this video and get a general sense of the ridiculous stereotypes that we are being surrounded with currently. Isn't it ridiculous? This YouTube video can be deconstructed and examined even more. Take for example when the guy in the video says, "Let's get together like the unibrow of an Indian girl". Isn't that racist and rude. This video really displays the stereotypes that we are faced with currently. People think that every Indian girl is hairy and has a unibrow but that is wrong. Media texts have taken stereotypes to the extreme and it should not be like that. Another stereotype is that all Russian's drink alcoholic for breakfast. I know a few Russians and they do not drink alcohol for breakfast.

I believe that these stereotypes that are presented in this video are definitely not true. All sorts of media texts have embedded into the mind of the viewers these racial stereotypes. When you think of an England dude, what immediately comes to your mind? I bet a guy who has messed up teeth and a bad breath. Regardless if these stereotypes are not true we should not forget that people can get offended. 

The only people to blame for this is the media producers. These producers have really inputted their beliefs and values into their ads. This can be seen in commercials, films, ads, websites and on the television. Likewise, I believe that the dominant discourse too has influenced the stereotypes that currently exist in our society. The socializing influences have shaped our ideas, perceptions and behaviours around certain race and ethnicity groups. Stereotypes can be funny to some people but in the end of the day someone that is being stereotyped will get offended. Some of these stereotypes in the video are kind of funny but seriously these stereotypes have to stop and it will begin with you!

Okay let's take a step back and let's focus on how mothers are stereotyped too. The media has stereotyped mothers that they are housewifes, cookers, cleaners and soccer moms. These stereotypes might be true but not every mother falls into those categories because some mothers are the complete opposite. Likewise, you have fathers that are categorized into those stereotypes. Once again media texts and its ability to reshape the mind of many has done its job successfully.  I believe that these stereotypes will be part of our lives for a long time.

Stereotypes have had many purposes. One of which is to advertise certain consumer goods and services. An example portraying this is a model from H&M. The models are stereotyped to look caucasian, tall, handsome and really fit. Though stereotypes are not just used for business purposes they are also used for entertainment. We have seen in many films, ads, television programs and comedians use stereotypes to their advantage. I believe that comedians have returned to the stereotypical jokes because quite frankly they are funny. The ordinary life is boring and by making stereotypical jokes it just entertains many people. Obviously there are the negative effects of stereotypical jokes but if you were to look at it through a neutral-ethnicity/gender/sexuality/religion lens then it will be okay.

Discussion questions:

Do you think that the dominant discourse has taken a huge toll on stereotypes? 

Why would the media that we consume present all these types of stereotypes?

How would you feel if you were stereotyped?

How would these stereotypes disappear once in for all?

Why are some stereotypes used for business purposes?