MODULE III

STEREOTYPES: ORIGINES AND THREATS

MERRY CHRISTMAS

LISTENING 1 (A2-B1)

You will listen to a song by a famous English songwriter– Noel Cowardⁱ. He wrote his song – Mad dogs and Englishmen – in the 1930s, the time when the British power began to eclipse. In the song, Coward mocks at British people’s ignorance of other countries’ life-styles and their rejection of other countries’ customs.

Task 1

Discuss questions 1-2 with other students.

1. How do British people behave when they come as visitors to your country?

2. What impression do your compatriots create when they are as visitors in other countries?

Task 2

Read the song lyrics. Complete the gaps with the better word from the column at the side. Compare your choices with a partner. Listen to the song verse-by-verse (video 1 – 02.52 min.) to check the answers.

MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN

In tropical ________________ there are certain times of day When all the __________________________________ retire To take their clothes off and _________________________. It's one of those rules that the greatest fools ____________, Because the sun is far too ____________________________ And one must avoid its ultry violet ray. The natives grieve when the white men leave their ________. Because they're obviously, definitely ____________________.	sultry/hot citizens/people houses/huts nuts/crazy follow/obey perspire/sweat climes/countries
Mad Dogs & Englishmen go out in the midday sun. The Japanese don't care to, The Chinese wouldn't dare to, Hindus and Argentines sleep __________ from twelve to one, But Englishmen ______________________________ a siesta. In the Philippines they have lovely ______________________ To protect you from the ______________________________. In the Malay states there are hats like plates Which the Britishers won't wear. At twelve noon the natives ____________________________, And no further work is done, But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun!	detest/hate shoes/hats screens/parasols swoon/faint firmly/soundly glare/sun
It’s such a surprise for the eastern eyes to see, That though the English are ___________________________, They're quite ________________________________ to heat. When the white man rides every native hides in ___________. Because the simple creatures hope he Will _________________________ his solar topee* on a tree. It seems such a _____ when the English claim the ________, That they give rise to such ___________________ and mirth. *a type of sun-hat worn in the tropics, typical of colonial times	happiness/glee impale/stick shame/pity weak/effete laughter/hilarity world/earth closed/impervious
Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. The toughest Burmese _____________________________ Can never understand it. In Rangoon the heat of noon is just what the natives ______, They put their ________________ or Rye down and lie down. In a ____________ town where the sun ____________ down To the rage of man and beast, The English ____________ of the English sahib Merely gets a bit more _____________________________. In Bangkok at twelve o'clock They ______________________at the mouth and run, But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.	whisky/Scotch jungle/desert clothes/garb crumpled/creased foam/salivate avoid/shun shines/beats robber/bandit
M ad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. The smallest Malay _____________________________ Deplores this foolish habit. In Hong Kong, they _______________________ a gong And fire off a noonday _______________________________ To reprimand each ______________________ who's in late. In the mangrove **_________ where the python __________ There is peace from twelve to two, Even caribous**** lie around and _____________________, For there's nothing else to do. In Bengal, to move at all is _________________ if ever done. But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun! ** a tropical tree or shrub *** a large deer	inhabitant/inmate bang/strike sleep/snooze plays/romps gun/cannon infrequently/seldom chicken/rabbit/ swamps/marshes

Reading 1 & listening (a2-в1) why do we stereotype?

Tuning in

Listen to ‘Stereotypes Song’ (video 2 – 04.24 min.) to tune in before the class. What stereotypes does it feature? Which stereotypes are definitely not true? What countries does the song feature? The script can be found in References.ⁱⁱ

Pre-reading tasks and questions

1. What is a stereotype?ⁱⁱⁱ Are stereotypes fair? What stereotypes do you know?

2. Annie Murphy Paul – a book author, a journalist – in her book ‘Where Bias Begins: The Truth About Stereotypes’ (1998) wrote: ‘We all use stereotypes, all the time, without knowing it. We have met the enemy of equality, and the enemy is us.’ Listen (video 3 – 02.36 min.) to Annie Murphy Paul and questions a-d. Compare the answers with a partner. .

1. What is a bias?

2. What is the difference between a bias and a behavior?

3. Do biases concern particular individuals?

4. Are biases always negative?

5. Are biases always wrong?

3. You will hear (video 4 – 01.08 min.) Sam Sommers, Assoc. Professor, Psychology speaking on why people tend to stereotype.

1. Before you start listening, look up the meaning of the following in References^iv: cognitive, shortcuts, repercussion, mitigate, play out.

2. Listen to Sam Sommers, take notes to answer questions i-ii. Discuss the answers with the class.

1. Why do people stereotype?

2. How can people combat stereotypes?

4. Look at the pie chart from a British popular newspaper. What common stereotypes are there about the British in the USA? Are there any common stereotypes of Americans in Britain or elsewhere?

H ow Americans react when they find out I come from Britain

5. Use an English-Russian dictionary to find out what the following words and word-combinations mean. Write down definitions. Translate the word combinations into Russian.

To look after Number One

To accept your lot

Clingfilm

To assume

Attention span

Reading

Task 1

Read paragraphs 1-6 quickly. Do not worry if there are words that you don’t understand at the moment. Choose a suitable heading for each paragraph from the list below. Underline key sentences. There is one heading you do not need. Do not spend more than two minutes on this exercise. Working in pairs, compare the answers. If necessary, refer to the paragraphs again to check your answers. Then discuss the answers with the class.

Houses Television Themselves Weather Clothes Food and drink Children

Task 2

Work in groups. Read the paragraphs again, if necessary. Discuss questions a-d below.

1. Did anything surprise you?

2. Which picture (A, B, C) below is irrelevant to the paragraphs? Where does the person in that picture come from? What stereotypes does the picture feature?

3. Do the paragraphs feature any of the stereotypes in the pictures? What other stereotypes do the pictures feature?

4. Do you think the author is British, American or neither?

A B C

1. _______________________________________________________________________

Americans aim to do three things in life: 1. look after ‘Number One’; 2. live forever and look beautiful and young as long as possible; 3. make lots of money and/or become famous. They will do anything to achieve these three goals. The British are very different. They would like to be quite rich, but are happy to accept their lot if they are not. They would never dream of putting themselves before others (which is why they like to queue so much and allow people to go in front of them in races), even if their lives depended on it. They are proud of the class system that divides them.

2. ___________________________________________________________________________

The Americans love food, in large quantities and endless varieties. Many American meals often do not even fit on the plate. Americans like their food to be wrapped in cling film (shrink-wrap as Americans call it) and ready for the microwave. This is true unless, of course, they are Californians in which case they eat ‘raw energy food’ known to the rest of the world as salad. The British only eat food to survive and would never dream of enjoying it. They prefer to cook their food for twice as long as necessary just to make sure it’s done, and don’t like to have too many choices on menus as they find it impossible to make up their minds. 3.____________________________________________________________________________Both British and American parents are proud of their children, but here the similarity ends. American parents publicly admire their children and like to share their successes with everyone, assuming that everyone else is interested. They change their children if they do not like them the way they are, for example, straightening their teeth or boosting their self-confidence by planning extra activities for them. British parents think that too much praise would make their children overconfident. British parents are happy to accept their children as nature intended, even if it means their teeth look terrible.

4. ___________________________________________________________________________

In America, ‘hot and sunny’ means that you should wear factor 20 sun cream and you could cook eggs on the sidewalk (or ‘pavement’ as the Brits would say). In Britain, ‘hot and sunny’ means it isn’t raining so you should expose any white skin in a public place until it goes pink, or it starts to rain.

5. ____________________________________________________________________________

America has thousands of TV channels because most Americans have a very short attention span. TV and film companies will not film anyone who is not blonde and beautiful, who is slightly overweight or who does not have perfect teeth, unless they are appearing on a talk show. Britain is well known for its comedy, drama and award-winning commercials (or ‘advertisements’ as those ‘quaint’ little Brits would say) and the fact that it has only 5 TV channels. However, as most British people would never want to appear on TV, they do not need more than 5 channels.

6. ___________________________________________________________________________

Americans spend thousands of dollars employing decorators to create a perfect home and lifestyle for themselves. ‘They are particularly fond of gadgets, as well as things which are remote-controlled (garage doors and temperature controls), extremely large (fridges) or just for lazy people (ice cube dispenser). Britons are much less vulgar than Americans are. They like patterned carpets and furniture (as many different patterns as possible in the same room) and are not concerned that they live in freezing conditions indoors as well as outdoors.

Task 3

Working in pairs, discuss statements 1-16. Are they true or false? Write F if a statement is false and write T if a statement is true. Provide evidence from the text or correct the false statements. Then discuss the statements with the class.

1. _____Americans always give up if there are any difficulties.

2. _____British people are in a way passive.

3. _____ British people do not mind social divisions within British society.

4. _____ American meals are very big.

5. _____ Americans do not seem to spend much time cooking their meals.

6. _____ British people are food crazy.

7. _____ Menus are varied in British restaurants.

8. _____ British food is often overdone.

9. _____ British parents unlike American parents do not like their children.

10. _____ British children are overconfident.

11. _____ Americans cook eggs on the sidewalk when it is hot and sunny.

12. _____ The American hot and sunny weather is different from the British hot and sunny

weather.

13. _____ Americans select people for their talk shows.

14. _____ There are only 5 channels on TV because British people do not like watching TV.

15. _____ American houses are perfect.

16. _____ People from other countries might complain about British houses.

Task 4

1. According to the paragraph entitled Themselves Americans could be described as ‘self-centered’ and ‘ambitious’. British people could be described as ‘considerate’ and ‘snobbish’. Use information in the other paragraphs to complete the columns for Americans and British people in the table below. Use positive and negative adjectives.

2. What stereotypes are there of your nationality? Complete the column ‘Your country' in

Task 5

Work in groups. Swap information and discuss the stereotypes of your nationality. Are they fair?

	Americans	British people	Your country
‘Themselves’	self-centered ambitious	considerate snobbish not ambitious
Other paragraphs