Russians and Americans. Senior Project

• Americans always have to say what they are thinking.

They believe that being direct is the most efficient way to communicate. It is important to “tell it like it is” and “speak your mind” – to say what you mean and mean what you say. Americans value “assertiveness” and being open and direct about one’s thoughts and feelings.

• Americans always want to change things.

They think things can always be better, and that progress is inevitable. The United States is just a little more than 200 years old, and American culture tends to be an optimistic one. Older cultures are more skeptical because they have been around longer, have experienced more, and have been in situations in which progress was not always made.

• Americans do not show very much respect for their elders.

They believe people must earn by their actions whatever regard or respect they are given. Merely attaining a certain age or holding a certain position does not in itself signify achievement.

• Americans are so impatient.

They believe that if things take a long time to do, they will not be able to do enough of them. Many Americans believe that more and faster is better

• Being Number One is very important to an American.

Winning is important to Americans because it makes them feel good, and good is the American thing to feel. As American football coach Vince Lombardi put it, “Winning is not everything. It is the only thing”. Americans believe themselves to be the only nation that is truly capable of winning. Having God on your side in a fight is good. Having the United States on your side is better. To an American, they are the same thing.

 

American values

 

Most Americans would have difficult time telling international visitors, specifically, which values they live by. They probably have never given the matter any thought. Even if Americans had considered this question, they would probably decide not to answer in terms of a definitive list of values. The reason for this decision itself is one American value – that every individual is so unique that the same list of values could never be applied to all, or even most of their fellow citizens. 

Americans may think of themselves as being more varied and unpredictable than they really are. Americans think they have only been slightly influenced by family, church or schools. Each believes, “I personally chose values I want to live my only life by.”

Despite this self-evaluation, an antropologist from another country could observe Americans and produce a list of common values which would fit most Americans. A list of typically American values would stand in sharp contrast to the values commonly held by people in some other cultures.

The different behaviors of a people or a culture make sense only when seen through the basic beliefs, assumptions and values of that particular group. When an international visitor encounters an action, or hears a statement in the United States which surprises him or her, he or she should try to see it as an expression of one or more of the values. For example, as a female visotor asks Americans for directions to get to a particular address in their own city, they may explain, in great detail, how she can get there on her own, but may never even consider walking two city blocks with her to take her there. Some visitors have interpreted this sort of action as showing Americans’ “unfriendliness.” Instead, the self-help concept is so strong in Americans that they firmly believe that no adult would never want, even temporarily to be dependent on another Also their future orientation makes Americans think it is better to prepare oneself to find other addresses on his or her own in the future.

It is necessary to point out that Americans see all these values as very positive ones. They are not aware, for example, that many people around the world view change as negative or threatening. All American values could be judged by many other cultures as negative and undesirable. Therefore, it is not enough simply to familiarize oneself with these values. One should also, so far as possible, consider them without the negative or derogatory connotation (a meaning of the word that shows a lack of respect) which they might have for them, based on their own experience and cultural identity.

The reach of American culture has extended far and wide across the world. Disney now runs theme parks on three continents; McDonalds, having opened restaurants to sell hamburgers and fries nearly everywhere, has recently expanded into the hotel business in Switzerland; the Marlboro man sells cigarettes throughoyt Europe, Latin America and Asia; surveys routinely find that American sports (Michael Jordan), music (Madonna), and movie (Julia Roberts) stars are the mast recognized people in the world; American TV shows such as “Friends”, “ER”, and “The Simpsons” are dubbed into duzen of languages and rebroadcast; and American staples such as blue jeans and Nike shoes have become staples everywhere else as well.

 

 

2.3. Stereotypes of Russia

We all know that today Russia is not very interesting for America, Americans know very little about us, and that is why they live only with the stereotypes. What are they, what is the attitude of Americans towards Russia and what they think we have in common.

According to the results of the statistics, the attitude of Americans towards Russia is: 5,4% - Negative; 39,3% - Neutral; 55,3% - Positive. They have specific interest towards Russian culture. A very few Americans understand Russia.  Americans imagine Russia as an enlarged, financially troubled version of America. Many people say, surely Russian banks, stores, hospitals, weapons, factories and government offices are just as heavily computerized as their American counterparts. Americans acknowledge that Russian computer equipment may be obsolute, but many fail to understand how insignificant the role of computer technology is in Russia.

MUSIC: Best known in the American popular imagination are Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, and “Black Eyes” (Ochi chorniye).

HEALTH: Some Russian beliefs – it is good to eat fresh fruits and vegetables – are very widely shared. Some Russian beliefs outsiders notice because they are not as widely shared are: it is not good to drink too much water before or during meals; it is good to have a bowl of soup a day; vodka has medicinal properties – if you are catching a cold, you should have a cup of tea with a little vodka.

BEAUTY: Outsiders notice that many Russians appear to believe that a woman should be beautiful and should not leave the house without make-up.

WORK: Many Russians work very long and hard out of necessity, to pay bills and care for their families, but that few Russians would put career or work ahead of family or human relationships. As a broad cultural pattern, Russians seem to work in order to live, rather than to live in order to work.

CITIES: Moscow, Saint Petersburg (Leningrad), Kiev, Minsk, Stalingrad.

RUSSIAN SYMBOLS: Flag, Kremlin, Red Square, bears, ballet, vodka, fist, birches.

FAMOUS PEOPLE: Lenin, Stalin, Putin, Gorbachev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky.

American stereotypes about Russians

• Russian men have hot tempers.
• Russian boys want to enter the university only to avoid the army.
• Girls want to enter the university only to look for good husbands.
• Older people are crazy about their dachas and only want to stay at their dachas.
• Russians like to drink (vodka, beer, etc).
• Russians like to complain.
• Older people are too idealistic.
• Men know how to fix things around the house.
• Women are jealous.
• Young people today think only of money.
• Russians love going to museums.
• Russians are sly.
• There is no freedom of speech in Russia.
• Young people getting rich very quickly.
• Russians are poor, suffered a lot, are very serious, have bread lines.
• Churches with onion domes, great literature.
• Russian women dress up, but it does not matter so much what men wear.
• Russians tend to be paranoid.
• Russians are dreamers and not doers.
• Russians do not think about the future – they do not plan far ahead. If they have money today, they spend money today.
• Russians are certain that they are right, they know everything and they have all the answers.
• Russians disapprove of people who are different or who break social conventions (like Tattoo).
• Russians are lazy – if you do not tell them what to do and supervise them carefully they will do as little as possible or nothing at all, etc.

Now, we see that unfortunately Americans know very little about Russians.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

Stereotypes are simplified and/or standardized conceptions or images with specific meaning, often held in common by members of a group. A stereotype can be a conventional and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image. Stereotypes can range from those that are wildly inaccurate and negative to those that are more than a little bit true and may even shed positive light upon the group of individuals. They are typically generalizations based on minimal or limited knowledge about a group to which the person doing the stereotyping does not belong. Persons may be grouped based on race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or any number of other categories.

Stereotypes can be based on:

• Historical factors
• Simplification
• Exaggeration
• Presentation of cultural attributes as being 'natural'
• Racism, sexism, homophobia and other forms of discrimination
• Association of persons with other groups
• Physical disorders

Stereotypes are not only part of the culture and identity of those groups who are stereotyped, but they are also part of the culture of those who recognize and utilize them for interpreting certain groups.

In our senior project we tried to show the most widespread stereotypes about Russians and Americans, found out their attitude and got to know where intercultural problems can occur.

So, false impression about different cultures often put a stop to understanding each other adequately. It creates serious barriers in international relations that may result in alienation. Knowing these stereotypes will help us to avoid conflicts among nations all over the world and understand each other better.

 

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