This past week Americans have united in bashing UCLA's Alexandra Wallace for her, admittedly, rude and ignorant critique of "Asian" mannerisms. Allegedly infamous mannerisms that include the terrible sins of bonding with family over shared duties and communicating on those satanic little devices we call phones. No buddy else uses them really, or ever talks too loudly. This behavior is relegated only to those of Oriental appearance and descent.
This controversy has left in its wake an outpouring of angsty You-Tube videos, and other college students sadly and slowly shaking their heads. "Thank you American education," I heard one of my friends say.
What I'm frankly more concerned about is the American portrayal of Chinese education. I saw this political commercial play during the Rachel Ray show this past Wednesday, and stopped mid-bite of Dannon Peach Lite Yogurt and Granny Smith apples to turn up the volume.
This advertisement depicts Chinese people as not our fellow global citizens, but our conniving competition. They have been study our failures, it implies. They have worked since the dawn of history to watch for the flaws of other great empires (like ours, clearly- we put it up there with the Romans after all) and have been waiting for us to fall. Now the own our debt. They own us. They are the enemy, and a victorious one.
This commercial (which followed the Morning News, I might add) breeds ignorance and ethnocentrism. Its rhetoric is powerful, and pathos driven- reaching down the shadowy fears kept in bottoms of American hearts and wallets. Logos wise- it's disgusting. And poorly constructed- note how the wording implies that previous ancient empires also had problems with deficit spending and providing adequate health care.
Don't even get me started on the ethos of this commercial. On television it was aired without translation- the climax is Chinese laughing at the problems of Americans; the audience is purposely kept out of their dialogue. the imagination is allowed- no- encouraged to run wild. It intends to isolate and scare the viewer- a manipulation of American fears against a people who clearly look and speak differently than the conventional middle class WASP.
And this commercial stings! If this is a commonplace on any grounds, no wonder we have comments like those of Ms. Wallace making head lines. My point is perhaps the uncouth ranting of one beach blond isn't what our real concern should be. If we condone such ignorance in a more professional form, like this commercial, are we not as bad ourselves? Would our silence in response to the attitudes in this ad, to much of the world, appear as a quiet agreement?
That's disgusting. Just factually, China owns most of our debt, yes - but the US buys their factories' output. If either one of us pulls on the other's strings we both fall down.
ReplyDeleteThe Communist imagery, the racist imagery... Just because you can say something doesn't mean it's appropriate. Look at Westboro Baptist.
This is truly awful- in both its portrayal of the American government and the Chinese. The lab I work in here on campus is run by a Chinese professor, and the grad students are all Chinese as well. They are truly amazing people and I am honored to work for them. I am traveling to China this summer and while I obviously don't agree with the country's governmental system, their people are not bad.
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