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Actually, by British standards America appears an irony and sarcasm free zone. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but it is very noticeable.
I agree. American humor can be pretty tame by comparison http://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2011/01/golden_globes...
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But the thing is titled "Getting to Know Americans", so why bother with an ugly sounding turn of words when you've already crossed that bridge? I didn't think that "US Americans" was even correct when I posted - it doesn't sound at all right to my ears. > Chilean, Canadian, Costa Rican grad students who would be annoyed at the implicit exclusion. Only the ones with a chip on their shoulder.
I was about to lament that English lacks a short, euphonic, idiomatic word for "US-icans" / US citizens & residents / culturally US people / estadounidenses . But then I remembered we do have such a word. Yanks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yankee#In_other_English-speakin...
You'll just have to live with the fact that English doesn't have a convenient word.
Even here in Italy, "americano" is much more common than statunitense.
Unless you talk to an engineer.
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Many time they are not even ready to acknowledge that things can and often are done better outside their own country. The sense of NIH is very strong. I agree with this, but I haven't actually been to a country that wasn't like that. Certainly here in Denmark, many Danes are quite certain that Denmark is run better than any other place. ;-)
> I agree with this, but I haven't actually been to a country that wasn't like that. Certainly here in Denmark, many Danes are quite certain that Denmark is run better than any other place. ;-) You should visit the third world more often. At least here in Brazil many people believe everything is run by incompetent crooks and if they could just get out to foreign countries they would see what actual management and ord…
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I agree with you. My own "disappointment" is not with 'regular joe' Americans, but with educated Americans. Being from a large city in India, I know from personal experience that majority of the people with college education, especially technical education are knowledgeable about things outside their own country at least in a conversational level, if not they want to know more. I cannot assume the same with Americans…
I don't know where in India you are, but I've spent 2 months there and have encountered my share of educated Indians who, for example, didn't know where or what Austria is or that Israel has a lot of Jewish people in it (or even what Jews are). Another example off the top of my head was an educated engineer (who went to graduate school) who didn't know what the Roman Empire was. All of these examples or equivalents n…
I know about Austria (and it's infamous son), Israel and it's formative years and it's current influence on my country and middle east. Also, as a South Indian, I know that Jews have lived in my part of the country for nearly two thousand years. Of course, I may be atypical.
My point is that I'm yet to meet atypical people like myself in US even in handfuls after three years of living here and travelling to many big cities.
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Not surprising when you consider that most people came here to get away from something, (poverty, repression, etc.) For no small number of Americans, the rest of the world is a proxy for "that place my ancestors left because it sucked ". The US was isolationist before it got dragged into the world wars, and has become interventionist not because it's interested in conquest, but because the past century has taught it…
Well, in my experience at least, the people I'm griping about are pretty far from "off the boat". They see themselves as natives, and their ancestors left europe 150 years ago because it was a totally different place then. Not much to do with their current viewpoint on, say, Brazil or China.
How about American irony and sarcasm? Here in Asia sarcasm is almost non-existent. Also, Americans value humor as a way of showing affection for someone. Whereas in Asia displays of servitude are a sign of affection. For example, if I engage in a humorous conversation with you, that means I like you. Even if I don't pour your tea for you!
Actually, by British standards America appears an irony and sarcasm free zone. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but it is very noticeable.
What is very valuable is to describe them in terms of how they are different from your culture.
Thus compared to Asia they are very sarcastic, and compared to Britain hardly at all.
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I agree. American humor can be pretty tame by comparison http://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2011/01/golden_globes...
It really shows up in British vs American versions of "The Office" television show. The American boss is more likeable than Ricky Gervais, and the show's tone is cheerier.
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Actually, by British standards America appears an irony and sarcasm free zone. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but it is very noticeable.
I've noticed people from the Indian subcontinent tend to be a lot more sarcastic than Americans. I wonder if it is a relic of the British colonization.
Most of the sarcastic comments, the tone and the nature of sarcasm does not even parse for a westerner.
In fact you will see a lot of Indian language sarcasm directly "translated" to English leading to hilarious situations.
British just came, looted and left. It would be good if people stopped attributing every god-damned thing about India to the "British Influence".