True Generalizations About Americans

(Don't be thrown off by the title, when I say "true generalizations," I mean generally speaking). Plus, it is usually generalizations about the ways of the culture that are true, not necessarily actions of viewpoints of individuals. 

In an article, "The Young, the Rich, and the Famous," the author writes about American greets (which I mentioned in an earlier blog). However I believe it is a generalization that holds true. when Americans greet one another there is not necessarily a response expected, it has become a type of ritual we have become accustomed to because we have been exposed to and use these greetings multiple times a day.

The author also comments on the individual privacy and independence that Americans value. I think this is also true of American society because most of us growing up are given our own individual private space, a separate bedroom, from our parents. Sometimes by other cultures this can be viewed as anti-social or not wanting a close relationship with other people or family. The author also gives the example of American parents seeing their child fall but letting him pick himself up on his own. This type of independence is not seen in her native Thai culture where parents rush to help their kids up when they fall. The American tradition is also for children to leave home when they become 18 years old and either start work or head off to college. It has become the custom of the U.S. to teach children to become progressively independent from their family and to help themselves from an early age.