Tuesday, October 30, 2007
The One Where Brin Discovers Who She Really Is. Or Not.HELLO!
So anyway, I was reading through this book (yes Ms. Johnson, I READ books.) called Honk If You're Malaysian by Lydia Teh. It basically talks about stereotypes in Malaysia and there's this part which I find particularly interesting. Apparently the author's friend once commented to her something like:
"If you're not lazy, you're not Malay,
If you don't cheat, you're not Chinese,
If you don't drink, you're not Indian."
of course, the author rejected this horribly racist stereotype by claiming,
"I'm Chinese but I'm no cheat,
My friend's Indian but he's no drunk,
Another is Malay but he's no slob,
Chinese, Indian, Malay or Others,
We are who we make ourselves to be,
Not the stereotypes we're made out to be.
But if we don't buck the trend,
We'll forever be stamped."
I truly admire her for what she says. However, this excerpt got me thinking. Personally, I'm half Indian, about a quarter or so Chinese, and I'm mixed with so many other races that im am a big mess of cultures. Strangely though, I look Malay.(or so I have been told by the numerous people who have been trying to recruit me to join the Malay Societies in every school I've been to.) Hmm. So... that would naturally mean that I'm a drunkard, a cheat and a lazy slob! Which by the way, I AM NOT. (apart from the occasional socially-acceptable drink every now and then and the constant last minute mugging, that is.)
Anyway, the point is, stereotypes are ridiculous! If races all have a negative quality attached to every one of them, then that would mean that people who are 'mixed-blooded' like me, would be a really large pile of walking negativity!
Which, by the way, I AM NOT! I'm a nice person! REALLY. (: (Stop rolling your eyes Ms. Johnson!)
Not Your Average Drunkard,
The Brin (:
ms. johnson and the brin bit this at ; 6:49 AM
Sunday, October 21, 2007
The One About the Hot Girl/Guy.A Kathoey is a term used to describe a transgendered individual in Thailand. This individual below won one of the annual competitions organised especially for transgendered individuals every year. She managed to win the title of Miss Tiffany 2002. Check it out:
Firstly, don't you think he was quite good looking before? Not that she isn't pretty after! But still! Why are all the good looking men trangendered or gay?! (Ms Johnson: Brin, you are as deprived as it gets aren't you?)
Okay, nevermind. The thing is, Kathoeys in Thailand, are very often discriminated against. There is apparently a belief that these Kathoeys are being punished in their current lives, due to a mistake they made in their previous life. Hence, it is sort of like a taboo for people to associate themselves with them. The stereotyped image associated with this group of people is the idea of a punished individual or a criminal of sorts. This also makes it difficult for them to get jobs and other opportunities.
So yeah, it's really kind of sad to see people being discriminated against simply because of this idea that some people have in their heads about them. Maybe we should start a campaign, eh Ms Johnson? Like an Anti-Stereotype campaign. We could sell t-shirts and stuff! (Ms Johnson: Righhhhhhtttttttttt.)
Join My Anti-Stereotype Campaign Please,
The Brin (:
ms. johnson and the brin bit this at ; 10:17 AM
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
The One About the Yellow Terror.This picture was actually a political cartoon of how the foreigners saw the Asians in the early 1900s. So basically this Asian guy is seen with a long ponytail (the artist probably watched too many Chinese kungfu movies) and he's seen holding this torch like thing. It kind of looks like a roll of opium to me, but I could be wrong. Anyway, he's depicted as this really violent and disgusting sort of fellow, which is probably how foreigners saw Americans in those days.
For our project, we actually did some research and found out that there was this period of time in the 1900s when more and more Asians, from all the different parts of Asia began migrating into America. Apparently the Americans got really afraid that they would steal their jobs, money and women. This fear they had was called the "Yellow Peril". So this image in the picture was probably how they saw these "strange" Asians to be.
It's quite a ridiculous portrayal of Asians because:
1. Not all Asians are Chinese.
2. 99% of Chinese do not look like that.
3. Common sense would tell every human being that running around with a knife in your mouth is d-a-n-g-e-r-o-u-s!
ms. johnson and the brin bit this at ; 8:54 AM
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
The One About the White Man's Burden.The following poem was written by Rudyard Kipling on the colonisation of the Philippines by the Americans. In the 1870s, Westerners saw South-East Asians as uncivilised, and uneducated. Through the Western Forward Movement of the 1870s, they felt it was their duty to educate these individuals and develop thee rural areas of the countries. However, many realised that this was simply an excuse to exploit South-East Asia of its rich natural resources. None the less, the Western train of thought is expressed in this poem. Don't forget to keep your Glossary of Literary Terms at hand!
The White Man's Burden - Rudyard KiplingTake up the White Man's burden--
Send forth the best ye breed--
Go bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives' need;
To wait in heavy harness,
On fluttered folk and wild--
Your new-caught, sullen peoples,
Half-devil and half-child.
Take up the White Man's burden--
In patience to abide,
To veil the threat of terror
And check the show of pride;
By open speech and simple,
An hundred times made plain
To seek another's profit,
And work another's gain.
Take up the White Man's burden--
The savage wars of peace--
Fill full the mouth of Famine
And bid the sickness cease;
And when your goal is nearest
The end for others sought,
Watch sloth and heathen Folly
Bring all your hopes to nought.
Take up the White Man's burden--
No tawdry rule of kings,
But toil of serf and sweeper--
The tale of common things.
The ports ye shall not enter,
The roads ye shall not tread,
Go make them with your living,
And mark them with your dead.
Take up the White Man's burden--
And reap his old reward:
The blame of those ye better,
The hate of those ye guard--
The cry of hosts ye humour
(Ah, slowly!) toward the light:--
"Why brought he us from bondage,
Our loved Egyptian night?"
Take up the White Man's burden--
Ye dare not stoop to less--
Nor call too loud on Freedom
To cloke your weariness;
By all ye cry or whisper,
By all ye leave or do,
The silent, sullen peoples
Shall weigh your gods and you.
Take up the White Man's burden--
Have done with childish days--
The lightly proferred laurel,
The easy, ungrudged praise.
Comes now, to search your manhood
Through all the thankless years
Cold, edged with dear-bought wisdom,
The judgment of your peers.
ms. johnson and the brin bit this at ; 10:49 AM