The mispronunciations of Gloria from Modern Family are definitely funny. I relate to many of the things she says because I've grown up hearing my dad, a Mexican immigrant and native Spanish speaker, saying similar things the way she does. But this just contributes to the single story of Latinas being stupid or not knowing how to speak English. Yes, it's true that some immigrants who learned English as a second language speak the way she does. But that's always only the one image we get of Latinas in general. Latinas have to be the immigrants. They cannot know how to speak English--and because we associate language so closely with intelligence, we start to think that these Latinas aren't smart and can't be taken seriously. They're just people we laugh at because, "oh, they're so endearingly naive and unaware of our ways." But this underestimates and devalues the contributions Latinas can make in our society.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvSzu6eL6cc
Sofia from the new show, "Young and Hungry" is in a way a normal Latina who isn't always defined by the stereotypical idea of what a Latina in America should be. But she still quite often slips into the role (as she does at about the :50 mark in this clip) of a sassy Latina friend who talks with a funny accent and uses strange body language and slang to get her way. The actions, while mainly portrayed as humorous, are also portrayed as sketchy and untrustworthy--irresponsible. Which are all values I've noticed that contribute to the single story of a one-dimensional Latina character. And then in this clip the person she's talking to dismisses her as a stupid, silly girl. This is portrayed as funny, but it really just undoes any good the show did for Sofia when it originally painted her as a great best friend who happened to be Latina by pigeonholing her into a role of a sassy, sexualized, stupid Latina.
http://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/advice/a5403/latina-media-stereotypes/
I do appreciate that more Latinas seem to be gaining a voice by writing or acting for various media platforms. But just the fact that they're starting to debunk these stereotypes and single stories doesn't mean it's going to fix it overnight. I chose this article as an artifact that represents the single story because the writer is so on point about the various things that have come to define Latinas: speaking with thick accents, dancing, working as a maid, cooking, talking loudly, acting stupidly, dressing one way. Even though no one has necessarily accused me of having all those qualities, I see so much of that image on the media that I immediately related to each point the article made, as if I had been single storied this way. Maybe it's because people have stereotyped me in other ways for being Mexican in the past. Either way, I feel like I have been single storied as a result of Latinas being single storied because it really allows so little room for individuality and serious accomplishment.
These messages matter because they give no dimension to a very multi-faceted people. It contributes to the "us versus them" mentality that so many people claim to reject but that they really buy into because it's comfortable to categorize people as different, and therefore not worthy of getting to know. When we ignore people and their very different levels of potential, we give them fewer opportunities for social and economic advancement in society. Doing that to anyone is outright wrong. Doing that to a group of people because of a one stereotype is disgusting, unfair and ignorant. I'm Latina. I've never talked like so many of the Latinas I see on television and in movies talk. I've never moved the way they do or worn clothes similar to theirs. I want to be seen as a regular person, but it's hard to be myself when I feel like I have to identify with one narrow, incomplete role--especially when I can't be authentic when I try to take on those features. Really the harm in the single story is that people identify with it--negatively--and then start to take themselves less seriously in life.
I think that it's so interesting that you pointed out how the single story presented by the media starts to form the members of the community so that they fit into the category they are "supposed to." Perpetuating the single story of a group is just adding fuel to the fire.
ReplyDeleteI think that it's so interesting that you pointed out how the single story presented by the media starts to form the members of the community so that they fit into the category they are "supposed to." Perpetuating the single story of a group is just adding fuel to the fire.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you discussed the harm of single-storying. For example, your last line talks about how when we identify ourselves with a single story, we start to take ourselves less seriously in life. It's like we don't feel that we are destined to become better so we are willing to settle for other peoples' idea of us. And unfortunately, this idea is often much less than our potential.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate hearing about the effects of these single stories from someone who experiences it firsthand. It gives it another level of significance
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