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Desertsnake4532 · Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Posts: 10 Location: Palestine

stereotypes are statements that state or imply that all people think or behave in one way. There are also positive stereotypes (i.e. all Asian students are excellent students). Sometimes we say all in a casual sense but we don't really mean all. For example, you may say that all Egyptians always try to take money even though you know there are many good Egyptians who are good people, but it seems to generally be the case. The way she writes her book, it really implies that all (or at least the vast majority) Arabs think this way and it ignores the complex layers of Arab societies. I hope I answered your question johnslat.

I agree with Geere that she must be a poor teacher and very gullible. I get students all the time telling me that their class mates are members or supporters of Hamas. It's all a way of messing with a teacher to test them. Clearly she failed the test.

johnslat · Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2009 10:52 pm Post subject:

Dear Desertsnake4532,

If I've understood your answer correctly, you'd say the quote is an example of a stereotype and is not (generally speaking) an accurate description.

Is that right?

Thank you for your response. I'll be interested to see if any others post.

Regards,
John

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Pikgitina · Joined: 09 Jan 2006 Posts: 420 Location: KSA

I agree with VS. However, in the context of the book, it's probably a stereotype as well, as I suspect that sufficient context may be lacking.

In response to Desertsnake4532, I agree that some of the (male) students test teachers in this way. I taught a Palestinian student once who told us (the whole class) that his best friend was "the donkey" (implications rather obvious I guess) and that he used the tunnel system for his gunrunning Shocked

. I won't go as far as to say that there was no truth in these statements, but he thought he was being outrageously funny Rolling Eyes

. When the shock value wore off and the other students in the class realised they just had to ignore him in order to get on with things, he became rather sullen. Confused

Cleopatra · Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:50 am Post subject:

Desertsnake4532 · Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Posts: 10 Location: Palestine

I think I may have made some assumptions about the quote john used. I assumed he found the quotation in the book. Even so, I took the quotation john used to say the speaker was talking about all Arabs. Certainly as VS said, this is the mentality of the very conservative branches of society. The part about dishonor certainly rings true in many sections of society, but not necessarily the part about women being "owned" by men. If it was not a stereotype, I think it would have been phrased in a different way.

Another key part is the one about the veil. It says that women must remain veiled. Many of the Muslim women I have spoken to choose to wear the veil and do not have it forced upon them like so many western stereotypes believe. And of course there are many women who choose not to wear it. One only has to walk around the streets of Beirut or Ramallah to see this.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

I think the quote is from the book or the blurb perhaps...

But the part about veiling is a common belief and I have heard it from very strict Muslims of both sexes - mostly in the Gulf. (just as I have heard the opposite) In fact, I had students tell me that it was in the Quran, but actually it is from the Sunnah.

I still don't consider the quote a "stereotype" unless the author had said, "all Muslim women....blah blah" It is, in fact, a tradition, which has rather morphed into a fashion in many Muslim countries. If you look at much of the media, a stereotype quickly develops that all Muslim women are draped in black, when a walk in North Africa or the Levant dispels it quite quickly.

That said, it is a statement that could easily support the stereotypes in the reader's mind.

VS

johnslat · Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 2:32 pm Post subject:

I think the quote is probably from the book jacket - a "blurb." But from the context, I got the impression that the students in question who told the teacher this (if they actually did) were describing (or fibbing about) their own society: Qatar.
I think it's unlikely the students were talking about or describing or fibbing about the whole Middle East or the whole Arab and/or Muslim world.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Oh I suspect that the kids very well said it thus to her. In Wahhabi Qatar, I expect that both statements reflect widely held beliefs. That is why I don't consider it a "stereotype."

But, how the author used it in the book could confirm negative stereotypes in the US. (perhaps even her own...)

Or am I splitting hairs...

VS

helenl · Joined: 04 Jan 2006 Posts: 1202

A friend teaching in Qatar has been told by several of her female Qatari students (a co-ed tertiary institution) that they wear the veil at college only "because the boys here are very silly Miss". Outside the college, shopping, etc. they don't wear it.

Are there those that remain veiled at all times, sure there are - in my years in the GCC I've found that they're becoming scarcer and scarcer.