Turkish people are uneducated.
This is wrong. In Turkey, school education is compulsory for 6-18 year olds. Also there are over 100 well-known universities in Turkey. For example, Bosphorus University in Turkey is one of the most famous university in Turkey. In addition, it has a program with Chinese universities.One reason that may cause this stereotype I think could be the holiday resorts. To be specific, a work in a holiday resort may not require that much academic knowledge or working experience. So, some low educated people from small villages come to holiday resorts to find a job. And traveler from other countries mainly go to those resorts to spend their times, so that they may meet more low educated people than high educated people who live in Turkey.
Men are dominant, women are submissive and stay at home.
One reason may cause this point of view I think is because Turkey is still a religious country. Though technically women and men have equal rights in remote, religious and traditional villages, it is still normal to see men go outside, work and try their best to economically improve the living level of the family and women stay at home do some housework. However, men be breadwinners don't mean that they are really on the top and dominant women. Some similar situations are also found in UK and China. Furthermore, nowadays with more and more women having university education and being welcomed into professional jobs, men and women are more equally to be seen in the society. It is not rare to see women workers in many field of jobs. So, this stereotype may be caused by the extremely divided of traditional villages and modern cities or towns.
The water is dirty.
Actually, in most areas of Turkey, the water is perfectly safe to drink, especially those where the water is freshly sourced from melting snow on the mountains, springs, etc. It is true that some cities have old plumbing pipes pollute the water. So, even though that generally the whole water is clean, some people may still upset for the water. Another reason I think could cause this stereotype is the Black Sea. Turkey has a large parts of its territories link to the Black Sea, and black always remind people about pollution. It's true that many years ago, countries link with the Black Sea polluted it a lot; but nowadays the Black Sea is much more cleaner. In addition, the main reason cause the Black Sea to be black is not the pollution but is because water has two layers in the Black Sea and they rarely switch the place. So, the deeper water will seem more darker in the Black Sea than other seas, which makes the sea looks black.
Source: http://livingtheturkishdream.com/2013/08/28/stereotypesaboutturkey/
(Paraphrasing and own words)
I was really surprised to learn that Bosphorus University in Turkey has a program with Chinese universities. I think that is really important because China has one of the most powerful economies and for the most part a strong work ethic. Learning from Chinese universities can be very beneficial for students for their future occupations and how to start businesses.
ReplyDeleteI can understand your point of view of how the stereotype of women being submissive while men are dominant in Turkey is controversial. However, I am curious about the statistics of how many women hold university education compared to men. Has the percentage of women going to universities in Turkey skyrocketed recently or is it a gradual process?
I appreciated your paragraph concerning on how Turkey’s water is not horribly polluted. I was not aware that the Black Sea’s water had become less polluted. Also, I liked learning as to how the Black Sea got it’s name due to the water having two layers. I misjudged the cleanliness of Turkey’s water. Almost sounds like in some parts the water is less polluted in Turkey then it is in California. California’s water where it is sourced from mountains, springs, or creeks is usually still somewhat polluted and you can get sick from drinking it compared to Turkey’s.
I guess it attests to the idea of how people stereotype other countries to say that I was surprised to learn that Turkey has over 100 universities, and even more so that Bosphorus University has a program with Chinese universities. I can understand that you would like people who work at tourist locations and the lack of education that is labeled upon Turkish society, but I would think that these people are perhaps more worldly if anything, given the amount of non-Turkish interaction they experience every day. I think a more approachable aspect would be the portrayal of Turkish (and the Middle East in general) in media. I’m sure you've seen a movie with a gullible stereotypically-Middle-Eastern-boss because I know I have. Media is the easiest way to create a false superiority, and given the past between certain countries in the Middle East and the US, I can see why that superiority would need to be established.
ReplyDeleteThe idea men subjugate women in the Middle East is something I grew up thinking. I also believed that every single women had to be covered from head to toe in every country in the Middle East. The only reason I felt this way was because I didn’t know any better. I think an important concept for people trying to understand other people and cultures is media portrayal. How does media want us to perceive a people? Media has created numerous negative stereotypes of not only the Middle East, but countries and people all over the world. From Turkey to Canada, one can find a term or action that media associates with almost every person that isn’t their own. I think that more important that how this is done, is why this is done? I feel that is the key to understanding why stereotypes like the ones you mentioned exist.