A friend once said that travelling abroad is the way to learn to love America. He said he felt more in tune with the US when he was away, and more able to see what makes him American and what makes America great.
I suspect that he just didn’t like the toilets in France amd was feeling homesick for Charmin.
Living abroad has helped me recognise what makes me American, that is true. But I find that they are not traits that I think are particularly good. Here’s what I see in myself.
- Violence. I’m not running around beating people up, but violence creeps into my speech (kick ass) and my actions (smacking someone playfully) in nearly unconcious ways. Japanese and Europeans don’t seem to do these things.
- Volume. There’s no doubt that I (and maybe the average American, too) would be a great soliloquist. Not only could my normal speaking voice carry to the stalls, but I have a large quantity of things to say. Usually mundane, uninformed and purposeless. I’ve learned to be quieter, but it’s still hard to stop talking.
- Frankness. My life is an open book (or an open weblog as the case may be). There is no reticence about discussing my personal life with near-strangers. Not all Americans are this way, but a vast majority of them that I’ve met talk about themselves without hesitation. And usually, as in my case, without any reason.
- Ignorance. Americans are not very well educated (but not stupid). Although I try to seek multiple sources, many times I don’t seek more information than what’s handed to me. Maybe this is not an American problem alone, but it’s a hallmark of the “ugly American” and I know I’ve found it in myself. I am working to change this.
- Laziness. Probably not too many people who know me would think I’m lazy, but I will insist that I am a slacker. If I did everything I could do, instead of just what I bother to do, I’d be a whirlwind of productivity. In the general case of Americans, I think that most people prefer to take the easy path than to work hard for something. This does not seem to be true in other cultures.
I can think of other traits that i think stem from my American upbringing, but I’m too lazy to write them out now. No matter what I write, it doesn’t negate the American-ness of my existence. But I unlike my friend, I can’t see that these traits make me or my homeland great.
