Personal Narrative: An Interview With American Culture

When I first met Joseph, I thought he was an ass. Observing his interaction with others, he always seemed to make snarky comments or remarks that were uncommonly harsh. However, I started to recognize that this way of socializing was just something he grew up with; even though Joseph had some experience with American culture, he grew up in Australia and self-identifies as so.

My focus for the interview was to touch base with the topics of culture and migration. I came to the revelation that Western, specifically American, culture romanticizes the idea of “the foreign.” We, as a society, have this preconceived notion that other cultures cannot possibly be modern and westernized; such that when we interact with other cultures we stick stubbornly

As we sat down in the dorm room of Haggett, I asked Joseph Mailloux to introduce himself in regards to where he lived and where his parents were from. I was surprised to learn that he was actually born in the states, specifically Los Angeles. What further surprised me was that his father was born and raised American. At that moment I already realized I broke a fundamental aspect of anthropology; to be unbiased. I had already come into the interview with a set notion of what Joseph would say, and at almost every question I was challenged. Joseph was not this foreign, disassociated body from the “far away” land of Australia, but actually very familiar with American culture. The premade idea that he was completely foreign to “our” culture is prevalent with way our culture and media spins this idea that an accent is synonymous with cultural

This difference definitely connected to my initial impression of Joseph as being crass and rude. It is not that he is a bad person with negative intentions, but it was just that in Australia people’s tolerance were higher and less sensitive than to those in America – especially in regard to people we have just met. A minor difference in practice that plays into culture is the idea of tipping. Tipping is actually very uncommon in most cultures, yet the question of why America has tipping and does not include the tax in the price is brought up. Talking to someone who questions our motives in even the simplest of things really reveals how blindly we follow culture. Why tipping exists and why tax is not included in the face value price are questions I have never thought of nor can