Stereotypes In The Sitcom 'Fresh Off The Boat'

The series ‘Fresh off the boat’ is a sitcom that used characters that display stereotypical or counter stereotypical behaviours of Asians that most people hold to be true. The sitcom teaches the viewers about the stereotypes that Asian and white people tend to be labelled by. The main character is Eddie, with his family and friends playing supporting roles. The family moved from Washington DC to Orlando. Eddie has made the decision to break out of the stereotypes to fit into with his peers at school. Through this experience, the audience got opportunities to see the positive and the negatives that stereotyping can give. The writer, director Nahnatchka Khan’s goal was to teach the audience that all stereotypes are not true, that some stereotypes can be broken which can result in

Eddie wants to be like everyone else. He dresses like a gangster and he loves hip hop. It shows the audience that Eddie is trying to break out of the Asian stereotype. In the first scene, Eddie goes out shopping with his family. Later on, Eddie comes out of the dressing room looking dandified. He tries to fit in the western culture. That particular scene gives us an understanding of Eddie’s mindset that he wants to break out of his culture and be like other westerners. Another scene that shows Eddie breaking out of the Asian stereotypes, is when his mother gives him noodles for school lunch. Eddie did not appreciate his Asian-style Noodles because his mates at school believe that his noodles were repugnant. This gives a negative view towards his parents and culture. Eddie feels insecure within his own culture and believes that eating ‘white people food’ will bring him, friends. Eddie’s response to the stereotype; positions the audience to see that most Asian people want to try different food, but Eddie teaches us that everyone can fit in with other cultures and eat their food