As a citizen of any nation, you’d quickly come to terms with the fact that various forms of narratives exist about the dynamism of your cultural practices. Typically, we call these narratives stereotypes or in philosophy, the fallacy of hasty generalization.
We all in some parts magnify our uniqueness as a distinguishing trait between us and the rest of mankind never mind that we all share common traits of humanity as common as the rituals of food, clothing, and shelter.
When Chimamanda Adichie gave a Ted talk on the tragedy of the single story, I think the most profound idea is that in repeating a singular narrative we miss out on all the various other parts of the whole that co-exists.
It’s how we tell the story of suffering while missing out on the fragments of joy present in the same tale. For example, first-time lovers in a time of war. Even while we grief , we have moments of laughter; we still get cracked up for a minute if only to return to our melancholy soon thereafter.
It is easy to presume that stereotypes are bad because more often than not, it is the scandalous description that travels faster. However, stereotypes may also be predominantly a statement of fact.
I think it is stereotypical to say African mothers fling cooking spoons at their kids to discipline them but this makes so much sense when you read comments on an Instagram post depicting that and one may start wondering if all our mothers were on the same WhatsApp group.
It may also be stereotypical to say all Dubai men are Sheikhs with oil money (find me Habibi) but the implication of these statements while not necessarily true, always gives an impression.
There are several stereotypes that precedes a Nigerian, but one of my favorite is that Nigerians are happy people. I love to propagate this stereotype despite the rationale, considering that the momentum for that happiness may have been born out of the need for pedantic optimism.
Another Stereotype I am happy to propagate is the dependability of the Germans and their need for precision and accuracy as demonstrated by their use of language, but the least obvious one is also their love for nature, and fresh air which mostly involves opening the windows at all times including during winter!
On the other hand, there is the legend of the Yoruba demons which typically refer to Yoruba men acting in the capacity of heart breakers but that is just one part to the story. The idea is that these men are savvy and with the right rizzes to capture the attention of women spanning across continents.
I am sure there are several stereotypes you can list off your head but the goal of this post is not a reposting of stereotypes, rather, a paradigm shift about telling stories however, stereotypical, in ways that portray the best of humanity. I am not saying every story has to be positive, rather that stereotypes can maintain a neutrality tilting neither towards negativity nor positivity.
Check out this IG post:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1O9Q_Np244/?igsh=MTVuOWQ1bXAzZjF3NA==
Yours truly,
Dcconnoisseur😜
Connoisseur of Memories 