Appalachian Stereotypes - 1388 Words

Excuse me miss, but you have the cutest little accent, the pizza delivery guy said. Well, thank you, I replied. If you dont mind me asking, where are you from? I know that you arent from around this area with an accent like that. I am from a little town called Hazard, I replied reluctantly, realizing exactly where this conversation was headed. Oh, is that where the Dukes of Hazzard are from? he asks chuckling. No, that place is Hazzard, Georgia. I live in a little town in southeastern Kentucky. I bet you all have a lot of barefoot, pregnant people there dont you? he asks with a discriminating smile. Well actually we don.... Huh, I bet you all dont even have paved roads or indoor plumbing, he†¦show more content†¦This special leaming center in Hazard allows children from all over the area to experience something extraordinary. Eastern Kentucky is also the home to several colleges: Pikeville College, Alice Lloyd College, Centre College, Hazard Community, Somerset Community, and many more. These higher-level learning facilities provide a higher education for the people in Appalachia who are not ready to leave the area. Dwight B. Billings writes, Appalachia has often been used as a symbol of rural poverty. Just last year President Bill Clinton visited Hazard, Ky. to offer new job opportunities to what he called, an underdeveloped area that America can help develop. But many in Appalachia dont want the outside help. In his book of short stories titled Kinfolks, Gurney Norman describes the strong union that Appalachian families share with one another. An Appalachian himself, Norman depicts family life and the intertwining aspects of love, care, traditions, respect, and knowledge that are found in Appalachian families. It is this same bond that Norman refers to in his stories that keeps many in the area from moving away, from wanting more technology, from wanting change to occur. It is this concentration on not wanting to lose our heritage that makes us so different from the rest of society. Anyone who is unlike the majority is looked at a little suspiciously, dealt with a little differently (Asfahani 18). Because we seem to focus more on our traditionsShow MoreRelatedThe Emergence of Appalachian Stereotypes in 19th Century Literature and Illustration1884 Words   |  8 PagesIn the world of Appalachia, stereotypes are abundant. There are stories told of mountaineers as lazy, bewildered, backward, and yet happy and complacent people. Mountain women are seen as diligent, strong, hard willed, and overall sturdy and weathered, bearing the burden of their male counterparts. These ideas of mountain life did not come out of thin air; they are the direct product of sensational nineteenth century media including print journalism and illustrative art that has continuously misleadRead MoreCompare/ Contrast Appalachian Stereotypes1192 Words   |  5 PagesCombating Stereotypes vs Truths of the People of Appalachia The people of Appalachia are often characterized as ignorant, lazy, uneducated, drug addicted, and incestuous. Many believe that this impoverished area is full of hicks, hillbillies, and rednecks, but when examining the truths one might find an enriched culture with generous people who are hardworking, artistic, and family oriented with a strong religious faith. In the documentary, The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia, aRead MoreEssay about Appalachia Culture1522 Words   |  7 Pagescut in half. Comparing the 391 counties in the Appalachian Regional Commission with counties outside the region that were similar to Appalachian counties in the 1960s, researchers found that Appalachian counties grew significantly faster than their counterparts. Specifically, overall income in Appalachia grew 48 percent faster; per capita income grew 17 percent faster; and population grew five percent faster. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The Appalachian mountaineers have been discovered and forgottenRead More Kentucky Stereotypes Essays1704 Words   |  7 Pagesare they still brother and sister? The lists of redneck jokes surrounding Kentucky stereotypes are endless. Many people get a good laugh out of the jokes, but they dont realize that they are portraying a crude message about all Kentucky folk. More so than any other state, Kentucky is labeled and illustrated as redneck and poor. Much of this may stem from many of the small towns in Kentucky and in the Appalachian area. However, Appalachia has been misunderstood and misrepresented: Appalachia hasRead MoreSubstance Abuse And Low Education1002 Words   |  5 Pages It is no doubt that the Appalachian region is discredited of its merits, despite the perceived negative social problems associated with the area. What many outsiders of the area fail to acknowledge is that many of the same problems of Appalachia plague other regions of the United States as well. In Appalachia, there are many problems that can be associated with the area and usually the people from the area are grouped into a poor environment—a lower socioeconomic class. Across the region there isRead More James Stills River of Earth: A Neglected American Masterpiece811 Words   |  4 PagesSteinbecks novel, which tells the story of the plight of a poor white family in Oklahoma during the Depression, is no less regional than Stills chronicle of poor white life in eastern Kentucky . Yet somehow Grapes of Wrath escaped the regional stereotype and went on to become an American classic. Ironically, though, when the two novels were released, Stills grabbed more critical acclaim (Olsen 89). Though Grapes of Wrath did earn some rave reviews and was called the great American book byRead MoreThe Violent Myth Of Appalachia Essay3997 Words   |  16 PagesBrooks 3 THE VIOILENT MYTH OF APPALACHIA ENGL-330 Appalachian Literature By Julie A. Brooks November 17, 2016 the violent myth of appalachia Appalachia may be the most misconceived region in the United States. To many Americans, Appalachia has been thought of as a poverty stricken, backwards, violent region, and to some it still is perceived as such. Often it has been labeled with titles such as hillbilly, redneck, moonshiner, and feudists. Appalachia?s residents are seen as lazyRead MoreLiterature Review On Language Changes2788 Words   |  12 Pagesways. Although many studies have been done looking into this issue there is very little data detailing how the Internet has changed those that are considered to be more on the fringe of modern American society, specifically that of the rural Appalachian communities. This is a topic that should be of interest to many academics and professional researchers alike. As rural Appalachia begins to be opened up to the world through the Internet how will this dialect of American English change? WhatRead MoreThe Diversity Of Appalachia And The Appalachia Region1222 Words   |  5 PagesAppalachia project is to explore the diversity of Appalachia and to establish a visual counter point. (Home - Looking at Appalachia.) The three images I am going to analyze are challenge some of the stereotypes put on the Appalachia region. I believe my images challenge the stereotype that all Appalachian people do is work hard, go to church, and don’t have time for anything besides those two things. The first of the three images focuses on an older gentleman sitting at a bar stool smoking a cigarette(ReynoldsRead MoreSnake Handling, a Pentecostal Pastime Essay1256 Words   |  6 Pagesstronger and more respected group. Appalachians have been scrutinized by several outside sources as being inbred, uneducated, wild, violent, drunk, crazy, and the list goes on and on. However, one of the negative stereotypes that tend to stick out more prominently than others is that people in Appalachian folk are crazy, serpent handling, Christians. In order for the people of the Appalachian Mountain region to figure out a way to get over this stereotype and move forward in their quest to be