Stereotyping a Stereotype
Alex Cordia
Professor Gorman
Humanities and Writing
February 27, 2008
Stereotyping a Stereotype Junot Diaz’s “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl, or Halfie” seems to play into and highlight the racial stereotypes that affect the way Americans see each other; however, Diaz is in fact working to show that even people who believe they understand the full extent of stereotypes, especially men, find themselves subordinate to the ones they are stereotyping. In this story, Diaz shows how female stereotypes actually control the actions of a males seeking intimacy. The man will revert to basic instinct and base his decisions on a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person. The short story focuses its instruction on the ultimate goal of reaching physical intimacy with a girl, but illustrates the definitely different courses of action necessary to take depending on what ethnicity the target girl is. This is where Diaz proves that even by mastering the “predicted” behavior of females through racial stereotypes, the male while appearing to have control of the situation is actually lower than the female. The text has an almost aggressive tone is used to show that the author clearly knows what he is talking about in terms of girls. This tone adds serious credibility to the author and makes the instruction all the more believable. Instead of using phrases such as “I would recommend,” “I think,” or “I believe,” Diaz uses the imperative and says “Clear the government cheese from the refrigerator,” “Leave yourself a reminder to get it out,” and, “Hide the pictures of yourself with an Afro” (Diaz 143). This forceful use of language is more believable and it creates a sense of power, superiority, and confidence in the reader because he is apparently taking instruction from an expert. After all, the reader using these instructions is looking to maximize his chances of getting anything from a “Kiss,” to a “Girl just
Professor Gorman
Humanities and Writing
February 27, 2008
Stereotyping a Stereotype Junot Diaz’s “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl, or Halfie” seems to play into and highlight the racial stereotypes that affect the way Americans see each other; however, Diaz is in fact working to show that even people who believe they understand the full extent of stereotypes, especially men, find themselves subordinate to the ones they are stereotyping. In this story, Diaz shows how female stereotypes actually control the actions of a males seeking intimacy. The man will revert to basic instinct and base his decisions on a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person. The short story focuses its instruction on the ultimate goal of reaching physical intimacy with a girl, but illustrates the definitely different courses of action necessary to take depending on what ethnicity the target girl is. This is where Diaz proves that even by mastering the “predicted” behavior of females through racial stereotypes, the male while appearing to have control of the situation is actually lower than the female. The text has an almost aggressive tone is used to show that the author clearly knows what he is talking about in terms of girls. This tone adds serious credibility to the author and makes the instruction all the more believable. Instead of using phrases such as “I would recommend,” “I think,” or “I believe,” Diaz uses the imperative and says “Clear the government cheese from the refrigerator,” “Leave yourself a reminder to get it out,” and, “Hide the pictures of yourself with an Afro” (Diaz 143). This forceful use of language is more believable and it creates a sense of power, superiority, and confidence in the reader because he is apparently taking instruction from an expert. After all, the reader using these instructions is looking to maximize his chances of getting anything from a “Kiss,” to a “Girl just
Cited: Alford, William R. “Sex, Race and Power.” 2000. http://the-big-pic.org/drowntext.html. Diaz, Junot. Drown. “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl, or Halfie.” New York: Riverhead Books, 1996. Torstenson, Casey S. “You Don’t Know Me.” Florida: Switchback, 2006. http://www.swback.com/issues/004/You_Dont_Know_Me.shtml