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America Essay

Decent Essays

“Homeland, the country that I love, forever reign supreme; And when time stands still, my homeland, may heaven hold your dream” (Spring-Rice). Gustav Holsts’ song “Homeland” is all about people who are patriotic towards their own country. America has been built upon a certain set of rules in which makes it unique from their countries. Americans have excessive pride in their country which shows greatly in their interactions with others. Americans also have other traits which reflect their culture. White America views itself in three ways: appearance, narcissism, and social status. “You want to fit in with these people? They’re not going to change. You have to” (Traister 675). America has views which are built on appearances. This is …show more content…

People who hold their arms and hands in positions away from their bodies, and who stand, sit, or lie with their legs apart- thus maximizing the amount of space that they physical occupy- appear most physically masculine” (Devor 571). In contrast for a person to appear “feminine” they are said to have, “body postures and demeanors which communicate subordinate status and vulnerability to trespass through a message of “no threat” make people appear to be feminine. They demonstrate subordination through a minimizing of spatial use: people appear feminine when they keep their arms closer to their bodies, their legs closer together, and their torsos and heads less vertical than do masculine-looking individuals” (Devor 569). Americans set specific standards that others achieve through clothes and body language (among other things). Daniel J. Boorstin once said, “As individuals and as a nation, we now suffer from social narcissism. The beloved Echo of our ancestors, the virgin America, has been abandoned. We have fallen in love with our own image, with images of our making, which turn out to be images of ourselves” (BrainyQuote). Even though Americans may view themselves as coming from a very patriotic background they are also viewed for being self centered. Most Americans seem to realize this (but not all). Even other countries have picked up on the fact Americans

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