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Sep. 13th, 2009 03:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rainwatersparkHum, I spent less than an hour today learning the Cyrillic alphabet in my college's library. Now I can sort of read Russian (and the other Slavic languages that use the Cyrillic alphabet) (without knowing what anything means XD).
Since Iam clearly trying to put off writing my history essay have some time, I thought I might try to write a personal Hetalia rant inspired by recent discussion topics.
It occurred to me recently that, as a result of Hetalia, not only has my knowledge European geography increased dramatically (I can name most of the countries now when given a blank map, whereas before my knowledge was confined to western Europe, Italy, and Greece), but I also have an increased interest in world history and other cultures.
Previously, I had been interested in history and cultures also, but not to the extent that I am now. Before, I did the history reading required for class with attention and interest; now, I go out of my way to look up history facts. Before, I merely said I was interested in cultures and languages; now, I actually devour articles and spend time pouring over books teaching foreign languages. (Now I have a new goal of becoming a polyglot, which will probably be impossible, but at least I can try!)
But there's another interesting twist: although I have become more interested in the world, I have also, because of Hetalia, begun to take pride in my home country as well. After I took an in-depth class on American history, I felt very conflicted about the U.S.--here we are, the model of the world, and yet so many truly horrible things have happened in our history. Many prominent figures have been racist, imperialist, selfish and mercenary. I began to doubt America's moral integrity as a country.
And then, Hetalia came along.
America wasn't my favorite character at first; frankly, I was a little offended by his depiction. Not very much--just a little uncomfortable with his hero complex, his obsession with fast food, and his failure at geography. But as time passed, I grew to like his character very much. Besides the fact that his qualities are so over-the-top that it's hilarious, I also realized that America (both as a character and a nation) is full of positives in addition to the negatives. He/it is optimistic, always looking to the future and to progress. Its government and history are open for anyone and everyone to analyze and criticize. There are ignorant people, but I feel that the fact that there are intelligent Americans are sometimes overlooked by the rest of the world. (After all, we have some of the world's best colleges and universities.)
Personifying countries as people somehow makes them so much more accessible, so much more connectable. Nations are every bit as flawed as people themselves. Himaruya does a good job of making the nations caricatures of stereotypes while still making them hilarious and lovable characters--and for me, at least, that has helped me to see that while no country is free of guilt, tragedy, and bloodshed, no country is truly evil, either, and there is much to admire about every one.
Since I
It occurred to me recently that, as a result of Hetalia, not only has my knowledge European geography increased dramatically (I can name most of the countries now when given a blank map, whereas before my knowledge was confined to western Europe, Italy, and Greece), but I also have an increased interest in world history and other cultures.
Previously, I had been interested in history and cultures also, but not to the extent that I am now. Before, I did the history reading required for class with attention and interest; now, I go out of my way to look up history facts. Before, I merely said I was interested in cultures and languages; now, I actually devour articles and spend time pouring over books teaching foreign languages. (Now I have a new goal of becoming a polyglot, which will probably be impossible, but at least I can try!)
But there's another interesting twist: although I have become more interested in the world, I have also, because of Hetalia, begun to take pride in my home country as well. After I took an in-depth class on American history, I felt very conflicted about the U.S.--here we are, the model of the world, and yet so many truly horrible things have happened in our history. Many prominent figures have been racist, imperialist, selfish and mercenary. I began to doubt America's moral integrity as a country.
And then, Hetalia came along.
America wasn't my favorite character at first; frankly, I was a little offended by his depiction. Not very much--just a little uncomfortable with his hero complex, his obsession with fast food, and his failure at geography. But as time passed, I grew to like his character very much. Besides the fact that his qualities are so over-the-top that it's hilarious, I also realized that America (both as a character and a nation) is full of positives in addition to the negatives. He/it is optimistic, always looking to the future and to progress. Its government and history are open for anyone and everyone to analyze and criticize. There are ignorant people, but I feel that the fact that there are intelligent Americans are sometimes overlooked by the rest of the world. (After all, we have some of the world's best colleges and universities.)
Personifying countries as people somehow makes them so much more accessible, so much more connectable. Nations are every bit as flawed as people themselves. Himaruya does a good job of making the nations caricatures of stereotypes while still making them hilarious and lovable characters--and for me, at least, that has helped me to see that while no country is free of guilt, tragedy, and bloodshed, no country is truly evil, either, and there is much to admire about every one.
