If that wasn't enough observation, I would go, as Dick did, and ask others about what sort of distinction there is between people. The answer, most likely, would be phenotypic differences between people causes there to be grouping between people of similar skin color and as a result, there is also an immediate stereotype placed upon that group that is preconceived through literature, media, and observation of society.
Armed with this new information, I would go and search for a group of people who looked most similar to myself and use the trial and error method that was used by Dick and his family. Of course, by using phenotypic similarities, I would likely have a lower chance of offending others because people tend to focus more on the outside, visible traits than on anything else when grouping others into different racial categories.
I like your approach to the situation. I feel like it would be near impossible to go about learning and understanding ethnicity without accounting for the physical aspects. The only part I would be worried about would be asking someone to explain that sort of stuff to me. Not only would they be suspicious, but they would also be curious as to why I was so clueless. If that conversation came about, in Dick's position, I would have no clue what to do.
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine being so foreign to a culture to observe different ethnicities while peering through my sunglasses at a park. Nonetheless, I think that is a good approach to learning about different ethnicicites because at the park people could act naturally with no worry about repercussions for their actions if they aren't fitting their racial stereotypes. I also think it is could be a sensitive subject to ask people about their race and characteristics associated with it, but then again people love to share the stories of the heritage, culture, and beliefs. I, too, would go with the trial and error approach to learn the most.
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