American character

American society seems to be much more informal than the British and, in some ways, is characterized by less social distinction. Students do not rise when a teacher enters the room. One does not always address a person by his title, such as "Major" or "General" or "Doctor" in the case of a holder of a Doctor of Philosophy degree. The re­spectful "Sir" is not always used in the northern and western parts of the country.

However, it is best to use a person's title when first meeting him/her, and then allow the person to tell you how he/she wishes to be called.

They use first names when calling each other, slap on the back, joke and are much freer in their speech, which is more  slangy than the conventional British English. You will often hear the word "Hi" (a form of greeting among friends) used instead of the usual "Hello," and "Howdy" instead of "How do you do?"

Those who don't easily show these signs of friendship are called "snooty" or "snobbish." In contrast, people who show such simple signs of friendship, particularly to their own economic and social inferiors, are praised as "regular guys," or as "truly demo­cratic." As a description of character, democratic is generally used to signify that a per­son of high social or economic status acts in such a way that his or her inferiors are not reminded of their inferiority.

Yet, in spite of all the informality, Americans, even in the way they address each other, show consciousness of social distinction.

For example, one is likely to use some­what more formal language when talking to superiors. While the informal "Hello" is an acceptable greeting from employee to employer, the employee is more apt to say "Hello, Mr. Ferguson," while the employer may reply "Hello, Jim." Southerners make a point of saying "Yes, sir," or "Yes, Ma'am," or "No, sir," or "No, Ma'am," when talking to an older person or a person in a position of authority. While this is good form all over the United Stales, "Yes. Mr. Weston" or "No, Mrs. Baker" is somewhat more common in a similar situation in the North or West.

Certain other forms of politeness are observed on social occasions. Women may wear hats in church. in restaurants, and often when attending luncheons in public places and other public social functions except those that take place in the evening. Men who do wear hats ordinarily remove them in elevators, churches, restaurants, private homes, business offices — in fad, in most public situations when they wish to show respect.

The Historical Character Dolls Of American Girl And Their Stories

Collecting dolls has many purposes and one of them is its educational value to children. Just like with Our Generation Dolls which taught children about the values through reading books that came with the doll, the American Girl dolls came with the product line called “Historical Characters”. The line targets children of ages eight to thirteen years old and educates them about several focal points in American history.

Each historical character has a story to tell as written in their individual books. It opens the children’s mind to delicate topics that range from war to slavery. Yet the story lines are carefully written with great sensitivity to accommodate to the young children’s level of understanding. Some of the characters that were introduced in this product line are Addy Walker, Julie Allbright and Ivy Ling, Josefina Montoya, Kaya, Mollie McIntire and Emily Bennett, Kit Kittredge and Ruthie Smithens, and Rebecca Rubin. Each of the character’s stories engage children in reading books while teaching them important values as they grow up.

Like in the story of Addy, her story is about their escape from slavery to find the rest of her family members. Another character is the Mexican girl named Josefina who grew up in 1824. Her story tells about the relationship of American traders with her family. With the books about the Nez Perce character named Kaya, her adventures tell about her struggle to follow the virtues of her hero Swan Circling after being tagged as a selfish person when she failed to compete in a race with her brothers.

Rebecca Rubin on the other hand was a 9-year old girl who grew up in 1914 in New York City. She was of Russian and Jewish descent who dreamt of becoming a known actress only to be discouraged by her family’s traditional upbringing and conservative ideas. The historical characters have several books already made for each of them. The doll characters’ adventures and interesting relationships with their family will surely make the children who read their books value their own relationships with their parents and the people around them.

Nevertheless, a more budget friendly alternative to the American Dolls is Our Generation Dolls which have the same theme and charm to the younger generation. Anyone who would like to teach a piece of history to their children can use these dolls as an education tool that will also teach them about values and manners. On the other side of the spectrum, doll collectors can

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