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Dr. Reinaldo Silva

English VI

15th March 2012

Alentejano, stereotype of the lazy Portuguese

People have different ways of thinking and interpreting things.

In Portugal, people created a stereotype of the Lazy and doom Alentejano.

Many persons think they are really lazy and stupid, but this idea is most of the

time created by the very well-known jokes about Alentejanos.

Before write about anything is better explain who are the persons about Im

going to write, the Alentejanos. They are the people who live in Alentejo, a

region situated in the south of Portugal. Its a quiet and dry region, which in

summer acquires very high temperatures. Along the years many jokes have

been made, and Portuguese people have created an image, and a stereotype

about who are the Alentejanos and why are they that way.

Jokes like Do you know why Alentejanos do not eat yogurts?

Because when they reach the stomach they are out of validity, or 1st motto of

the Alentejano: Better a swollen hand then a hoe in the hand, 2nd motto of the

Alentejano: Better die with cold then work to get warm, makes us suppose that

Alentejanos are lazy. Other jokes like: What are doing 17 Alentejanos at the

cinemas door? They are waiting one more, because the movie is for more then

18 (years old) gives us the idea that Alentejanos have a lack of intelligence.

Many other jokes have been created, inclusively the 10 commandments of the

Alentejano. And this commandments are kind of extreme: 1. Live to rest; 2.

Love your bed, its your temple: 3. If you see someone resting, help her: 4. Rest


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during the day, to be capable of sleep during the night; 5. The work is saint,

dont touch him; 6. Never do tomorrow, what you can do the day after tomorrow;

7. Work the less possible, what you have to do, let someone else do it; 8. Take

it easy, no one have ever died for rest, but you can get hurt working; 9. When

you desire to work, sit down and wait the desire pass; 10. Dont forget, work is

health. Leave yours for sick people.

These 10 commandments prove very well this image people have

created about Alentejanos. But is all of this true, or is just an image, a

stereotype people has created? Because if we think a bit, we can find

reasons/causes that can prove the veracity of what have been said. The high

temperatures, the strong and bright sun that Alentejanos live with, can have

fried their neurons and make them a LITLE BIT slow and retarded. And Im not

going to speak about the bad and poor alimentation they have. Another fact that

can prove their retard comes since very years ago, when the nomads traveled

around Europe and it seems that some of them have stopped in Alentejo and

havent evolved. The true is that to an Alentejano who works a lot, makes a lot

of mistakes; who works little, do little mistakes; who do not work, do not do

mistakes, and who do not do mistakes is promoted, so lets not work and wait

to be promoted.

Now being a bit more serious, we can make jokes, but I think that there

are no studies to prove that Alentejanos are retarded, or lazy.

This is just an image people have created, and do not pass that. All around the

world there are lazy and retarded people, its not just in Alentejo or Portugal. I

think this image of the Alentejanos is an image that is already something that

makes part of our culture. We joke about that, but Alentejanos joke about that to.


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Some people say that most part of the Alentejanos jokes are really made by

Alentejanos. So probably when we are joking about them, they are joking about

us, because we are joking about them. I think they are not stupid or retarded.

About the laziness, I think the Alentejano, is the stereotype of the lazy

Portuguese, because it has been created to be that way. In my opinion the

Alentejanos are not the lazy persons, because the Portuguese are in general

lazy. Ok, if we compare the Portugueses with other persons from other

countries, we are not lazy. We are a country with people who works a lot, and

our emigrants, the Portuguese emigrants are known in other countries for being

good workers. But for me and for other Portuguese people, we Portuguese are

lazy, we leave everything for the last minute; we leave for tomorrow what we

can do today.

People create images and stereotypes, and thats that what

characterizes their societies. We Portuguese have created this one, and its

something with what we live very well. Its ourculture; its something that makes

part of us and our culture, like the Pasteis de Belm or the msica Pimba.

Its something that only we, Portuguese understand. Im not saying that other

persons cannot understand it, but they just dont feel it the same way we feel it.

Its true that some people feel hearted and violated with this jokes and

this image people have about Alentejanos. If we went into internet and see

some pages with jokes, we can see several commentaries criticizing the jokes

and the people who made them. I think everyone has the right to criticize and

think what they want. But this stereotype isnt something new; people should be

used to it and to the stupid jokes. I have nothing against the Alentejanos, and

against the jokes. If the Alentejanos have no problem with this, and they are the


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ones that are made fools, why should we, that have nothing to do with that,

have any problem? Its culture, its the Portuguese culture. Its who we are,

thats what weve created. Weve created this, so we should live with that. As

Ive said before,this jokes and this stereotype means to us as much as msica

pimba means. If we are able to listen musica pimba, and we enjoy it, and

sometime its worse than the Alentejanos jokes, why dont we accept that and

enjoy it as much as we enjoy other things?

Everything depends of the Portuguese minds, and Ive to say that

sometimes Portuguese people could be a bit more open minded. If Portuguese

were a bit more open minded maybe they were capable to understand that we

have a culture with so many things, ones better than the other. The Alentejano,

stereotype of the lazy Portuguese, can be a not so good thing, because give

other people the image that they are really lazy, but who cares? Its just an

image, it is culture and its funny. It would be worse if it was not fun. If people is

capable to enjoy it and have fun with it everything is fine.

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