The Stereotyping of Spanish Characters and their Speech Patterns in Anglo-American Films

Abstract

Allport (1954: 191) defines stereotype as "an exaggerated belief associated with a category¿. Labov (1972:314) establishes stereotypes as a type of linguistic variable which can be heavily stigmatised and is therefore avoided. cinema, with its diversity of situations, scenarios, settings and characters, is an ideal means of dissemination of ethnic and linguistic stereotypes. As Lippi- Green (1997: 81) notes, films often exploit language variation and the viewers¿ ¿preconceived notions¿ to draw characters, and may discriminate against linguistic minorities whose speech becomes stigmatised. This paper reports on the analysis of a corpus of 40 films, released both in the United Kingdom and in the United States, in order to find out how Spain and Spanish characters are portrayed and to what extend stereotyping affects such a portrayal. This study covers three basic issues: plot, setting and characters, with a particular emphasis on the linguistic traits that, according to Anglo-American cinema, characterise Spaniards and their speech.