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Contrary to popular belief of foreigners, there isn't really any trait that characterizes any one American city so much that it holds true for that city overwhelmingly and do not apply to any other American city. We are not droids, we are not robots, we are not so homogenized, and we are not so black and white.
There are snobbish people in every city in the US and they are known as the RICH. Some rich people are nice and not snobbish. Even in the south, where there are many stereotyped rednecks, we have the extremely wealthy white rich land owners, ala The Great Gatsby.
I know people from Boston and NYC who cannot be snobby even if they wanted to. Guess who they are? They are the working class people.
I'd agree that the suburbs are generally more snobby. In terms of city-pride, I find that more pronounced in NYC. There are even NYC residents who tell me they truly believe that the rest of America "have low expectations" for not living in NYC.
Gatsby is set in Long Island. Well some working class can still be snobby about their city. Bostonians seem like big 'homers', especially the more working class ones, but idk if they're snobby about it or think Boston is superior.
Gatsby is set in Long Island. Well some working class can still be snobby about their city. Bostonians seem like big 'homers', especially the more working class ones, but idk if they're snobby about it or think Boston is superior.
Everywhere with immense wealth will in one form or another have a degree of snob to it that is distinctly their own. Nearly every American city has this, some are known more than others in mainstream culture and media however. Old money Boston and new money Dallas being immediate examples of the types.
Gatsby represented new money, which is self made over a fraction of the time, someone from any former background and attainable by all. That conflicts with the old money regime, inheritance, bloodline, social hierarchy, connections and position in power, established image.
Even snobbishness comes with it's geographical and functional differences.
With Longwood, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard (as well as recent sports success), and a rapidly growing Atheist population, the hub of the universe has been very proactive in the new millennium to spread it's confidence to the corners of America.
Everywhere with immense wealth will in one form or another have a degree of snob to it that is distinctly their own. Nearly every American city has this, some are known more than others in mainstream culture and media however. Old money Boston and new money Dallas being immediate examples of the types.
Gatsby represented new money, which is self made over a fraction of the time, someone from any former background and attainable by all. That conflicts with the old money regime, inheritance, bloodline, social hierarchy, connections and position in power, established image.
Even snobbishness comes with it's geographical and functional differences.
Boston has the old money, but also the new brigade from elsewhere, Harvard grads, lawyers, doctors, surgeons, rich IT kids from MIT, engineers. I think it has a lot of intellectual snobbery being the centre of education. It seems a place divided a lot by wealth/education/class, with different social circles that don't mix a lot. There's a lot of wealth, I mean Beacon Hill can feel kind of elitist. I even felt a sort of elitism in the North End, actually.
Boston has the old money, but also the new brigade from elsewhere, Harvard grads, lawyers, doctors, surgeons, rich IT kids from MIT, engineers. I think it has a lot of intellectual snobbery being the centre of education. There's a lot of wealth, I mean Beacon Hill can feel kind of elitist. I even felt a sort of elitism in the North End, actually.
I wouldn't exactly call that elite wealth at all, upper middle class, contrary to belief. Washington is soaked wet with that same aspect you mention for Boston.
It's more like the dreamers of the American dream on larger note. Country club culture, the I want a house with a 7,200 square feet floorplan over looking a lake, sort. I want every high end shop there, not because I'm a buyer but my zip code warrants it. We are overrun with that in Washington, even to a larger extent than Boston.
Beacon Hill's got every reason to wash it's snob off to everyone that lays eyes on it, that neighborhood is beautiful work on architecture.
For example, by income, the DMV region has seven out of the top ten wealthiest counties in America. They're not rich however, although they have their rich pockets, but rather well off upper middle class.
I've always found DC and Boston to be more snobby than any of the West Coast cities. The East Coast seems more judgmental when it comes to people's educational background, familial links, etc etc. And more concern regarding how race fits into all of those things, compared to the West.
San Francisco and Seattle are a little uptight and slightly high-brow but don't have the same stuffy feel in East Coast or even Southern circles.
The worst offender is Houston, in the aforementioned four cities. The city is rapidly becoming self-absorbed and elitist. It's becoming a haven for the snobs. Materialistic and also very rude. It's far surpassed Dallas on that front nowadays and it's starting to distance itself too.
Interesting observation. You never really hear this point of view, but I've got to admit I'm starting to notice this. Especially if the Houston C-D forum is any indication. As someone who grew up in Houston through the 70's and 80's (during the BIG boom and the big bust), I've watched the city go through some seriously manic highs and lows, but through it all it always used to maintain a somewhat down-to-Earth feel and a certain level of humility. I don't really see that humility too much anymore.
It seems and feels like a very different place now. I don't know how much of that is the huge influx of transplants, or just a new generation of natives with a much different attitude. Maybe it's a combination of both. Either way, I have noticed that Houston is becoming much more elitist, arrogant, and rude. Of course this doesn't apply to all Houstonians. There are still plenty of friendly, grounded, modest people there, but for the first time in my lifetime, they no longer seem to be the majority.
I'm of two minds about SF being up there in this poll. On one hand there is unquestionably a level of snobbery that's present in San Francisco, sometimes observed by tourists and locals alike, sometimes portrayed in popular culture (think South Park) and often discussed, particularly on C-D. On the other hand I believe it's there unfairly, because I find people in SF surprisingly real. I guess it comes down to differences in what can be considered a sign of snobbery. Uppity? arrogant? - check, I encounter a fair amount of that. On the other hand, entitled? fake? boastful? - no, there are not many San Franciscans I know who fit any of those descriptions. It is my impression that people here develop a sense of humility because almost no matter who you are or how much you have, you are never far away from people a lot smarter, a lot better looking and a lot richer than you are.
Boston has the old money, but also the new brigade from elsewhere, Harvard grads, lawyers, doctors, surgeons, rich IT kids from MIT, engineers. I think it has a lot of intellectual snobbery being the centre of education. It seems a place divided a lot by wealth/education/class, with different social circles that don't mix a lot. There's a lot of wealth, I mean Beacon Hill can feel kind of elitist. I even felt a sort of elitism in the North End, actually.
The great gatsby is set in Long Island but the theme of class differences and class warfare is embodiment of the Southern old money, what I tried to explain to you.
You talk too much for somebody who was just a tourist in the USA. MIT and Harvard have college graduates from all over the country. They are not state universities you know? Lol they attract the top student body from all parts of the US and the world. Even students native to that region graduate and move to other parts of the country like mark zucherberg and his wife, who are in California now.
Boston, like any other city in the USA, has working class people native to the state. Who do you think are the city's police officers, correctional officers, paramedics?
There is just as much old money in the south and in the Midwest. In fact any American knows there's more old money in these two regions than both the Pacific Northwest and California which are more new money because they were settled later. The midwest has a lot of rust belt, auto industry and cattle trade old money in St Louis and Kansas city, Missouri, families all over Michigan, Missouri, Kansas, Wisconsin and Minnesota. The south has a lot of land owning old money that dates back to the civil war period.
You don't know all this, because your experience with the USA comes from trawling US forums and coming to the US on a tourist visa for a couple of months.
And you would know this how? Have you even visited Boston to make such a claim? Dude you're way out there in Australia, your opinions are taken from others, I dont know how you can sit there in Melbourne and have so many opinions of a places in the U.S.
Indeed I have, I even spent 2 weeks in a hospital psych ward in Boston (long story) meeting a cross-section of society, so I actually met and talked with a lot of local Bostonians. Nice city overall though.
Indeed I have, I even spent 2 weeks in a hospital psych ward in Boston (long story) meeting a cross-section of society, so I actually met and talked with a lot of local Bostonians. Nice city overall though.
How much time have you spent in the USA in total?
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