Min engelsk oversættelse
I kan hjælpe mig med, rette min oversættelse
Stereotypes
In 1998 a 12 year-old Danish girl went to the United States with her parents for a year and attended the local school. Early in the first term, the teacher asked her to show the class where she came from, using a map in the history book. She turned to a map of Europe, but much to her shock, Denmark was not there. Some of the islands were vaguely sketched in, but a reader could not tell if they were part of Sweden or Germany. She was too amazed to be embarrassed, and pointed out the book’s error with some emphasis. She had just learned that Danes abroad often must contend not so much with stereotypes as with ignorance.
Most people at least know where France, Japan, China, or Germany are on a map, and most people have a few ideas about what these nations are like. Denmark is far less known, and many have somewhat diffuse ideas about it, like an island only glimpsed through the mist and fog. Some assume that Scandinavians are much alike, mixing together Swedes, Norwegians, and Danes in a hazy vision of blond people living in a snow-bound welfare state in Northern Europe.
For those, who know it, however, Denmark is quite distinct from its Scandinavian neighbours. It has a long history, and at least until c. 1630 it was one of the great European powers. Yet, today it is a small country, and visitors may perhaps be forgiven for knowing little about it on arrival. Some people have ideas about it that, like the American textbook, are entirely incorrect. Presumably you know that Copenhagen is not the capital of Sweden and that the language of Denmark is neither Dutch nor Denmarkese.
Stereotyper
I 1998 tog en 12-årig dansk pige til USA med sine forældre i et år og gik i den lokale skole. Tidligt i det første semester bad læreren hende vise klassen hvor hun kom fra, ved hjælp af et kort i historiebogen. Hun vendte sig mod kortet over europa, men til hendes overraskelse var Danmark ikke på kortet. Nogle af øerne svagt skitseret men en læsere ville ikke kunne sige, om øerne var en del af Sverige eller Tyskland. Hun var for forbløffet til at være flov og påpegede på bogens fejl med nogen empati. Hun havde netop erfarret, at en danskere i udlandet ofte skal slås med ikke så meget stereotyper, som med uvidenhed.
De fleste mennesker ved i det mindste hvor Frankrig, Japan, Kina eller Tyskland er på et kort, og de fleste mennesker har et par ideer om, hvordan disse nationer er. Danmark er langt mindre kendt og mange har nogle mærkelige ideer om Danmark, ligesom en ø der kun anes gennem dis og tåge. Nogle antager, at skandinaverne er meget ens og blander svenskere, nordmænd og danskere sammen i en tåget vision om blonde mennesker, der bor i en indesneet velfærdsstat i Nordeuropa.
For dem der kender det, er Danmark dog helt forskellig fra sine skandinaviske naboer. Det har en lang historie, og i hvert fald indtil ca. 1630 var det en af det mægtige Europas stor magter. Men i dag er det et lille land og besøgende kan måske blive tilgivet for at vide meget lidt om det ved ankomsten. Nogle mennesker har ideer om det, der ligesom den amerikanske lærebog, er helt forkerte. Formentlig ved du, at København ikke er hovedstaden i Sverige, og at sproget i Danmark er hverken hollandsk eller denmarkese.
Stereotypes
In 1998 a 12 year-old Danish girl went to the United States with her parents for a year and attended the local school. Early in the first term, the teacher asked her to show the class where she came from, using a map in the history book. She turned to a map of Europe, but much to her shock, Denmark was not there. Some of the islands were vaguely sketched in, but a reader could not tell if they were part of Sweden or Germany. She was too amazed to be embarrassed, and pointed out the book’s error with some emphasis. She had just learned that Danes abroad often must contend not so much with stereotypes as with ignorance.
Most people at least know where France, Japan, China, or Germany are on a map, and most people have a few ideas about what these nations are like. Denmark is far less known, and many have somewhat diffuse ideas about it, like an island only glimpsed through the mist and fog. Some assume that Scandinavians are much alike, mixing together Swedes, Norwegians, and Danes in a hazy vision of blond people living in a snow-bound welfare state in Northern Europe.
For those, who know it, however, Denmark is quite distinct from its Scandinavian neighbours. It has a long history, and at least until c. 1630 it was one of the great European powers. Yet, today it is a small country, and visitors may perhaps be forgiven for knowing little about it on arrival. Some people have ideas about it that, like the American textbook, are entirely incorrect. Presumably you know that Copenhagen is not the capital of Sweden and that the language of Denmark is neither Dutch nor Denmarkese.
Stereotyper
I 1998 tog en 12-årig dansk pige til USA med sine forældre i et år og gik i den lokale skole. Tidligt i det første semester bad læreren hende vise klassen hvor hun kom fra, ved hjælp af et kort i historiebogen. Hun vendte sig mod kortet over europa, men til hendes overraskelse var Danmark ikke på kortet. Nogle af øerne svagt skitseret men en læsere ville ikke kunne sige, om øerne var en del af Sverige eller Tyskland. Hun var for forbløffet til at være flov og påpegede på bogens fejl med nogen empati. Hun havde netop erfarret, at en danskere i udlandet ofte skal slås med ikke så meget stereotyper, som med uvidenhed.
De fleste mennesker ved i det mindste hvor Frankrig, Japan, Kina eller Tyskland er på et kort, og de fleste mennesker har et par ideer om, hvordan disse nationer er. Danmark er langt mindre kendt og mange har nogle mærkelige ideer om Danmark, ligesom en ø der kun anes gennem dis og tåge. Nogle antager, at skandinaverne er meget ens og blander svenskere, nordmænd og danskere sammen i en tåget vision om blonde mennesker, der bor i en indesneet velfærdsstat i Nordeuropa.
For dem der kender det, er Danmark dog helt forskellig fra sine skandinaviske naboer. Det har en lang historie, og i hvert fald indtil ca. 1630 var det en af det mægtige Europas stor magter. Men i dag er det et lille land og besøgende kan måske blive tilgivet for at vide meget lidt om det ved ankomsten. Nogle mennesker har ideer om det, der ligesom den amerikanske lærebog, er helt forkerte. Formentlig ved du, at København ikke er hovedstaden i Sverige, og at sproget i Danmark er hverken hollandsk eller denmarkese.