[Sue]

Why do people stereotype Asian women as sexually active, exotic, overly feminine and eager to please?

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Name : Sue, Gender : F, City : Dallas, State : TX Country : United States, 

[Ethan]

The exotic part would apply if the man (or woman) wasn't Asian or living in a area with a large Asian population. If the person perpetuating the stereotype was living in Japan, I very much doubt they would find Japanese women exotic. The stereotype is composed of many ideas: One part is the historically submissive role Asian women have been forced into by societies. Some would see that as feminine and eager to please. Because women did not wield power, they were expected to learn arts such as flower arranging, which most societies would categorize as feminine. The sexually active part would relate to American men's sexual experiences overseas after World War II. Also, the style with which many Asian prostitutes would appeal to men over the past few centuries. I'm still not sure what exactly you mean by 'sexually active.' Aren't women of all races sexually active? I once heard a joke that Asians are very sexually active or else they wouldn't have so many people. This joke is factually false, however.

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Name : Ethan, Gender : M, Age : 20, City : Berkeley, State : CA Country : United States, Social class : Middle class, 

[Dave26022]

I suspect it's because they know very little about Asian women, and what they see and hear through the popular media (and probably wish were true) is that Asian women are submissive to men and sexually overactive. The image of the Thai bar girl is often erroneously applied to all Asian women. Having said that, a common stereotype in my country is that Asian women are quiet, shy, demure and cliquey. There are quite large numbers of Chinese and Indians living here, though many have been here for generations. There are also a lot of Japanese and Korean students and tourists. In New Zealand, I think the stereotype I described would apply more often, mainly to Asian women new to the country. I've known a few Asian women and none fitted the stereotype you describe. I know, however, that a lot of men think this way and wish it were true!

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Name : Dave26022, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 31, City : Upper Hutt, State : NA Country : New Zealand, Occupation : Government adviser, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Lisa22814]

Of course, the obvious answer to your question (that I'm assuming is rhetorical) is pure ignorance but when and how this ignorant notion became a 'true misconception' goes back to Asian culture and society where women were generally seen as inferior or lesser beings. Similar to that of the fading American culture, Asian men were the educated breadwinners while few women were formally educated and their primary role (according to Confucianism) was to take care of the household, children, and her husband. Somewhere in the mix Western society became fascinated by a different culture and began to view Asian females; among Russians, African Americans, and Latinas as docile, over-sexed creatures. So these ideals in addition to the stories told by American soldiers (who once lived in various parts of Asia), movies and plays such as; The World of Suzie Wong and Madam Butterfly, and (in recent years) porn sites perpetuated the stereotype that Asian women are either docile, doll-like, subservient, fashionistas, or wild and exotic. It irritates the hell outta me when I hear a man refer to an attractive non-white (WASP) woman as exotic. It suggests that because the woman is beautiful and non-white her beauty is strikingly strange and hints to the dated, factless stereotype that women of color (or foreign women) are wild, sexual beast. Why is that? Why is it when you mention Heather Locklear or Cindy Crawford they're seen as beautiful but Naomi Campbell or Salma Hayek are viewed 'exotic'? The sad thing is--it's accepted.

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Name : Lisa22814, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, City : Gaithersburg, State : MD Country : United States, 

[Romy29618]

People see phrases such as 'geisha' and assume that it means 'well-dressed hooker' and see movies like 'Full Metal Jacket' that depict Vietnamese prostitutes. And because of those images (and of course, porn stars of Asian descent) and the quiet, reserved nature of an Asian woman in a foreign country, the stereotype grew and unfortunately became applied to most women of Asian descent.

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Name : Romy29618, Gender : M, Race : Asian, City : Clinton Twp., State : MI Country : United States, 

[Frank21704]

A better question might be, 'Why do people classify all Oriental/Asian women as the same?' Different nationalities of Asian women fulfill one or the other of those traits to different extents. For example, the Japanese wouldn't understand when you say 'overly feminine and eager to please.' Traditionally there is no other way for a Japanese woman to be, although modernization is making some inroads. That is a valid generalization in Japan, but not in Korea or China. As far as sexual activity, Asians in general have much different attitudes toward sex than Americans (I assume you mean 'Americans' when you say 'people'). This led toward a booming sex business catering to American servicemen stationed at various Asian posts. Because this is the only side of the women the occupiers saw, naturally this is the only impression they came home with, and the impression has stuck in American popular culture. This attitude creates a lucrative niche in the prostitution business, which is frequently filled by new immigrants to the United States.

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Name : Frank21704, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 30, City : Atlanta, State : GA Country : United States, Occupation : Computer Technician, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[mick]

It's funny how I never perceived this particular stereotype until very recently. I thought our main stereotype was of the shy, socially-inept bookworm (I got this quite a lot- especially as I wear glasses). I think porn has a lot to say for our negative representation. Mystified asian female, Mick

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Name : mick, City : Sydney, State : NC Country : Australia, 

[Heather]

There is also a LOT of Asian porn on the Internet with Asian women doing some very submissive and sexual acts. Of course, there is American porn like that as well, but the idea of bukkake apparently is Asian which makes many people think that you all are a pretty kinky bunch and it certainly makes American men fantasize about you a lot.

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Name : Heather, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Pagan, Age : 31, City : Cleveland, State : TN Country : United States, Occupation : Self-employed - Internet, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Paul-A28883]

Simple, my friend. Many American (and other Western) soldiers visited brothels in Asia and came to see Asian women as sexually available. These myths were handed down to sons and daughters; hence the legend of the sexy, 'exotic' Asian woman, which was rudely shattered for me when I began attending a university with many Americanized Korean and Chinese students. A definite stereotype.

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Name : Paul-A28883, City : Long Beach, State : CA Country : United States, 

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