Ted Talk. Maz Jobrani. Did you hear one about the Iranian-American?

Our Intercultural Awareness weekly session continues with a stand-up comedian, Maz Jobrani, who jokes about  Middle East Stereotypes. Listen to and read the talk and answer the questions below.

You can download the  text and vocabulary  HERE

To go to original source, go HERE

Questions

1. Maz Jobrani says: “I've had some problems in some of the Arab countries, because I guess some of the Arab countries aren't getting along with Iran either”.

Why does Maz Jobrani differentiate Iran from the other countries?


2. Maz Jobrani says: “ Dubai -- cool place. They're obsessed with having the biggest, tallest, longest, as we all know. They have a mall there, the Dubai Mall. It is so big, they have taxis in the mall”. Why do you think Saudi Arabians are obsessed with having such pharaohnic structures? Can you think of any country with similar obsessions in Western cultures?


3. Maz Jobrani says: “….one of the things I try to do with my stand-up is to break stereotypes.”

In your opinion, has he fulfilled his objective with this show? Justify your answer. 

Questions by Isabel Salinas and myself, María Zabala Peña