Chapter 35 Quiz: Stereotypes, Media, and the Battle Over Appalachian Identity
Multiple Choice
1. The hillbilly stereotype serves which of the following political functions?
a) It celebrates the resilience and self-sufficiency of mountain communities b) It converts a structural problem (extraction of wealth) into a cultural problem (deficiency of the people), thereby justifying neglect c) It encourages federal investment in Appalachian infrastructure d) It highlights the diversity of Appalachian communities
2. Al Capp's Li'l Abner comic strip, set in the fictional community of Dogpatch, contributed to the Appalachian stereotype primarily by:
a) Accurately documenting the living conditions in Appalachian communities b) Presenting mountain people as lovable, innocent primitives whose poverty was charming rather than consequential c) Advocating for federal anti-poverty programs in the mountains d) Centering Black Appalachian characters in its narrative
3. The 1972 film Deliverance transformed the hillbilly stereotype by:
a) Presenting mountain people as successful entrepreneurs b) Shifting the image from comic figure to horror figure, associating mountain people with sexual violence, physical deformity, and genetic degradation c) Documenting the labor history of Appalachian coal mining d) Featuring Appalachian people telling their own stories in their own words
4. J.D. Vance's Hillbilly Elegy (2016) was criticized by Appalachian scholars primarily because:
a) It was poorly written and commercially unsuccessful b) It advanced a "culture of poverty" explanation that ignored the structural causes of Appalachian poverty and treated one family's experience as representative of an entire region c) It focused exclusively on Black Appalachian communities d) It advocated for increased federal spending in the region
5. Elizabeth Catte's What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia (2018) argued all of the following EXCEPT:
a) Vance was not actually writing about Appalachia — Middletown, Ohio, is not in the Appalachian region b) The poverty in Appalachia has structural causes that decades of scholarship have documented c) Appalachia is far more diverse than Vance's account suggested d) Appalachian poverty is primarily the result of cultural values and personal choices
6. The term "ruin porn" refers to:
a) A genre of Appalachian fiction focused on decaying buildings b) The practice of photographing abandoned or decaying spaces, stripped of historical context, and presenting them as objects of aesthetic contemplation c) A federal program for demolishing abandoned structures in Appalachian communities d) A type of documentary filmmaking that focuses on economic recovery
7. The "Appalachian pity industrial complex" describes:
a) A system in which outsiders build careers and raise funds by performing sympathy for Appalachia, while Appalachian people remain objects rather than agents of their own story b) A network of Appalachian-based nonprofit organizations working to improve conditions in the region c) A federal agency tasked with distributing disaster relief funds d) An academic program that trains Appalachian residents to become journalists
8. The concept of "stereotype threat" is relevant to Appalachian experience because:
a) Appalachian people are never exposed to negative stereotypes about their region b) When people are reminded of negative stereotypes about their group, it can affect their performance and self-image — a dynamic that Appalachian people experience when they encounter hillbilly stereotypes in education and social settings c) Appalachian people actively embrace all stereotypes about their region d) Stereotypes about Appalachia are exclusively positive
9. Social media has changed the dynamics of Appalachian representation primarily by:
a) Eliminating all stereotypes about the region b) Giving Appalachian people direct access to national audiences, bypassing traditional media gatekeepers and enabling self-representation at scale c) Replacing all national media coverage of Appalachia with local coverage d) Causing all outsider journalists to stop covering the region
10. The field of Appalachian Studies, founded in the 1970s, is significant to the stereotype debate because:
a) It proved that all Appalachian stereotypes are accurate b) It provided a rigorous scholarly foundation for structural explanations of Appalachian poverty, challenging the cultural deficiency thesis with documented evidence of extraction, exploitation, and deliberate underdevelopment c) It was created by national media organizations to improve their Appalachian coverage d) It focused exclusively on the music and folklore of the region
Short Answer
11. Explain the relationship between the "discovery" narrative described in Chapter 14 and the media representations discussed in this chapter. How does the pattern of outsiders "discovering" Appalachia repeat across different eras?
12. Describe the tension between "don't call us poor" and "we actually need resources." Why is this tension particularly acute in Appalachia? How have effective advocates navigated it?
13. What does the chapter mean by "affectionate condescension"? Identify at least two specific media products that exemplify this dynamic, and explain how affection and condescension coexist within them.
Essay
14. The chapter argues that the hillbilly stereotype is "not a story about hurt feelings" but "a story about power." In a 600-word essay, explain what this means. How do media stereotypes translate into material consequences — in federal policy, funding decisions, and the self-image of people who live in the region? Use specific examples from the chapter and from earlier chapters of the textbook.
15. Compare two responses to the Appalachian stereotype: Dolly Parton's strategy of performing and subverting the stereotype, and Elizabeth Catte's strategy of rejecting the stereotype through scholarship and polemic. What are the strengths and limitations of each approach? Can both strategies coexist? Write a 500-word analysis.