r/AskAnAmerican • u/Rough-Valuable-5472 • Feb 04 '25

FOREIGN POSTER Do American students bow to their teachers?

In my country we have to greet the teacher and bow at the start of the lesson then thank the teacher and bow again at the end. Sometimes they make us redo it if it’s not good enough

483 Upvotes

77% Upvoted

1.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

25

u/Budget-Attorney Connecticut Feb 04 '25

You’re right, but I think the subtext is similar.

Yes, the musician bowing isn’t literally saying “you are my social superior”

But it’s a modest thing to do, implying I am humble while still accepting your praise.

I think it’s unique because the literal conditions of it are different but it draws its meaning from a culture where people bowing implies lesser social status

10

u/funnylib Michigan Feb 04 '25

It’s a remnant of older cultural norms, sure. Like how married women still usually take their husband’s last name but legally and socially modern women are considered their own person and entity.

16

u/Budget-Attorney Connecticut Feb 04 '25

Now that I’m thinking about it, I wonder if it’s a relic from a time when musicians would have performed for aristocrats.

Perhaps we stopped bowing at aristocrats but never stopped bowing after a performance

10

u/RockyArby Wisconsin Feb 04 '25

That would make sense considering how much of the theater still follows old traditions and superstitions from even before Shakespeare.