Rural America is not “provincial.”

Provincial literally refers to rural regions that are “unsophisticated or narrow-minded.”

But Erickson is completely right here.

I know many people in rural America with graduate degrees, who read The New Yorker, and vacation in California, New York, and Europe.

They have sat around in Brazilian cafes late into the night, seen the Tokyo lights, and honeymooned in Banff.

Few urbanites have never even seen the rural USA though.

As I have said, this is the last tolerated form of bigotry.

If you want my advice, get out and see the world!

No matter where you happen to live…

That is a common error made by people who have never spent any time in rural America and who often describe us as “provincial.” We’re not provincial. They are. We read their magazines, attend their movies, and listen to their news broadcasts. We know a lot about them. They know nothing about us.

-John Erickson, Story Craft (Amazon)