People (especially teenagers) are exposed to stereotypes every day. They may not like it, but it’s a fact of life. So what really is a stereotype? Webster’s New World Dictionary defines a stereotype as, “a fixed or conventional notion or conception, as of a person, group, idea, etc., held by a number of people, and allowing for no individuality.” This is extremely ironic when you consider that many of the groups being stereotyped (punk, emo, etc.) are trying to be intensely individual. However that is not the point. The point is: each person is unique, and their special characteristics are what make up the whole of humanity.
People like to categorize other people they don’t know very well into tiny little groups with specific characteristics. This may be because humans have an inherent lust to “fit in” somewhere or because maybe we’re all just a little xenophobic. But whatever the cause, it results in these ridiculous groupings based off of next to no information. This is also why first impressions are worth so much however so often wrong. So if these generalizations aren’t accurate, on what are they formed?
Stereotypes may be formed from material items like clothes, or it may be how someone acts or the choices he or she makes. This is extremely prevalent in high school where teens create cliques and decide they need to be in the “right” clique – preps, jocks, whatever. However, these classifications are certainly not limited to high school. Adults group each other all the time but often to disastrous effects. While these categorizations may be partially correct, they don’t by any means tell the whole story. By stereotyping people into one group, any chance for them to be full, faceted human beings is completely eliminated.
If you use stereotypes, you are implying that anyone who is Irish must have a drinking problem, or anyone who is Asian is automatically a genius. While some of these are humorous and ennobling, most aren’t, and that’s why many people are extremely offended by them. Also, these ideas don’t leave any room for grey area in between. People are more than their race or economic situation. They are a little bit of you and a little bit of me and a whole lot of their own selves. No point in trying to suffocate them into meaningless strata.
- mmeyer