Stereotypes
Stereotypes…To be or not to be?
“Instead of being presented with stereotypes by age, sex, color, class, or religion, children must have the opportunity to learn that within each range, some people are loathsome and some are delightful.”
― Margaret Mead
The Americans are fat and stupid, the Brits are arrogant snobs, the Finns are always drunk, of course, while the Russians are walking their white bears with a shot of vodka in hand. The Italians are one and all benevolent cooks spreading pasta and pizza extensively and the Chinese are definitely the poorest nation in the world, ready to work for a mug of rice. Isn`t it terribly ridiculous that we, people of the 21st century, are still somehow guided by such a thing as a stereotype?
And I will say No, it is not. It is not horribly strange, totally incredible and absolutely unbelievable. Yes, even today, in the era of the Internet and almost borderless world, people are inclined to label and stereotype each other as it lies within their nature. The thing is that stereotypes help us to create a well-regulated and (as we think) predictable world, that is first of all reliable and then comfortable to live in. For example, for those who live in the less developed countries than the US it is easy to consider the Americans being superficial and too self-confident, only in this way can we justify their economic success and general well-being, it is sort of «yes, they work a lot, earn a lot, but are unable to share as they never think about the others». Moving in this direction we kill two birds with one stone: we justify our own weak organization skills and save much trouble characterizing a versatile and ambiguous nation. Who wins? Nobody.
Unfortunately, as I see it, that is what the ugly truth is like: people can hardly prevent stereotypes from rooting deeply into their minds. Though, I believe, it is within
“Instead of being presented with stereotypes by age, sex, color, class, or religion, children must have the opportunity to learn that within each range, some people are loathsome and some are delightful.”
― Margaret Mead
The Americans are fat and stupid, the Brits are arrogant snobs, the Finns are always drunk, of course, while the Russians are walking their white bears with a shot of vodka in hand. The Italians are one and all benevolent cooks spreading pasta and pizza extensively and the Chinese are definitely the poorest nation in the world, ready to work for a mug of rice. Isn`t it terribly ridiculous that we, people of the 21st century, are still somehow guided by such a thing as a stereotype?
And I will say No, it is not. It is not horribly strange, totally incredible and absolutely unbelievable. Yes, even today, in the era of the Internet and almost borderless world, people are inclined to label and stereotype each other as it lies within their nature. The thing is that stereotypes help us to create a well-regulated and (as we think) predictable world, that is first of all reliable and then comfortable to live in. For example, for those who live in the less developed countries than the US it is easy to consider the Americans being superficial and too self-confident, only in this way can we justify their economic success and general well-being, it is sort of «yes, they work a lot, earn a lot, but are unable to share as they never think about the others». Moving in this direction we kill two birds with one stone: we justify our own weak organization skills and save much trouble characterizing a versatile and ambiguous nation. Who wins? Nobody.
Unfortunately, as I see it, that is what the ugly truth is like: people can hardly prevent stereotypes from rooting deeply into their minds. Though, I believe, it is within