Stereotyping

4 Pages 915 Words

There is a tendency among many people to categorize individuals who look, act, and come from the same background as "us", and to categorize those who differ from this group of people as "They." However, people who are considered to be "they" in their perspective consider "us" as "they". This is an explanation of how stereotypes are created. Stereotypes affect the manner in which people interact with others of a different race or ethnicity, age group, religious background, or sexual orientation. Gender stereotypes are also prevalent within the mass media. A stereotype is an oversimplified generalization about a certain class of people. When people say that all members of a specific nationality, religion, race or gender are "cheap," "lazy," "criminal" or "dumb," they are expressing stereotypes. All groups have both cheap and generous individuals and those who commit crimes. To label an entire group based on the action of a few is to engage in stereotyping. The most common stereotypes that exist today have negatively impacted various groups of people
In our society, there are many stereotypes created about nationalities that in return underestimate the power of each individual of a group. People from different nationalities are considered to be “they". For example, Asians may be stereotyped as being disciplined, hard-working people who excel in mathematics, while African Americans or Mexicans may be viewed in a more negative light. In "Mother Tongue", Amy Tan was trying to disprove the existing stereotype about Chinese people being good at precise science, so she went against the existing opinion and became a famous American writer. Richard Rodriguez in "Complexion," tried to prove that the Mexicans could excel in a field other than a physical labor; therefore, he became a highly intelligent person. The only way for Amy Tan and Richard Rodriguez to destroy the myth about their national belonging was to successfully accomplish their own ...