Paper #1 (part 2)

Stereotypes and How to Deal With Them
Looking at the basics of stereotypes reveals an ugly but sad truth that people are unjustly categorized and conformed. Even sadder is when they fail to realize how they fall prey to the stereotypes. These stereotypes change by what seems like the second, it is amazing how people keep up with them. Without even knowing it, they help define, categorize, promote, and become victims of stereotypes, all at the same time.
First, to specifically define stereotype, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a stereotype is “a standardized mental picture that is held in common by members of a group and that represents an oversimplified opinion, prejudiced attitude, or uncritical judgment.” To simplify that definition into my own definition, a stereotype is any opinion you have about a person or people group based entirely on a biased perception of them. Often times these stereotypes turn into hostile and prejudiced opinion of who people are and how they should act, and many times those that are stereotyped do not actually fit in the stereotype. This can lead people to automatically assume things about people and “if you assume you know what a person is like, and don't look at each person as an individual, you are likely to make errors in your estimates of a person's character” (Conflict Research Consortium). When one stereotypes, one judges. When one judges, one more often than not proves themselves to be wrong and prejudice.
Some of the more common stereotypes in the world today include stereotypes of ethnicity, gender, and class. For many races, there are numerous negative prejudiced stereotypes. For example, in the essay My Jewish Nose, the author explains that Jewish women are stereotypically “loud, pushy- qualities that girls really aren’t supposed to have” (Edut, 64). This contributes to two stereotypes, one about ethnic characteristics and about gender. There are stereotypes for every ethnicity. For Caucasians, they are yuppie. For African Americans, they are criminals or dishonest. For Latino or Hispanic Americans, they are like “cockroaches.” None of these are true. For men, they are supposed to be career driven, independent, strong, tough, and providing, very much like the conclusion that Chris Godsey came to in his essay Cro-Magnon Karma. In this essay, Godsey came to the conclusion that “without believing that unless I have 3 percent body fat, a hairless torso and washboard abs, I’m an inferior man.” (Edut 287). So, that is exactly what men strive for. Women are to be submissive, gentle, sweet, nurturing, and beautiful all the time, very much like the Barbies and Dawns mentioned in Klaus Barbie and other Dolls I’d Like to See by Susan Gilman. In regards to class, there are the stereotypes of over motivated wealthy snob, trailer trash, dirty poor, and so many others. Just because someone is wealthy that does not mean they are snob. Just because one lives in a trailer park that does not make them trashy or un-ambitious (which is commonly associated with this stereotype). And most poor people do not choose to be poor. Anyone would know the truth about these people in each of these categories if they took the time to get to know the person for who they really are. That is how people promote these stereotypes: by not taking the time to form one’s own opinion about a person or people group. They also promote the stereotype by not correcting others when they talk about the stereotype and when they conform to it themselves.
Looking back in to my own life, I myself have become victim to almost every one of these categories of stereotypes. For example, as a young, blonde, petite girl I often feel the pressure to conform to the stereotypes associated with all of those. I’m supposed to be spirited and energetic, stupid (because of my lack of experience and blonde hair), sweet, and submissive- never offending anyone. Thankfully I have overcome those stereotypes the best that I can. To be more specific, I remember two times when I was working for a grocery store in high school. The first time was actually on my first day of work. As I was trying to leave I had another high school male coworker corner me into a wall and try to get me to admit things about who I was attracted to and other embarrassing information I knew at the time that the expected reaction was to giggle and laugh and submissively reveal my secrets. Much to the boy’s surprise I darted under his arm when he was not looking and ran to one of my supervisors who defended me. This showed him that not only was I not going to be pressured into something, but I knew how to handle myself and use my head to get out of and avoid situations. The second example came when another coworker, a middle-aged male, tried to convince me that my Christian faith was wrong. He got aggressive and hostile with his words quickly. Again, to his (and my own surprise) I found that I was able to stand my ground and defend my faith better than he could fight his own argument. These both contradicted the stereotypes that I was young and stupid and would avoid conflict like a “normal” girl. But just because I contradicted stereotypes these two times, does not even begin to add up to the times that I have fallen victim to them and kept quiet, agreed to something I did not really want to do because as I girl I felt like it was something I was supposed to do, or to even dress in more feminine clothes just because “I’m a girl. I should look like one,” (now realistically speaking, I always look like and behave pretty girly, but I am referring to wearing dresses and skirts just to show how girly I can be).
Every time I feel pressure to conform is hard. It is hard because I know that I am an opinionated person with a dominant personality. And I know that I do not want to be seen as the typical girl who just goes along with others. Looking back on those two specific examples, I do feel proud of myself that I stood my ground, used my head, and also did not let my emotions dictate my actions (another stereotype associated with girls). It was good to learn that if I had to, I could defend myself. But the other times I did conform were not necessarily all bad either. As time goes on and I learn to keep quiet about some things, I see that I am learning so much more about the people in my life. I learn more about what they believe in and value. I learn how to communicate better with them. I learn how to respect them more. I have also found that when I am with others I have discovered my own personal limits in regards to choices I want to make in my life and I still stand up for what I believe is right.
I feel a very mixed reaction to my own conformity. One the one side, when I choose to be quiet and submissive, while I may further the potentially negative stereotype, I learn so much about my surroundings. On the other side, I never conform to things I find morally or ethically wrong and I find that it is then that I stand against the grain and resist the stereotypes associated with my gender. Both are important tasks to undertake in life. It all comes back to choosing what battles I want to fight in my life.