Asians make bad drivers. Jews are thrifty. Women should stay in the house. Blondes look dumb. Pink is for women. More developments have made our society bigger. In the modern society, labels and stereotypes are a part of daily life. It labels how someone should live or act based on their gender, race and personality. There has always been some sort of outbreak. These actions aren’t always viewed as being true. Stereotypes originate from dramatic assumptions or accusations. Stereotypes are everywhere. You can find them on TV, in magazines, on billboards and posters, or online. We all have stereotypes. Stereotyping is used to generalize and categorize people, including religions, belief systems, race, gender or appearance. Stereotypes are a way to evaluate a person. No one would be the same colour skin if we selected 1000 random people at random from all over the world. These are dangerous to society and the creators may not know it. Society has a problem because we don’t like to accept differences. We can be closed minded when it comes to meeting new people and going outside because we set our own rules. Stereotypes or labels can encourage but are in some ways hurtful. Stereotypes affect our emotions and behavior. We lose motivation. Stereotypes are something I hate. I hate the idea that people believe we should behave in a certain way. I will explain why stereotypes degrade and harm people using examples from the text and in real life.
Stereotypes can be harmful to people’s health, cause them to doubt themselves, and even lead to favoritism. Egghead gives many examples where stereotyping is done. First, we should consider favoritism or prejudice. Prejudice can be a major factor in our decisions and behaviors. These judgements, which are sometimes false, can lead discrimination and to persecution. By judging a person on the basis stereotypes, we can increase their influence. Stereotypes are a set of negative beliefs about an individual or group that can lead to prejudice. Someone with prejudices against older adults may think they are slow or uncompetitive. We can’t know every individual. Discrimination is characterized by favoritism or prejudice directed at a particular group. Discrimination can be a negative act towards an individual or group. It doesn’t matter how we deny this, we all suffer from favoritism. We have always been influenced to choose certain things in preference to others. These later affect our development and future. Salem High School’s survey showed that in 80% cases, stereotyping is used by teachers to favor certain students. The students all agreed that there was a lot of attention given to the football squad. In one case, at Kamehameha Schools of Hawaii, the issue was favoritism in regards to athletes’ disciplinary issues.
Will is a good example of how he was labelled Egghead. Will loves books, hates gym and wears turtlenecks. Devan & Shane ridicule him and call him a nerd / geek. Shane devan was Will’s worst enemy in the book. To put Will down, they ridicule or mock everything Will says or does. Will began to feel depressed and lost his confidence. Egghead means someone loves books. Second example of Egghead: Will and Katie being labeled as Mrs and Mr at the dance. Everyone thought that they were dating and labeled them married when they were clearly just friends. The text is biased because the characters are saying that they’re boyfriend and girlfriend, but this is not true. Devan was reluctant to expose Brad and Shane, because they still were friends. Devan preferred Shane Brad even though they were rude. Devan did this because he was favoritistic. Second, I’ll argue that stereotypes have an impact on our health, both mentally and physically. They can also lead to depression or suicide. Stereotypes harm our mentality and emotional state. When someone is subjected to verbal abuse like stereotypes, this can lead to low-self-esteem. When this issue continues, it can lead to agoraphobia and depression. Stereotypes can sometimes be violent, which can cause posttraumatic stress. This can also serve as a poor role model to others. We may even encourage suicide or self harm. People stereotypes say, for example, that Irish people drink all the time. It’s not always the case. This stereotype is based solely on the character and personality of each individual. Irish people do not drink. It can be offensive to an Irishman walking by if someone says that Irish people drink. It can be humiliating and encourage others to do so. If there are many people, they will start to call each other that. This can lead to anxiety, depressive disorders and other health issues. The victim would begin to feel hopeless and rejected.
This was illustrated in the book Egghead by Will being dared to ski the Devils Hill. Brad and Shane thought Will was a scaredy-cat and would refuse to ski down the hill. He was called a looser and a scaredy-cat. Will was forced to decide whether he would ski down Devil’s Hill or not. If Will refused to ski down, he would continue to be called Scaredy Cats, loosers, and nerds. If he went down Devil’s Hill, he would show the bullies he’s not who they thought he was. Egghead was pressed for time and opted to go downhill. Will was influenced by Shane, Devan and their blackmailing tactics to slide down a hill. Will lost his equilibrium and skied head-first down Devil’s Hill due to his anxiety. Also, he catches a couple of branches. Will’s injury was caused by the stereotype of Devan and Shane. It was evident that he had suffered physical harm because he ended with stitches, cuts, and plasters. Last but not least, I’ll be talking about losing confidence and faith. Being stereotyped and constantly labeled can make an individual feel insecure and lose their confidence. It is possible that a random individual may make a judgment about an individual’s appearance, race or gender, accent or other characteristics, but it might not be true. This could be taken personally by the victim, who may not have the confidence or courage to defend themselves. Stereotyping implies the person is capable of a variety of traits and abilities. Most stereotypes send a false, negative message to the victim, causing them to feel humiliated, hurt, or lose confidence. We are more likely to be confident if we have an identity that is healthy, positive and strong. Even if we are told or hear negative things, our confidence will be affected because of the hurt and discomfort. This lack of confidence can affect future generations.
Due to their experience of being stereotyped based on race, some people may be afraid of passing down the culture and traditions they have learned. They might also lose confidence. In reality, I was called ugly and stupid when I was younger. In grade 1, I had severe eczema that appeared as bruises, wounds and scratches. My face was also covered in marks, and many people thought I was ugly. Benadryl also makes me sleepy but does not make the itching disappear. This makes it difficult for me to concentrate in school. Because I thought that people were saying it, it hurt me. In retrospect, I can see that this experience has made me a better and stronger person. Egghead was used to influence Devan not be friends with Katie. Devan wanted Katie as a friend. Devan was scared and less confident to become friends with Katie as Devan was friends Shane, a bully. He feared he could be bullied or labeled if Shane did. Devan was not confident enough to speak up for Katie or to Shane. He could’ve done as he pleased and ignored what Shane had to say. Devan was not confident enough to confront Shane. Devan’s behavior shows that he is an observer. He didn’t speak even though he had been there.
As a group, we need to do something about this. We should focus on the uniqueness of each person, their personality, race and appearance, rather than focusing solely on what they have done wrong. All stereotypes, whether they are positive or negative, are harmful because they can lead to prejudice and discrimination. We need to learn how to respect, appreciate, and take into account other cultures, countries, traditions, and religions. This would help to avoid problems such as bullying and discrimination. It is important to teach the next generation how to respect people regardless of differences. By everyone being non-stereotypical, we will be able to change our perceptions of stereotypes. Racism is the basis of many stereotypes. The comment that a tall black guy can play basketball is heard every time he walks down the streets. They would also assume, today, that a person of color committed a crime. This could make blacks feel embarrassed.
Stereotypes have become a major part of society. They are used to classify races, genders and cultures. Stereotypes have been a part of my life for a long time. As a new student, I was mistakenly assumed to be Christian by everyone because of my appearance. They didn’t believe me when I explained that I was Hindu. After I became older, it was easier to ignore their questions and not give them stereotypical responses.
