Stereotypes In Dances With Wolves

Some television shows create storylines and scenarios where different races, genders, and sexualities are portrayed as the common stereotype we all acknowledge. Sheng Kuan Chung, a member of the research committee at the University of Houston, describes stereotyping as “a cognitive process by which humans simplify complex information and make sense of the world” (99). Our exposure to television and movies determines our perceptions of people; therefore, we should reevaluate our views of those people based on their race, gender, and sexuality. The movie Dances with Wolves is a prime example of how stereotypes can easily misguide people in they way that they think of others. John Dunbar, a Union Army Officer Lieutenant in the United States Civil War, had this perception

“[He] said he wasn't getting any responses, so on a hunch, he decided to drop the "s" in his name. José Zamora became Joe Zamora, and a week later, he says his inbox was full” (Matthews). Because of this preceding idea of people like José that we get from modern television, we associate this stereotype with every Hispanic we come in contact with. A great example of this is the misconception of Sofia Vergara’s role on the popular American sitcom series, Modern Family. Because she has an accent and is considered to be unintelligent, we assume that almost all Latinos are like her because that is what we have witnessed to be the common stereotype. “Zamora says, ‘Sometimes I don't even think people know or are conscious or aware that they're judging -- even if it's by name -- but I think we all do it all the time’" (Matthews). This minor detail in José’s name caused employers to be uninterested in hiring him just because they knew he was Hispanic. Sometimes events like this open our eyes to how oblivious we really are to issues like this in our