Stereotyping in The Way We Lie by Stephanie Ericsson

950 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Media and stereotypes

In the essay The Way We Lie, Stephanie Ericsson writes that “All the ‘isms’-racism, sexism, ageism, et al.-are founded on and fueled by the stereotype and the cliché, which are lies of exaggeration, omission, and ignorance. They are always dangerous. They take a single tree and make it a landscape.” This quote is important due to the fact that stereotypes play a major role in many aspects of our society. In American society we have a tendency to pass judgment on people just because of a pre-existing stereotype that our society has formed on particular groups over the years. American Society tends to create stereotypes because of the simplicity it adds to our lives, but stereotypes can cause us to oversimplify the characteristics of others, encourage prejudice, and can even create many more severe dangers.

Everyday we experience stereotyping in one way or another. Over the years stereotyping has become such a large part of our society that it is a vital part of our everyday communication. It has caused many of us to not really think about who a person really is, or what they are about, but to accept instead a certain stereotype that has already been created by our society and given to an individual. Stephanie Ericsson makes an excellent point in her essay when she says “they take a single tree, and make it into a landscape.” The statement she was trying to make by saying this is that many times, a stereotype is made by an individual because of something done by one particular person in a certain group, but is then given to the whole group as a result. Our society has given a stereotype to practically every form of human being out there. Some examples of this are the blond that is said to be dumb, the kid with glasse...

... middle of paper ...

...ypes. These crimes are called “hate crimes”, and are directed towards a particular individual not because of something he or she has done, but simply because of the group they belong to.

Hundreds of innocent people die each year due to a title that was created for them. Because of a stereotype that some other individual somewhere in our society created, and decided certain individuals belong, and should be hated for, innocent people in our society end up being killed. It is not fair for innocent people to die. Nor is it even fair for any individual to have to walk down the street, knowing that they are hated because of something that is beyond their control. Whether it be their skin color, hair color, appearance, or the way they walk, it can be a stereotypical characteristic that creates the risk of being judged by another individual, or perhaps even killed.

Show More
Related

  • Robert Heilbroner's Take on Stereotype

    609 Words  | 2 Pages

    Robert Heilbroner, in his essay “Don’t Let Stereotypes Warp Your Judgments,” justifies why the ideas stereotyped aren’t always correct. He goes on saying that stereotypes are “a kind of gossip” which makes us fit more into the life we think we need to live. He states examples of how names, nationalities an...

    Read More

  • Analysis of Social Connection and Dehumanization, by Adam Waytz and Nicholas Epley

    1752 Words  | 4 Pages

    Immediately after reading the introduction to the article, the first word to come to mind was “out-group”. This term is referenced several times in our textbook, and in class. During chapter five (stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination), the term is consistently used. The out-group has a tendency to be subjected to stereotypes, discrimination, and prejudice by the in-group. A stereotype is defined as a belief based on attributing traits to a group of people, in a sense making a generalization about the individuals that consist of a group. Dehumanization could be a consequence of stereotyping. One does not see an individual when one is stereotyping a group of people. Therefore, it is easier to discriminate ag...

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Stereotypes In The Film Horrible Bosses

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this article, I will discuss the relics of these stereotypes and how they are still portrayed, through various social media.

    Read More

  • Stereotyping of Car Club Members

    1806 Words  | 4 Pages

    Everyone has heard the saying don’t judge a book by a cover. Sadly every minute of the day someone gets judged because of assumptions that are not correct. These assumptions overtime eventually lead to stereotypes. A stereotype is an image or idea of a particular type of person. Stereotyping a person is seen in many differents aspects such as race, groups, beliefs, appearance, etc. An individual may ask why people are stereotyped or stereotype. In reality stereotyping helps people categorize the different type of people. It narrows down the options of who one might want to associate with. Stereotyping can have its negatives, it makes people ignore how others really are. It may lead to a person not wanting to hang out with another person because of the stereotype that persons group has. Everyday the general public use cars for the means of transportation. But what about when people use their car for more than transportation, car enthusiasts often modify their cars to their likings. Enthusiasts often join car clubs to share their common interests with other car enthusiasts. Often the people in car clubs have a stereotype of being juvenile, racing a lot, low-life bums, and ghetto when actually most do not have those characteristics.

    Read More

  • Awareness versus Ignorance

    1389 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the history of mankind there have been numerous cases in which people were victims of oppression or hate. Among these cases the sole reasoning behind this oppression or hate being based on the perception of others. History has shown that society is responsible for labeling groups of people, generally these labels are misleading.

    Read More

  • Language, Gender, and Culture in Society

    1684 Words  | 4 Pages

    In many circles of the world, various groups of people distinguish themselves from one another through religion, language, culture, and sometimes gender. People also develop stereotypes about a particular group of people in order to identify them. However, most of the time, these stereotypes hold true for only some members of a group. Sometimes, these stereotypes are just plain misconceptions that do not even apply to the group they claim to be. Stereotypes are placed on people because it is a way to easily identify what type of person or ethnicity an individual is.

    Read More

  • Stereotyping and Racial Profiling

    520 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stereotypes can be defined as sweeping generalizations about members of a certain race, religion, gender, nationality, or other group. They are made everyday in almost every society. We develop stereotypes when we are unable or unwilling to obtain all the information we would need to make fair judgments about people or situations. By stereotyping, we assume that a person or group has certain characteristics. Quite often, we develop these ideas about people who are members of groups with which we have not had firsthand contact. Stereotyping usually leads to unfair results, such as discrimination, racial profiling, and unnecessary violence, all behaviors which need to be stopped.

    Read More

  • Race, Ethnicity, and Hate Crimes

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    A hate crime is a crime, usually involving violence or intimidation committed against others based partially or entirely on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation or membership in another social group.

    Read More

  • Dismantling Hate Summary

    1345 Words  | 3 Pages

    A stereotype is an oversimplified belief about a particular group of people, often based on their race, ethnicity, gender, or other characteristics; a stereotype that is endorsed or expressed can turn out to be prejudice-categorized as a preconceived judgment- or opinion that is not warranted by reason or evidence. Breaking the cycle of hate requires challenging these stereotypes and confronting prejudice. It’s also important to promote understanding and

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Stop Labelling People Who Commit Crimes Criminals

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    Labelling certain groups to distinguish them from the rest of society has been a norm for quite a long time in history. It happens even today but not as much as it used to because it could hurt peoples’ feelings so society only labels a handful of groups such as criminals and people of different religions and ethnicities. In some cases. However, these labels are used to offend or segregate certain people from the rest of society (or in some cases, even both). In “Stop labelling people who commit crimes ‘criminals’’”, an article by Kimberley Brownlee (2017), the author talks about how this labelling exists in the case of criminals and that these labels create hate and problems. Brownlee received her BA in Philosophy from McGill, Masters in

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay: Why Is Stereotyping Are Wrong?

    749 Words  | 2 Pages

    People may say that there is no time or place where holding a stereotype or stereotyping is permissible. I would disagree with that statement by saying yes, some stereotyping is wrong but not all forms are. In this essay I will be delving into the social aspect of stereotyping and touching on how not all forms of social stereotyping are harmful and show how in some cases they are even justifiable.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Informal Fallacy

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    Stereotypes are nothing but those assumptions that have become everyday knowledge. Each and every time you make opinions about people without knowing them, you are stereotyping them. Stereotyping causes people to oversimplify things. Though there are both positive and negative stereotypes, a majority of them are offensive. People generally stereotype out of bias against a particular group of people or religion. Stereotyping becomes a way of conveying their dislike. Of course, stereotyping stems from a commonly held view of a particular group or race. This view may arise from an incident or false assumption, and then maybe used to color the entire community with the same brush. There are various types of stereotypes. However, the most common ones are racial stereotypes and gender stereotypes. Race, nationality, gender and sexual orientation are the main factors of stereotyping. Stereotyping must be avoided at all costs, as it leads to treating groups as a single entity.

    Read More

  • Cultural and Racial Stereotyping

    1434 Words  | 3 Pages

    Most people find stereotypes to be obnoxious, especially when they have to do with sensitive subjects like gender or race. “Stereotyping is a generalization about a group or category of people that can have a powerful influence on how we perceive others and their communication behaviors” (Floyd, 61). Because they underestimate the differences among individuals in a group, stereotyping can lead to inaccurate and offensive perceptions of other people. Although stereotypes are prevalent in almost every society, becoming aware of our perceptions of others, as well as differentiating between both positive and negative stereotypes can help us overcome those stereotypes.

    Read More

  • Stereotypes Of Lying

    1302 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is not hard to look around today and see all of the lying and deceit that humanity pollutes the air with. Most people go around not thinking about lying, and go along with it anyway, because the majority, including our leaders, do it without second guessing. It is common for many people to think of lying exactly how it is on the surface, not telling the truth. Sometimes it is important to second guess the stereotype of lying and begin to realize that lying is even more prevalent in today’s society than most people might imagine. Looking around today with this mindset would help us make more informed political decisions, better decisions on friends, and better decisions on advancing our lives. Our lives are not horrible places, but if

    Read More

  • Arguments Against Stereotyping

    1364 Words  | 3 Pages

    Stereotyping happens in everyday life. “Nobody has the right to define who you are, stay true to yourself because in the end, ones self opinion is the only thing that matters.” I have personally experienced and witnessed stereotyping, I see it everyday and truthfully, it’s sad. Hopefully, what you can get out of this is a little insight of how much it happens everyday an if you are going through it, then you can get a little advice from someone who has been through it. Stereotyping includes school, bullying, and how to handle it.

    Read More

More about Stereotyping in The Way We Lie by Stephanie Ericsson

Open Document