Stereotyping, and its consequences

In English August, the author Upamanyu Chatterjee says something I found very interesting and pertinent. He says that when people meet him, they keep asking him questions, about his family background and about his name, so that in their minds they can form a picture of the person that he is, which is in effect classifying him into one of the many “models” of people they would have met by then. I somehow could relate to this very much, since its a habit I do indulge in once in a while, and am sure many others too do so. When I meet a guy who I come to know is very rich, then I tend to form a picture of a very lavish lifestyle, but in reality that guy maybe very humble or austere. Similarly if I find that a person is a heavy smoker or drinker, then I do not generally have a favourable impression of that person, but then that person may have many interesting facets to his/her character, that I maybe missing out on account of classifying him as not-so-good.

So how exactly does our mind work in such a scenario, albeit in a very subconscious manner? When we meet a new person and in the process of getting to know that person, we come to know about that person’s characteristics. Now on the basis of the characteristics that we get to know, we tend to fit that person into one of the many types or models of people, that are present in our mind. And if the information about the characteristics is insufficient, then this process is put off for a later time!! Ultimately an image or stereotype of that person is formed in the mind, which resides in our mind till some event presents itself to refute that image. If one person with these set of characteristics behaves in a certain manner, then this person is bound to behave in that manner too, that is what our mind thinks.

The flaw in our thought process here is that we discount the fact that every human is almost unique, and classifying is best suited to either inanimate objects, or animals ( to a certain extent ). Just possessing a certain set of characteristics doesn’t define a person’s character, it is much more than that. Yet we indiscriminately tend to stereotype people and personalities.

But stereotyping does have its consequences too. If I have the belief that an alcoholic will not make a good friend, then I may be losing out only on a friend. But if I believe that every act of terrorism is perpetrated by Muslims, and vice-versa, that no Muslim person is trustworthy, then this belief can turn dangerous for social harmony if it is shared by the majority of the population. And if we take a look at society today, this is exactly what has happened. After every bomb blast that takes place, and which has become horrifyingly common, fingers are pointed at Muslims. Now I agree that around the world, all the major acts of terrorism are the handiwork of Islamic militant groups, which is what swings public opinion against them, and hence the stereotyping of Muslims. But if the police look only amongst Muslims as possible suspects, then many innocent Muslims are also caught up in this net, thus polarizing society even further.

I may have veered away from what I set out to write, but this thought had been residing in my mind for so long, so I had to write it all down some day.

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