Stereotypes

     When one thinks of stereotypes, a million thoughts can rush into their mind. They know exactly what it means and probably have a variety of stereotypes that they have heard of throughout their lives. These stereotypes can include from "jocks are dumb" or "the smart people are nerds". Stereotypes are a way that classify and label people into different classifications. Though, most of the time, these classifications are not even close to describing the person for who they really are. Along these lines, the question, "What factors contribute to such prejudice and how?" can help people see what really is the reason for stereotyping and how to stop it. Stereotyping can come from many factors, such as media or society. The media plays a big role in almost everyone's lives. While society can influence lives as well, the media plays a bigger role in the cause for stereotyping. The media has the power of making people think differently or having them act in a way they have not before. It has the power of making people think it is okay for them to do such things, such as hitting someone or insulting a parent. Not only does it implant such actions into people's brains, but it also creates judgmental and stereotypical images for people to catch onto. When people see these stereotypes from the television or hear them on the radio, they begin to think everyone else is actually that way; they begin to think of a culture or race differently and have a different view point on a person when they do not know a fact about them. These stereotypes created from the media, make it seem acceptable to laugh at, humiliate, or disrespect a stranger. With that said,  the question, "Is it possible to grow to adulthood without harboring at least some prejudice toward certain groups?" comes into mind. From a young age, children all over the world are being affected by media. They begin to catch onto the things that are said on the television or radio, and act the same way or say the same things they see or hear. This continues onto their adulthood and throughout their lives. It may not seem possible to stop stereotyping people or easily judging them by first glance, but by having children not be surrounded by the media so much, can help subdue or control stereotyping in the near  future.