Stereotyping in The Way We Lie by Stephanie Ericsson Essay

In the essay The Way We Lie, Stephanie Ericsson writes that â€Å"All the ‘isms’-racism, sexism, ageism, et al.-are founded on and fueled by the stereotype and the clichà ©, 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†¦show more content†¦In her essay, Stephanie Ericsson makes the point that perhaps stereotyping is used as a sort of â€Å"short hand† in our society. Stereotyping has become something that we have found to be a vital part of our communication due to our need for information in the smallest possible amount of time. It is much easier for an individual to create a stereotype for another individual than it is to actually learn what they are like. You could spend one second looking at any individual walking down the road and create a stereotype on who they are, and what they are about. It takes real time and patience to actually look at an individual, talk to them, learn who they really are, and discover what they are really about. Patience is not a crucial part of judging others in our society mostly due to the popular usage of stereotypes. Also, because of our fast paced lives we have become immune to using patience to learn about the characteristics of others. Stereotyping cannot only cause less of a need to get to know others, but can also become rather dangerous. Sometimes individuals pass stereotypes on certain people or groups that initiate anger and hate due to the origin of the stereotype. For example, the Ku Klux Klan is an organization that has been around for decades. This particular organization had a developed stereotype against black Americans that resulted in the death of hundreds of African Americans beginning in the early 1800’s. Though the Ku Klux KlanShow MoreRelatedThe Ways We Lie By Stephanie Ericsson969 Words   |  4 PagesIs It In Our Nature To Lie? In Stephanie Ericsson’s essay, â€Å"The Ways We Lie†, she discusses the different circumstances in which people lie and describes the types of lies that are commonly used. The author argues that some lies aren’t very severe, and often times are necessary, whereas others can prove to be harmful in the long run and can exact harsh consequences. ( 315 ) Ericsson uses examples in which these lies are presented such as with business acquaintances, politicians or friends and even