Is it possible to perceive others without in some way judging or categorizing them? Is so, how? If not, how can we make judgments we do make more fair?
I didnt know what side i was going to answer since people are often hard to read depending on the kind of lives we live. I am a White guy from California living in Argentina until about three weeks before the end of this semester. People in Argentina are so friendly to strangers and often will carry a random conversation if you are sitting or standing next to them. Judging someone is something that we all do naturally. Some judge people to their race or cultural background like if someone was from a redneck town or from the ghetto. Many ways to judge people but some people like have learned through experiences to embrace my thoughts about judging people. When I see someone I decide if they are approachable, harmless and friendly regardless of where they are from or what race they are. Has anyone seen Blood Diamond with Leonardo Di Caprio? When he lives in Africa he acts just like an African citizen speaking the say they do acting just like them not better or much different. Relating oneself to your surroundings is the best way to change judgments and change the social barriors that we face and battle in our present day.
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Hello DrewSJSU,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that we make judgements about others to help us better figure out our surroundings and if we are safe in interacting with others. We may not always be correct in judging another, but if we didn't make these judgements how else would we be aware of who and what is around us. If we see a person that does not maintain their appearance, maybe they have a long beard and dirty clothes, then most of us would assess that this is a homeless person or someone to stay away from. We may even choose to ignore them or keep our distance, but you can't always judge a book by its cover. The man could have just got off of work and needs a haircut who knows. I think we all could stand to be alittle less judgemental, and like you said that would help to change social barriers.
Hello DrewSJSU! Based on your current cultural experiences, do you think the people in Argentina judge as we do in America? Do they judge at all? If so, what type of things do they take into consideration to make their judgments versus what we take into consideration in American? :)
ReplyDeleteRelating oneself to your surroundings is the best way to change judgments and change the social barriors that we face and battle in our present day
ReplyDeleteYoure above statement is a great way to change judgement. I think the initial perception of a person is almost inevitable however, whether or not you choose to change how you see someone will change if you "relate yourself to your surroundings".
I think an important thing to note relating to your suggestion is that everyone needs to have a shared sense of what common courtesy is when dealing with people. Everyone says "Not everyone is the same" yet we tend to forget when we are prejudging.