Instructions: The Stereotype paper
Stereotypes are made up of generalizations that often have some kernel of truth in them but certainly don't apply to all in the group.
This video about why we create stereotypes is very interesting.
For paper #2, choose one of the following topics and write an argument as indicated:
DO NOT WRITE ABOUT STEREOTYPING IN GENERAL OR WRITE ABOUT SEVERAL DIFFERENT STEREOTYPES YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED. CHOOSE ONE SPECIFIC STEREOTYPE, AND INDICATE THAT IN YOUR THESIS.
IF YOU CHOOSE TO USE RESEARCH, NO MORE THAN 15% OF THE PAPER CAN BE RESEARCH MATERIAL, AND YOU MUST HAVE IN-TEXT CITATION AS WELL AS A WORKS CITED SECTION, FOLLOWING MLA RULES.
1. Examine a well known stereotype about a group you belonged to, such as your religion, ethnic group, profession, home town, sex (or sexual preference), age, hair color, and so on.
For example, if you are Asian, you might want to explore the causes for the belief that "All Asians are good in math and science." If you are Black, you might want to write about the belief that "Black people are good in sports."
If you are a teenager, why do people feel that you are irresponsible and impulsive? If you are gay, what are the perceptions that people have that are unfair? Why do these stereotypes persist?
What can be done to change them? This is not the same same a general bias or prejudice.
Your topic has to be a specific thought about a group of people, not merely negativity. Check with me if you aren't sure. Your paper is designed to disprove this stereotype.
More examples of well-known stereotypes that you can disprove, but feel free to explore others:
Blondes are dumb.
Liberals are not patriotic.
Religious people are intolerant.
News outlets are all "fake news."
Athletes are dumb.
Gay people are promiscuous.
People who wear glasses are nerds.
Women can't drive.
Black people are better athletes.
For more stereotype examples. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
2. If you are not originally from the United States, discuss a stereotype from your nationality about people from a certain region, profession, or group of some kind and explore where that belief came from.
European stereotypes
Worldwide stereotypes
LENGTH: Minimum five paragraphs of five sentence minimum each. Word count: 1000-1200.
Number of Pages: 3 Pages
Academic Level: College
Paper Format: MLA