**I need to cut about 25 more words from this response, so if anyone can give me some advice as to how to shorten the essay or revise the response in general it would be greatly appreciated.**
Please respond to one of the following quotations in an essay of not more than 300 words. It is not necessary to research, read, or refer to the texts from which these quotations are taken; we are looking for original, personal responses to these short excerpts. Remember that your essay should be personal in nature and not simply an argumentative essay.
"Stereotyped beliefs have the power to become self-fulfilling prophecies for behavior."
Elizabeth Aries, Professor of Psychology, Amherst College. From her book Men and Women in Interaction, Reconsidering the Difference.
Everyone always talks about how stereotypes lead to two types of actions: either the individual complies with the stereotype in order to assume a comfortable and safe position or he/she deliberately goes against the stereotype in order to be unique and different.
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I like your response. No unnecessarily fancy phrases, very straightforward. You answer the question. Here's a shortened version!
Generally, stereotypes lead to two types of actions: either the individual complies with the stereotype in order to assume a comfortable and safe position or he/she deliberately goes against the stereotype in order to be unique. In each case, the action is being qualified by the stereotype itself, thus the stereotype truly does wield the "power" to become a "self-fulfilling" prophecy for behavior.
There is a third course of action, however: when the individual acts on his own accord despite the existence of the stereotype. And that's me.
There are two "stereotypes" that have hovered over my life from a young age: one is the notion that "Indians are terrible athletes" and the other is the idea that "Indian students are all intelligent and geeky." The former I defy and the latter I fit. However, I have never consciously decided to be an athlete in an attempt to fight the stereotype or be studious because that's what Indians are supposed to be: it was just me being me.
I became an avid athlete because baseball was my first real exposure to American culture, and over the years that innate connection grew like wildfire to a point where playing sports became a devout passion. My academic success is rooted partly from a desire to make my parents proud and partly from my own natural intellectual curiosity. In both cases, it was not the stereotypes that wielded the power for my behavior, it was me. Stereotypes played no role whatsoever in my actions; they were just there.
Think of it this way; doesn't that popular phrase of thinking "outside-the-box" still imply that one's behavior is determined by what's in the box? Instead, maybe for the individual doing the action, that box doesn't exist. That is how I live my life.
297 words!
Thank you so much! That is what I was aiming for; I feel like a lot of people are going to try and impress with some amazing life story about how they attacked stereotypes, so I just wanted to keep it simple but still meaningful and thoughtful. I took some of your edits and made my own revision. Please let me know what you think.
Everyone always talks about stereotypes leading to two types of actions: either the individual complies with the stereotype in order to assume a comfortable and safe position or he/she deliberately goes against the stereotype in order to be unique and different. In each case, the action is being qualified by the stereotype itself, thus the stereotype truly does wield the "power" to become a "self-fulfilling" prophecy for behavior. There is a third course of action, however, that I feel often gets overlooked for its simplicity: when the individual acts on his/her own accord, despite the existence of the stereotype.
For example, there are two "stereotypes" that have hovered over my life. One is the notion that "Indians are terrible athletes" and the other is the idea that "Indian students are all intelligent nerds." The former, I defy, and the latter, I fit. Still, I have never consciously decided to be an athlete in an attempt to fight the stereotype or be studious because that's what Indians are supposed to be: it was just me being me.
I became an avid athlete because baseball was my first real exposure to American culture, and that initial connection grew like wildfire to the point where sports became a devout passion. My academic success is rooted partly from a desire to make my parents proud and partly from my own intellectual curiosity. In both cases, stereotypes did not wield the power to affect my behavior: I did.
Think of it this way: doesn't that popular phrase of thinking "outside-the-box" still imply that one's behavior is determined by what's in the box? For me, that box doesn't exist. I am an athlete and a scholar because that is who I am, not because that's what society limits me to be.
