If I
am going to stay true to my four-paragraph rule for this Blogspot, then I will
be generalizing most of the time because the number of paragraphs it would take
to detail the options and differences in any one topic is untenable in this
format. I'm not apologizing for generalizing, just stating the reality. The way
I treat a given topic may stimulate a disagreement, or a counterpoint, and although
my blogs are not intentionally polemic, they may at times ruffle someone's
feathers. If those feathers be yours, please feel free to comment.
Our lexicon
is rife with generalizations. How often have you heard, or maybe said,
"They are all like that." This is probably the most dangerous
expression every mouthed because it is a lead-in to stereotyping, racial
profiling, and the rationale used to limit the members of one group from having
the opportunities offered to another at worst, or at the least, make a person
the brunt of jokes or slurs. If you are a young blond woman, or of Polish
heritage, or black, or Hispanic, you know what I mean. Repeat a negative
generalization to a child often enough and you lay the groundwork for a
life-long prejudice with no basis in fact.
During
my tenure as a college professor, I taught twenty-three different courses all
related to some aspect of human behavior—human development from the womb to the
tomb, marriage and family, human sexuality, human relations in the workplace; I
won't bore you with the whole list. I know that I told every section of every
course I taught that, "There are always exceptions to every rule of human
behavior," at least once and probably more often when faced with a disagreement
about a statement I made that sounded like, but was not intended to be, a generalization.
This
truth is not a divine revelation, it is not the result of the profound thinking
of an erudite individual, it is the result of observation and common sense. Not
all blonds are intellectual lightweights, or blacks lazy, or poor people shiftless—ad
nauseum. Each one of us possesses unique characteristics that make us different
in some way from every other member of our species. These differences add
variety to and enrich human existence, and they should be cultivated and
cherished.
Look
for me on FaceBook and visit my website http://www.bfoswaldauthor.com.
Very profound.
ReplyDelete