What is it about getting old that makes (some?) people so prejudiced? Is it the outdated intolerance of a passing generation or is it something we will contend with too? I ask because in my more honest moments, I have to admit that I feel it occasionally creeping into my head and that sucks.
I need to determine whether this is an inevitable aspect of aging or something that can be avoided with a judicial application of resistance. Am I an eventual old, grumpy, hateful bigot or am I just dealing with the same demons we all face as our minds slow down and we have something more to lose if society changes.
I tell ya, those damn kids with their spirographs and their iPods messin' up my lawn are really hoarkin' me off. Did I just say that out loud?
So, is "Old" the same this as "Prejudiced" and, if so, is that a bad thing?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Everyone is prejudiced against something, imo. I think the thing I fear the most is that I'll hold the wrong prejudices for the wrong reasons and won't be able to see clearly enough to filter through it.
Perhaps change just becomes so difficult the older we get.
But... I will give some people credit. I attend a church that used to be a very legalistic church and has decided, in recent years, to break the shackles of much of those problems and let more liberty in. The old timers have had an uphill battle in adapting to the changes, but there haven't been any massive church splits or any really loud grumbling. A low murmur, but nothing more.
Not too shabby for a bunch of Baptists. ;-)
Part of it my be that after you have lived through enough fads and crazes and the absolute latest things, you start to see the bigger picture.
Perhaps as you become old (and hopefully wiser) you actually become LESS ego-centric, and so a philosophy of doing this or that crazy thing without really considering the consequences or impacts seems less attractive.
Is it the older guys or the younger guys who get all hot-headed and commit gang violence and drive-bys? Or is the older, reformed banger who opens the community center to try and bring people together?
Maybe what is often perceived as "prejudice" is really more of a "been there, done that, and know it won't work/is bad/dangerous/etc/" kind of thing.
Oh, come on! Now you two are using reason and making sense. That's not fair. ;)
I think you're both on to something here. So where would we place the young guy who hangs back and doesn't get involved in (as much?) awful stuff even though his parents are absent and he's economically disadvantaged. Is he just wiser by luck of the genetic draw or is he just somehow learning from the inevitable nature of pre-judgement earlier than his peers?
Some of us have to hit trouble head on to learn from it and others are able to learn from the mistakes of the people around them. Is this an early version of prejudice or something altogether different?
I think there is a certain element of inherent character in someone like that. I think it's possible for someone to have a bit of built-in conscience, such that they instinctively avoid those negative traits. This is probably kinda rare, thought, and a lot does depend on environment.
I think part of prejudice is just going with what is familiar. Some of it is probably based on personal experience. And there is undoubtedly a strong element of socialization as well.
Prejudice doesn't HAVE to be bad. Say you've got a predjudice against hispanics wearing flannel shirts and red bandanas. because say, you've had a lot of negative experiences with gang bangers. In this case, wouldn't a certain amount of prejudicial thinking actually be self-preservation?
I agree.
As you know, the word prejudice is formed from "pre" and "judgement" which indicates that, in its most neutral form, prejudice is merely a judgement about a (insert your favorite noun here) formed using ideas experienced from your past. I would argue that there's a difference between prejudice and bigotry, but that the word has come to mean something negative because the two are very often fused.
Without previous experience helping us understand the potentially novel, we couldn't have comedy and that would be a shame. I think some of the power of comedy based on stereotypes is that we're temporarily allowed to laugh at things many of us dare not consider or speak out loud, but we know to be a shared understanding (however accurate or otherwise it may be).
These past and potential future experiences are the fertile breeding ground for dreams, hopes, fears, and humor. I would argue that prejudice is a good thing, but like everything we humans take it to an extreme and can use it to hurt each other and ourselves. That's why I tag every post to this blog with the word "forgiveness". It allows people searching for that term to find something associated with everything we discuss.
Excellent observations. You've helped me think this one through and expanded my understanding of the concept. Thank you!
Post a Comment