Which of the following statements are true about stereotypes?
(A) Stereotypes are often applied to ethnic and racial groups.
(B) Stereotypes fix whole groups into single entity.
(C) Stereotypes refuse to recognise the variation across individuals.
(D) Stereotypes are partly colonial constructs.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → (A), (B), (C) and (D)
(A) Stereotypes are often applied to ethnic and racial groups. Correct. Stereotypes are fixed and inflexible characterisations of a group of people, and prejudices are often grounded in them. They are often applied to ethnic and racial groups and to women.
(B) Stereotypes fix whole groups into single entity. Correct. Stereotypes fix whole groups into single, homogenous categories. They treat an entire community as though it were a single person with a single trait, such as ‘lazy’ or ‘cunning’.
(C) Stereotypes refuse to recognise the variation across individuals. Correct. Some individuals may sometimes be lazy or brave, but that is true of individuals in every group, and even then not all the time. Stereotypes refuse to recognise the variation across individuals, contexts and time.
(D) Stereotypes are partly colonial constructs. Correct. In a country such as India, colonised for a long time, many stereotypes are partly colonial creations: some communities were labelled ‘martial races’, others effeminate, cowardly or untrustworthy.
NCERT (2025-26): “Social Inequality … Prejudices are often grounded in stereotypes, fixed and inflexible characterisations of a group of people. Stereotypes are often applied to ethnic and racial groups and to women. In a country such as India, which was colonised for a long time, many of these stereotypes are partly colonial creations. Some communities were characterised as ‘martial races’, some others as effeminate or cowardly, yet others as untrustworthy. In both English and Indian fictional writings we often encounter an entire group of people classified as ‘lazy’ or ‘cunning’. It may indeed be true that some individuals are sometimes lazy or cunning, brave or cowardly. But such a general statement is true of individuals in every group. Even for such individuals, it is not true all the time – the same individual may be both lazy and hardworking at different times. Stereotypes fix whole groups into single, homogenous categories; they refuse to recognise the variation across individuals and across contexts or across time. They treat an entire community as though it were a single person with a single all-encompassing trait or characteristic.…” |