Why do people think Labeling is bad?

Question

No matter what group you are in, and everyone is a part of a group, even if you are independent of a group, you are still in a group, a family, a club, a subculture, a religion, ect.. I just don't understand why it so bad to say you are for ex. a christian, if you are christian. Why should you be offended by it? if it is true? I know there is that associations which you rather not be associated with but why is labeling things as they are so offensive to some people? I am full of questions

Answer 1

Labeling is fine for use in organization of groups, it is not fine for use in restricting the members of those groups. Labels are not okay for things such as stereotyping, but they are okay for things such as census.

Answer 2

nicely, labels merely provide a widespread idea do not they, yet will be completely incorrect in conserving with someone's' POV. you've heard human beings call Blink 182 punk, and MCR metallic. So those labels do not truly artwork. And labels like classic rock are truly blurry considering some human beings evaluate 80's classic rock (if so, i'm not a classic rocker....) they could be somewhat effective in that they help you aspect to a widespread route, yet they're ineffective once you're conversing about certain bands, like how do you actually label purple Floyd or Simon and Garfunkel? They kinnda go beyond genres do not they? even if the "it really is solid" label would not artwork both reason some human beings do imagine that MCR is acually solid. So perhaps i'm contained in the "it really is nice" catagory.

Answer 3

When people say "labeling is bad," you will often find, if you talk to them, that what they mean is not so much that labeling is *bad*, but that refusing to be able to see past a label, or recognize exceptions is bad. Now, of course, their are some labels that are as inaccurate as they are harmful and therefore bad (e.x. "All puerto ricans steal" or "Black people are lazy"). These are based on fear and ignorance. However, to build on your example of a religious label, such a label could indeed be very useful; if I know I'm giving a speech in front of 1,000 Mormons, I'll be much better advised to clean up my act a bit. However, if when dealing with a friendly and laid back Mormon I am unable to befriend him or talk to him earnestly because I feel that because he is Mormon he must be prudish, would be where most people would draw objections to a label.

Answer 4

People think labeling is bad because usually, the labels that are given to them are offensive. Labeling CAN be bad, but bestowing nice labels to different people such as "That person's a giver, not a receiver" or "That woman is a helper" can often bring up a person's spirit.

Answer 5

Depends on the "label." I wouldn't mind being "labeled" as an American, a "geezer" (I'm 63) or a teacher.
But so many "labels" are simply stereotypes that group people together under a false description and totally ignore individual differences.

Answer 6

Very often labels oversimplify the continuum of behaviors/ways/etc and limits people's further thinking of the labelled person as an individual. You presume to label things "as they are" but aren't you labelling them as you presume them to be?
I object to being labelled because I do not conform to the stereotypes inherent in most groups; I am myself foremost, above all else.

Answer 7

As soon as you attribute yourself or another to a group, the attributes of that group follow. Whether pejorative or not.. it subsumes and totalizes the individual in his/her particualrity and idiosyncracy.

The one's labeling gain power over the labeled. As do historians and various contextualizers who define the meaning to the category.

Answer 8

It depends, labeling people in itself is a normal process of categorization. Its prejudging people that is bad. When you assume that all people of the same category are the same and act the same is when you make a mistake.

Answer 9

People think that labeling is bad because of the general stereotyping it causes. If you labal someone as "goth" people will call them satanic; if you label them "emo" people will call them cutters. Think of how YOU would feel if that happened to you.

Answer 10

because people don't want to be defined by one facet of their being. for example, just because your a jew doesn't mean that you also don't love star wars. people have lots of different aspects to their personality, and they don't want to be limited by the boundries created by labels.