Don't Judge A Book By Its Cover

Don’t Judge A Book By It’s Cover

“Don’t Judge A Book By Its Cover”, is a common saying and an excellent theme for Disney movies. However, as enlightening as this saying is, it usually refers to judging others based on their appearances. If I had a chance to revise this saying, I would add in that books should not only be judged by their covers, but also by their genre, length, author, title, publisher, or condition. People too, are judged by many of the same aspects that books are. People-- unlike books-- can be offended by these assumptions, and do not like to be misread by their looks or actions. Actions may speak louder than words, but actions can be misread just as loudly as words can.
Categorizing people and placing them in stereotypes based on first impressions and assumptions is something everyone does—from casting directors and writers, picking stereotypical characters, to students in high school judging on clothes, unpopular interests, and anything out of the ordinary done. High school may even be the origin of this categorizing. This is the time in a teenager’s life when he or she desperately wants to fit in and be placed in a certain group. This is the time teens are most insecure, and just starting to figure out who they really are. Therefore, when other people tell them what they think they are, we may believe their judgment and not take the time to actually figure out for ourselves if it is true.
Some people may not really be affected by these judgments, but it was my absolute pet peeve in high school. Everyone had to be classified, to be placed in a special little category, no exceptions. Students were judged by how they dressed, by what classes and activities they selected, and by how they acted. Yes, these are what usually determine a person, to a certain degree. It doesn't completely narrow down the entire identity and soul of that person. There are many layers to a person. Until all of these layers are seen and understood, assumptions about a person should not be made. Of course, we can’t keep people from being judgmental. Everyone is always going to draw conclusions on others based on what they see and how they perceive it. But, maybe if we weren’t so quick to judge someone, we’d see that they are not at all what they seem.
I was sick of being put under a microscope and categorized; I imagined life at another, larger high school. I figured that being so judgmental was just something common in smaller schools, because everyone has always known each other and held the same idea of someone now as when they first met them. (There were only about 20 students in each grade, and an average of only about 3 new students a year. So, everyone thought that they knew each other, yet really, they barely knew their peers at all.) Meeting new people would give me the opportunity to redo my image and be understood for whom I really was. I assumed that people from any other school but my own would not judge or determine my identity. In other words, I figured the grass would always be greener on the other side-- little did I know that I was in for a big surprise.
In the middle of my junior year in high school, my parents presented me with the option of moving down to California with them—because my dad received a new job offer. Moving down there wasn’t mandatory for my dad’s work, but the option was just what I had been hoping for. I immediately accepted their proposal, without even thinking about reasons to remain in my home state of North Dakota. I had wanted this opportunity for a long time, and now that I’d finally got the chance, I did not intend on throwing it all away to see if things would improve.
The future was looking brighter about a month later, when I officially transferred into my new, and I might say, absolutely enormous high school. Sure, I had plenty of butterflies in my stomach, but I couldn’t help but walk with a confident stride when I entered into the principal’s office to enroll. Seeing such a large number of new faces walking around everywhere boosted this confidence even more. These people, I thought, were sure to be the next best thing for me. With so many people, many of them would not even acknowledge me, since I’d just be one of many new kids enrolling in their school.
While at my old, small, rural school, a new person was instantly set aside as either an outsider, or put up on a throne as the most popular person in the whole school. It all depends on how others judged and critiqued the new addition. Those first impressions weren’t only the most lasting, they’re branded on people forever as who they are. This time around, I thought, I’m deciding what category I’ll belong in, I’ll set up a new mold for myself, and be depicted as what I wanted to be thought of as, and who I truly was. People would see me as I saw myself, and there would be no inaccurate misunderstandings and judgments. This was my time to reform myself.
Estimating about 40 students just in my first class, I then realized how much different this high school was from my old one. The sustained awkward silence that the students carried with them from class to class was also a surprise. Of course, these people have not known each other their whole lives-- as the kids at my other school had-- they’re not comfortable with expressing themselves among their many classmates. Maybe that’s why I’ve come out of my small school so confident, and not afraid to speak my mind. It’s funny how much confidence means when entering an entirely new situation, like starting at a completely different school without knowing anyone. As long as I think and act like I’m something (even though I may not be), everyone else actually believes that I am. Confidence is the key to dominant power and success. No one can misjudge someone so self-assured, right? I’ve noted the effects of confidence, and now I can finally try it out when put into a new, exciting place with people whom I’ve never met before!
(One month later)
As school went on, I felt very satisfied with my attitude and approach toward everything. I was sure that to the other students, I must have seemed to be a very interesting person. I figured I’d draw more people to me (This isn’t just in a romantic situation either) because of my contagious cheerfulness and everlasting confidence. I thought that I’d certainly found my niche here in a perfect, utopian world of high school culture. After all, I was doing extremely well in school, getting along with most of my peers, and having an overall fun time with all my activities. I truly believed that everyone actually respected, admired, and liked me. Perhaps they did like me, but they certainly didn’t respect me.
I’m still placed in a special little category, but it’s a completely new classification than the opinion at my former school. In fact, it’s the complete opposite of what I used to be thought of, and it’s all because of that confidence I was also discussing earlier. See, overconfidence can make people see others in the worst way, it can make people think of you as a prissy, flirtatious coquette--or to put it less mildly-- a trashy, dirty little slut. See, along with the many other benefits of confidence, eligible boys absolutely cling to confident, self-assured girls; this is simply because they want an independent girlfriend with her own exciting, life so that she’ll stay out of his. Boys don’t like interference and instability as a packaged deal with a girlfriend, (well, certain types of boys do, but we’re not going there right now). Anyway, so more boys have been attracted to me at this new school simply because of my new confident, carefree approach to life. Girls, however, didn’t see me the way that the boys saw me. They saw me as just another player in the game of love, trying to get a Royal Flush before the end of the semester. Now I can see how my confidence could be mistaken for vanity, but honestly, placing me in the “slut category” is going way too far. I’m about as from “slut” as anyone can get; I cannot even master the art of flirting; this confidence surge I’ve taken on is even out of the ordinary for me! But, like I’ve said time and time again, people all perceive one another differently and once one person decides what kind of person someone else is, the person judged cannot ever fully redeem himherself. Once again, I’ve been misunderstood, and branded a title that I don’t deserve.
No matter where someone goes or how they act, being judged cannot be avoided. It’s not an exclusive part of my old school’s high school life; it’s a part of every high school’s culture. The best thing to do is to accept the judgments and misunderstandings assumed about us, go on with our lives, and not obsess so much about what everyone else thinks—but concern ourselves with what we think of ourselves. Obtaining confidence—even though others may view it as something else—is the first step in this process. As long as we understand ourselves, we can easily just brush off and not concern ourselves with other people’s judgments. When we’re comfortable with who we are; we don’t care what people think of us. The main reason stereotypical issues bother me so much may simply be my lack of confidence in myself. Another reason judgments irritate us so much be even be that we know that what is being said about us is, indeed true, and we just cannot admit it to ourselves. The truth does hurt, especially if it hits and again and again.
“Do to others, what you would have them do to you”--yet another saying to establish my final point in the stereotype problem. If we don’t want to be judged, the simple solution is to not judge other people. If you’re good to mama, mama’s good to you, you put in for mamma she’ll put out for you. Don’t to be so quick to judge a book by its cover, after all, if we’ve never read the book and seen all the depth written in every page, how can we write an accurate book report?