We are all multifaceted. Unless you are a Disney villain, there's probably a part of your heart that still feels. There's also the past to be considered. There's a saying in my country: "La mula no era arisca... la hicieron a palos." This roughly translates to the mule was unfriendly because in the past it had been beaten. It's not always the case and even if it is, it's our responsibility as adults to come to terms with the past and not perpetuate violence cycles, but it does add nuance to most bullies.
True, it is too easy to paint up a stereotype. And then, still, as you say, even if that person isn't as one-dimensional as we would like to portray him, his behavior may still be too bad to be accepted.
I do think, though, that we could all win by trying to understand others from other angles, next to the one we are directly exposed to. That old idea of trying to imagine the other person with a cooking pot on his head, or wearing a clowns nose, sometimes helps to do that.
Good point about the mule, as there is often a reason for things. It may or may not help us to understand what it is, and it can also be many things working together, but trying is always a good first step for anything.
We are all multifaceted. Unless you are a Disney villain, there's probably a part of your heart that still feels. There's also the past to be considered. There's a saying in my country: "La mula no era arisca... la hicieron a palos." This roughly translates to the mule was unfriendly because in the past it had been beaten. It's not always the case and even if it is, it's our responsibility as adults to come to terms with the past and not perpetuate violence cycles, but it does add nuance to most bullies.
True, it is too easy to paint up a stereotype. And then, still, as you say, even if that person isn't as one-dimensional as we would like to portray him, his behavior may still be too bad to be accepted.
I do think, though, that we could all win by trying to understand others from other angles, next to the one we are directly exposed to. That old idea of trying to imagine the other person with a cooking pot on his head, or wearing a clowns nose, sometimes helps to do that.
Good point about the mule, as there is often a reason for things. It may or may not help us to understand what it is, and it can also be many things working together, but trying is always a good first step for anything.