People Watching Discussion Assignment
April 29, 2015
As I began watching people walk from class to class on 13th today, I noticed an older white man sitting in the shade with his dog across from the president’s building. I could tell he was an older man because he had gray hair underneath his hat. He wore round glasses, a button up shirt, khakis and a book bag across his chest. He had his arm wrapped around his dog and would sometimes brush the dog’s back with his hand as he watched people walk in front of him. I think that he finds the value of companionship very important. He would sometimes talk with people as they walked by when they commented on his dog. I think that he may have been a professor because he dressed well and he had a book bag that would suggest that he was carrying papers and such. I think that this assumption comes from my experience of taking classes with professors that look and dress like him. Maybe he lives close by so he decided to talk his dog for a walk before he went to class.
A white female was sitting on a bench nearby with her feet up and computer on lap. She looked about 20 or so, which I assume because she looked about my age, maybe a year or two younger. I think that she was a student because she seemed to be working on homework and was taking a break in between her classes like I was doing. She seemed very focused in what she was doing because she hardly ever looked up, which may be because she values how well she does in school. She wore black leggings, white shoes, a gray shirt and red cardigan. She had blonde hair that was pulled into a ponytail with a couple pieces falling into her face as she hunched over her computer screen. She wore a necklace, but no rings and had double ear piercings. I think that she may be a sorority based on my biases of what sorority girls wear, although I did not she an letters for a sorority. I guess that shows that I seem to have a stereotype of what I think sorority girls dress and look like that may not be fully true.
Another white female was in the AAA library on one of the computers who also seemed to be a student and again about the same age as me. I assume that she is either an architecture or interior architecture student because that is the major most people in this particular library are studying. She has blonde curly hair that is a little less than shoulder length. She wears a olive green shirt and has a bunch of rings on and a watch that make her seem artsy. She uses a recycled bread bag as a bag to carry her electronic cords in, which makes me think that she values the environment. She had headphones in while she was working on the computer so she seemed to isolate herself from anyone wanting to talk to her. I seem to always think that people who have headphones in do not want to be bothered.
One Response to “People Watching Discussion Assignment”
May 1st, 2015 at 7:47 pm
I found it interesting that you associated that girl on her computer as a sorority girl. I also have a specific idea of what I assume most fraternity/sorority students dress like. When I don’t see any Greek letters my assumptions become more vague, however. Also something worth mentioning is your description of the man with his dog. Just by reading your description of him, the hair, the book bag, I would have also associated him as a professor or some other affiliate of the university. I bring this up because I think it is a good example of how stereotypes and assumptions can be similar across any number of different people.