I think it is
hard but possible to perceive others without judging or categorizing them. I
believe it all depends on the situation
a person is in. For example if you are with a group of friends and another
person shows up with a mutual friend, you are going to keep an open mind and
not think anything about it. You will talk to them and get to know them. There
is no pressure to become very close with this person therefore there is no
reason to really judge them. If you are going on a blind date then the judging starts
from the first encounter. The smell, the way he/she is dressing, where they
suggest to have dinner or anything. This is a person you are hoping to have
some sort of relationship with. Judging would be hard not to do. If someone is
an environment outside of their comfort zone, they are going to be analyzing and
really be categorizing the scene.
Judging and
categorizing will always find a place, I do think people are able to go in with
an open mind and not let their first impression get in the way, or not even
make a first impression at all without have a conversation first.
Your example of a group of friends hanging out and another person shows up with a mutual friend reminds me of a conversation I had with my sister not too long ago. We were talking about how even sometimes when you do not know a person, if your friend doesn’t like them then you will automatically not like them. For example, I met a girl that was really good friends with my friend, but for some reason her and I did not click. It was nothing against her, I guess we just didn’t really see eye to eye. So one day my cousin and I were together and we saw my friend with the girl that I really didn’t get along with. Right off the bat my cousin did not like her, she never spoke to her, it was the first time seeing her in person but she didn’t like her. She said that she was this and she was that, and she looked like this and that, judging her without even knowing her. I let my cousin know that just because I didn’t get along with her, it didn’t mean it was ok for her to be rude and talk about her without even knowing. It’s hard to not judge people when you first meet them, because we as humans sometimes do it without thinking and often we realize that our first impressions of people become the exact opposite of who they really are
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