“Don’t judge a book by its cover” I am sure everyone has heard that quote multiple times. Some people might follow that saying and read the back of a book before actually deciding if they like the plot of the book or not. Others, however; ignore the saying and pick a book based on the pictures shown on the front or back cover, unfortunately sometimes in the middle of the book they realize the book is bad and give up on the book. This cliché can apply to more than just books. Looking at something new, the first tendency for people is to decide if they like it or hate it right away. Judging something or someone before really getting to know what it is all about, is not a good idea because it can take away from a good learning experience. When people assume something is bad and they want to avoid it, they might be missing out on a beneficial experience. Sometimes what everyone thinks is a good idea might be completely horrible. First impressions are different from judging something. A first impression is more of the opinion you have after the first encounter with whatever the new thing is, but it does not stop you from doing it again. First impressions last a lifetime, judgments can change.
High school is one of the biggest places for judgments. Some people do not care what other people think, while others care too much about what other people think, and how they will be judged. Most teenagers will judge everyone intentionally, and unintentionally in their heads, they will say or think things such as; “Is he/she really wearing that?”, “oh since he/she is wearing that he/or she is weird”. They make these judgments without even knowing who the person their thinking/ talking about really is. High school kids not only judge each other based on the clothing they wear, but also about the gossip they have heard about one another and by things they do.

Another way or place judgments are made are about trying new foods. Going to a new restaurant can be an exciting new experience. Some people cannot wait to try something new but the names of some food might throw them off or scare them a bit. If the name has something to do with an animal or blood, they might assume the food itself will be disgusting. Staring at the steaming plate of food coming toward you, it might look burnt or under cooked or just strange to you in general. Some people might be discouraged about trying this new recipe. I remember a time when my family went out to dinner and my younger cousin had a hard time picking what he wanted to eat. He kept saying everything on the menu sounded “gross”. After thinking about it, he finally decided on food that sounded “normal” to him. When the food finally arrived at the table, he noticed that most of the food actually looked appetizing to him, and he tried some from his parents. In the end he barely touched his own food and ended up eating the food he thought sounded “disgusting”.

For a third and final example people judge movies before they know what they are about. They might hear a title just like a book and assume it sounds stupid or boring without knowing what it is about. After finding out your favorite actor or actress is in a movie you might assume the movie will be good, not considering the genre of the movie. Or on the contrary an actress or actor that you hate is in a movie and you assume the movie will be horrible, even if it is your favorite genre. My friend choses the movie she wants to watch based on the rating, “If it is rated PG 13 it must be lame.” One of the quotes I hear her use multiple times. She like a lot of other people do not even read the description of the movie to find out the plot.

In conclusion judgments are always made. Anything and anyone can be judged or make judgments. But the real lesson people have to learn is, to follow the cliché saying and truly not judge anything by its appearance. Things or people can turn out to be really great once they are given a real chance. They also might turn out to be not so great, but it is the experience that matters, and the experience that should create someone’s judgment of whatever the things is; good or bad.