Common group v.s. new group ?

Is there any value for people to belong only to a group or groups with which they have something in common?

             Most of the people agree that humans are better than animals because of their ability to think creatively and logically. Humans are able to spread out the delicate wings of imagination and make the world a better place to live in. However, this magical and wonderful ability loses its power when a certain person is restricted only to a group with which they have something in common. That is why I believe there is not much value for people to belong only to group with similar members.

             To begin with, people often become narrow-sighted and lose the spirit of diversity once they are limited only to a group of similar people. If people spend time only with people who are similar to him or her, distorted thoughts and prejudices start to grow within the minds’ of the people. The prejudice that all other people in the society are going to be just like them will greatly deter people from becoming bigger men. It is because people will suffer from enormous conflicts with others once they step into society and meet new people. Also, people are no longer able to learn from others because they only notice the negative side of new culture and people. This is exactly what happened when the Chosun Dynasty shut its door against the Western culture. At that time, citizens in the Korean Peninsula had no interactions with new groups or societies of any kind. As a result, people in Chosun Dynasty lost their precious chance to develop the nation by accepting novel and advanced Western culture. I believe the reason why we go to universities is not just to learn academics in depth but also to escape from the limited society where there are only similar people. People from all different races, religions, ideas and culture gather together and are allowed to discuss and share ideas fully about many issues. In that process, people learn how to become tolerable and open-minded.

             Furthermore, excessive conflict is inevitable in a group only with similar people. All humans have an innate desire to be recognized by other members of society. Unfortunately, it often becomes very difficult to stand out in a society with only similar people because people are unable to differentiate themselves from others. The only way to receive attention is to greatly surpass others on a certain subject. As a result, members in that restricted group come to see others as competitors and people to overcome. The good spirit of cooperation and co-existence fades away. Only excessive competition and conflict remain in the group. For instance, Korea and Japan were called as ‘Hermit Kingdoms’ because of isolation. Unfortunately, bipartisan conflicts were much more severe compared to other nations in the world. It was common to see tens of people killed in a single day due to the conflict within the royal family.

             Even now, prejudices and biases exist in our society. Violence and bloodshed started from trivial misunderstandings and biases in the Middle East. This catastrophe can be prevented if people learn how to be tolerant towards others. Wonderful things will happen if people escape from their limited society of similar people and embrace the new world where diversity blossoms like a delicate rose.