In the English language, black sheep is an idiom used to describe an odd or disreputable member of a group, especially within a family. The term stems from the genetic effect in sheep whereby a recessive gene occasionally manifests in the birth of a sheep with black rather than white coloring; these sheep stand out in the flock.
The term has typically been given negative implications, implying waywardness. It derived from the atypical and unwanted presence of other black individuals in flocks of white sheep.
In psychology, the black sheep effect refers to the tendency of group members to judge likeable ingroup members more positively and deviant ingroup member more negatively than comparable outgroup members.
Read more about Black Sheep: Origin, Idiomatic Usage, In Psychology
Famous quotes containing the words black and/or sheep:
“Swing low swing low sweet sweet chariot.
Nothing but a plain black boy.”
—Gwendolyn Brooks (b. 1917)
“We are sheep in a herd of sheep,
but Clytemnestra, Electra and Death
are burnt like star-names in the sky.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)