The Sneetches all live together on the beach, but they don’t all have the same social circles. Some of the Sneetches have stars on their bellies, and all the Sneetches agree this makes them a higher class of Sneetch. The starred Sneetches have private parties to which the other Sneetches are not invited.
One day something changes; the Sneetches can pay to have stars added to or removed from their bellies. Mr. McBean is here with his marvelous machines. Those who used to have plain bellies now have stars, so the star-bellies have theirs removed. And the new star-bellies have theirs removed. And the new plain-bellies add them back.
With the ability to choose belly adornment, the Sneetches rapidly devolve into conveyor belt lines. Stars are removed and added and removed until no one has any idea who started out with belly décor. It’s hard to know who to include and who to exclude without this clear distinction. The Sneetches apparently didn’t know each others’ names or faces. The only distinguishing feature was the star. Admittedly, the Sneetches all look similar, but humans probably look similar to Sneetches, too. Why did they never look past the stars and into faces and eyes?
Mr. McBean is convinced that the Sneetches cannot learn another way of socializing. He takes advantage of their gullibility, certain that the stereotype of unteachable Sneetches is true. And it is true for a while. Mr. McBean makes all the money there is on the Sneetch beach, and leaves with a chuckle, thinking the Sneetches will stay in their muddle.
Luckily, the Sneetches rise above the stereotype and their own biases and exclusionary social system. They learn that decorated bellies don’t really make a Sneetch cooler or smarter or better. All the Sneetches are invited to beach parties, and games are open to all. One hopes the Sneetches eventually learn to look into faces and eyes, to learn names and personalities, and see each other as individuals, regardless of stars.
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