Behind the Title

I’ve always found it interesting that the title of “mean girl” is typically applied to women, or teenage females who posses those certain qualities that make them considered “mean”, while their actual ages are far from classifying them as “girls”. The term girl diminishes a sense of authority and power, seeing as a girl is younger, less mature, and childish.

Women that are very distinguished in their fields but manage to gain the “bitch” status, and thus acquire the title of mean girl are lowered in status when the word “girl” is attached. Why is the word “girl” so often used even when the references that are made do not necessarily reflect young females?

The attitude of any “mean girl” is clearly lacking in maturity, as the “girl” is generally pompous and arrogant and apathetic towards the feelings of others. Therefore, aside from simply being seen as mean or malicious, a mean girl is also seen in a childlike light because of her behavior.

Grown women like Naomi Campbell and Janice Dickinson have certainly gained reputations for their comments and behavior that are often out of line, but by calling them mean girls, whatever they have accomplished thus far seems almost trivial as they seem less respectable. Therefore, identifying someone as a “mean girl” at all exposes them as a person of lesser character in all aspects.

Janice Dickinson

Janice Dickinson reappeared in the eye of pop culture when she, and her cynical, overwhelming presence joined Tyra Banks on America’s Next Top Model  after also being on VH1’s “The Surreal Life”. Dickinson burst into the world of modeling at the tender age of 14, a completely new look at that time, and by 19 had conquered the world of modeling as she redefined exactly what it means to be a “diva”. As Dickinson constantly says on her show, The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency, and as she frequently told the models on ANTM, she had no easy time making it to the level of success that she did.

Priding herself on the claim that she is “the world’s FIRST supermodel”, Janice was never one to hold her tongue or show in restraint in her opinions towards the models on ANTM. Janice was known for being harsh and unrelenting, but its easy to say that her behavior and attitude towards the aspiring models was simply degrading and far from uplifting. Tyra Banks has had just a much of a challenge being a “big girl” in the modeling world, yet on the same show (ANTM) has a completely different personality and outlook. While she may share similar views towards some of the models, the way in which these are presented is done in a much kinder manner.

How Mean Are YOU?! Quiz Yourself!

This is a fun little quiz I found to gauge whether or not you’re a mean girl! Try it out and see where you fall!

 

Naomi Campbell: Super Mean Supermodel

Last March Naomi Campbell threw her cell phone, her Blackberry that is, at her assistant. Why?? Over a pair of jeans that her assistant, Ana Scolavino, had supposedly stolen from her. Is it really necessary for someone as glamorous, revered, and fabulous in the world of models to carry on like this?? Naomi admitted in court that she had thrown the phone, and would accept her demeaning, tragic sentence of community service. Naomi got off incredibly easily seeing as such behavior performed by anyone else would generally be classified as a a second degree felony assault In additon to her five day community service stint, Naomi had to endure a two day anger management program and pay for Scolavino’s medical treatment. This is also Naomi’s ninth alleged assualt in eight years! It is no secret that Naomi makes well beyond a six-figure salary, yet she had the nerve to apparently claim that the relatively small bail amount bestowed upon her was an insult.
Naomi has been accused of the following:

The Wicked Witch: The Mean Girl of the West

The Wicked Witch of the West is perhaps one of the oldest, most infamous mean girls to date; but as the Broadway musical Wicked tells, she had a quite a path that led her to her throne as the Queen of Mean. Like most mean girls, there is an extensive amount of drama, tragedy, heartbreak or SOMETHING that leads a girl to have such a cold, hardened attitude towards everyone else despite her exalted view of herself in relation to “everyone else”. While Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of West’s name given at birth, according to Wicked, may not have had the true “popularity” as does the typical mean girl, she certainly was revered and held an authority, even if it wasn’t in the most positive light. Wicked the Musical does a simply beautiful job in portraying the formation of a “mean girl”.

Femininity Redefined

“Somewhere along the line, we seem to have replaced sweetness with tartness in our definition of femininity”- Ariel Levy, Allure Magazine April 2007

When did this evolution begin to take place?? While it seems impossible to decide on a true definition of what it means to be “feminine”, it is evident that today’s definition is far from that of our grandparents and some of our parents definitions. I remember a few years ago my mother gave me a book she received from my grandmother on her 12th birthday. This book was old-fashion in its approach to the idea of femininity. It was made to teach pre-teens and teenage girls how to carry themselves as respectable young woman and how to behave in a manner that is socially acceptable. I had quite a laugh reading all of the ideals it listed that are found in “the perfect young woman.” The characteristics for being “perfectly feminine” were amusing seeing as though the woman being described was often passive and weak. Some of the suggestions given were:
1. To be feminine, a young lady should always laugh at a male counterparts joke, but must laugh quietly and graciously, covering her mouth with the tips of three fingers.
2. A girl should only wear slacks when participating in physically demanding activities like gardening.
Femininity was almost solely based on how you presented yourself in front of others, and, consiquently affected the way in which you were perceived. A truly feminine woman was never harsh in demeanor and carefully shared her thoughts so they did not seem overly aggressive. A woman could be smart, but could not display her intelligence so that it became intimidating, all while exhuding poise, eloquence, and grace. I wonder how this manual would have been different in describing “the perfect gentleman.”

Now, it is very apparant that femininity has drastically been redifined by women and clearly surpasses the ideals that were valued fifty years ago. We live in a society where feminism is often defined by a woman who is in control of her life and behavior, sticking up for her rights. At the same time, the value of grace has not necessarily been thrown out of the window, as she must still display “kind” characteristics and qualities. Often though, in sticking up for what she deserves, a woman becomes characterized as bitchy and mean, rather than adament about her beliefs. It’s no secret that we still live in a world of glass ceilings, and that women at the top of their fields have had no easy time getting there. So then, is a woman who has worked and struggled to earn a specific position that has a bit of a hardened edge a mean girl, or simply the product of struggle?

“Y’all Aren’t Cute”: Mean Girls that Hold Nothing Back

The other day when at a friend’s birthday party I had a most interesting encounter with a young woman whom I know only indirectly. While sitting and taking a picture with another friend towards the end of the party, this fellow student walked up behind the photographer and said, “Y’all aren’t cute”. Clearly thinking that it would be impossible for anyone that had never actually met us to say something so absolutely unnecessary and crude, we replied, “thank you!” To this, we were shocked to hear “No, I said y’all AREN’T cute!” and the young woman then exited the party.

Now, having survived going to an all girls high school for two years where there was nothing “better” to do than talk about each other and to another high school where forgetting to smile at someone in the hallways could quickly result to being “defriended” on the latest web phenomenon, Facebook, hours later, I thought that I had seen the cattiness at its worst; this reached an all time low.

Don Imus: Mean BOY.

This week’s Newsweek (April 23, 2007), titled “Race, Power, and the Media” discusses radio commentator Don Imus’ crude remarks made about the Rutgers University women’s basketball team. On his nationally broadcast radio show, Imus comments, “That’s some rough girls from Rutgers….That’s some nappy-headed hoes there, I’m going to tell you that right now.” While Imus is not exactly a girl, his behavior and personality traits summarized in the article show Imus to possess all of the personality traits typically found in a “mean girl”. And, this time, as are the comments of typical mean girls, his comments were directed towards woman. The article states, ” Like the coolest bully on the playground, the outlaw kid wanted to be seen with, Imus made his guests feel honored to be insulted by him. He tempered the abuse with just enough ego-stroking flattery to keep them coming back for more. (Those who didn’t care for his shtick either avoided him or quickly fell off the invite list)”. Imus sounds exactly like a mean girl! What had these poor girls done to evoke such unnecessary cruelty? He simply chose to lash out at a specific group because he felt that he had a certain amount of authority and power. Like many scenarios involving “mean girls”, Imus decided to comment on a women’s team that was actually succeeding at what they do, and causing no one any harm.

The ladies of the Rutgers team fought against the odds and made it to the Final Four, an absolutely terrific feat for a team that originally, though as in the world of the mean girls, whenever the “underdog” begins to succeed, someone feels as though it is their job to belittle them and remind them that they are beneath someone.
Imus’ comments were not only racist, but also completely demeaning to women. To refer to any group of women in the first place as “hoes” or anything of the like is despicable and uncouth, and simply emphasizes the sheer ignorance of the party making such derogatory accusations. While the act of women referring to each other as “whores, bitches, sluts, hoes”, etc has become prominent and “mainstreamed” in current society. Regardless, a man has absolutely no right to refer to any woman out of her name. I wonder, had a woman made such a comment would she too have lost her job like Imus did? Unfortunately, in the world of “mean girls”, typically there is no “resolve” to the problem, and no one gets fired for their harsh and hurtful comments.

“Rutgers Women: A Team Stands Tall”

I need a hot body and boy

At the beginning of the scene showing Cady’s first day of school, Cady accidentally bumps into a female classmate who responds “Talk to me again and I’ll kick your ass”, an attitude that would typically fit the idea of the “bully” Yet, that girl is not considered a mean girl; mean girls do the same amount of damage, except they typically emotionally torment their victims rather than physically. Mean girls realize their clout and status and know how to use this to their advantage. In the middle of the scene when one classmate is proclaiming her admiration for Regina George, she says, “ One time she punched me in the face….and it was awesome!” and Damian states, “evil takes a new form in Regina George. She’s the Queen Bee, a star”; all the ideals of the typical mean girl. Girls like Regina George are fully aware that they can be “life ruiners” free of consequence, seeing that they are feared and secretly envied by every single other female in their presence. The scene in which the audience is first introduced to Regina George displays her riding on the shoulders of her admiring male classmates as she makes a grand entrance to gym class. Immediately we are exposed to two key factors that play are associated with a “mean girl”: the “importance” of image and the concept of the male (and female) gaze.
In this scene and throughout the movie “Mean Girls” the idea that “thin is in” is emphasized.
Regina George and “crew” consistently display the fact that they are very weight conscious, an idea that is clearly wide-spread in society today. These ideals that the girls in the movie portray reflect the fact that body image is consistently emphasized, primarily to females, telling young women how they should strive to look in order to be “hot”. Thus, while many of the girls that idolize the “mean girls” strive to look like them, the “mean girls” themselves are submitting to the images that run rampant in “perfect body” propaganda. Society teaches girls that the perfect body is the way to attract the perfect male, and as shown by the ideal “mean girl”, attention from males is crucial to the existence of their exalted egos.
Males are displayed in the scene from the movie as having nothing but adoration for the beautiful queen of mean, completely contempt being at her service. Their gaze holds no shame, no quick glance, but fully lets the one being viewed know her power of attraction. The “mean girl” who is the object of such gaze welcomes and expects the attention, as she feels that as the “hottest girl in school” she is nothing but deserving of the affection.

Fresh Meat

When you’re new at a school, you have no label, you have no place, no stigma, not even a name (until the awkward introduction at the front of the room). All eyes are on you, devouring your physical being as that all that exists. Judgments are made. Opinions are created. And in the blink of an eye, you’ve been placed on a platform that will forever determine which group you “belong”. Don’t look down, you’re shy and cowardly. If you’re pretty but don’t smile (forget the fact that you’re nervous and know noone), you’re “such a bitch”. If you have any characteristics that might actually make you look “unique”, forget it. But if your polo’s by Lacoste, your jeans are by Seven for all mankind, you realize that according to Cosmo, pale hues are the makeup colors f the season, you have automatic mean girl potential whether you like it or not. Then again there are some cases like that of Cady in “Mean Girls” the movie in which potential can be seen in a girl wearing an oversized flannel shirt accompianied by a pretty face, one who can adhere to a mold with “work”.

 

Mean girls tend to look for girls that would typically be competition, and when the choice is either to develop an enemy or ally, the “mean girl” chooses to make an alliance and simply build her clan of followers. And when you’re new, like Cady, why wouldn’t you want to become friends with the prettiest, popular girls in school? And if the “original” mean girls play their cards correctly, another mean girl is then and there in the making.