The Brainy Brunette - People thinks she's smarter. Is she?

Brainy brunette characters follow certain trends, like being driven, book-smart, out of place, and a little... boring. Sometimes her intelligence is cemented by the presence of a "dumb blonde," and these two stereotypes create a kind of feedback loop, each intensifying the other. Here’s our Take on the brainy brunette, and whether she’s actually smarter - or why we’re trained to think she is.
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[@josefk7437]

Rory Gilmore features prominently on this video. She is an example of the danger of this trope. She spent her life being told she is smart and suffers the consequences. She is seen as smart, but is shown to not be. Rory seems like she might be a deconstruction of this trope.

[@trinaq]

Precisely, Rory has book smarts, but is quite naive in the real world. Lorelai has Street smarts and Emily has people smarts, so all three Gilmore Girls could easily apply as Brainy Brunettes.

[@ashleyching7894]

Rory is a victim of the system.

[@candyc3314]

Rory does at least focus on her appearance. Lorelai taught her how to dress and wear makeup. We've seen clips of them doing their nails, talking about lip gloss, etc... Paris also came to Rory for help getting ready for her date, so it was nice to see them break those tropes a bit.

[@suzygirl1843]

@@ashleyching7894 Stop trying to victimize everyone. Rory's privileged. It wasn't popular in the 2000's to desire being a housewife but as soon as her grandparents showed up that's what they should have prepared Rory for. She worked hard for her grades because she grew up with her mom scraping for pennies. But her grandparents showed up and made everything easy and brandished her as part of high society.

[@Kereru]

You realize Rory was a fictional character not a real person, right? Her characters crappy ending wasn't a consequence of her upbringing, it was the result of bad writing decisions. Her character deserved better.

[@lahalhalha]

Can we get a raven-haired beauty trope? The mysterious, magical and alluring one? And how come she isnt named black-haired based on her colour like the rest of the types?

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Why they are "exotic" and how this stereotype affects real women (WOC and Monica Lewinsky and Megan Fox and Liz Taylor)

[@angiea9620]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 yeah Megan Fox even commented that she was cast as the visual opposite to the blonde leading lady as the dark haired vixen.

[@lahalhalha]

@@chocoeuxlatier Noirette?? Love it 😄 But seriously, it's weird how there isn't a name for them.

[@lahalhalha]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 Like with Snow White she had midnight-black hair and it was part of her beauty. But Jasemine and Pocahontas they made no mention of their black hair. Whereas Esmeralda was literally fetishized for her raven hair.

[@rockysalvatore435]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 are you illegal

[@rachelhansen2417]

I was labeled “gifted” as a kid, and I have brown hair, so I seriously related to this trope. Also, growing up, Belle was the only princess with brown hair, which is a bit interesting to me.

[@itssarah3438]

Same but I was always compared to Snow White !

[@abeycee7427]

Except with the older cartoons, Snow White, a definite brunette, but her hair was black.

[@Pink_pr1ncess]

@@abeycee7427 yup it’s described by the mirror “hair black as ebony”. But scientifically black colored hair isn’t real, even the darkest hair color is just a shade of brown

[@Blaze-vy5yp]

@@abeycee7427 are people with black color hair a part of the family brunettes or are they different?

[@abeycee7427]

@@Blaze-vy5yp They are brunettes.

[@a-c-2001]

Can you do the sibling rivalry trope and how being the eldest, middle or youngest child can impact how you’re perceived/perceive yourself?

[@lucypreece7581]

As someone currently dealing with favouritism within my family between myself and my brother I want this trop explored as well

[@coralines-world64]

can you do a take on the artist trope

[@micaelasilva8188]

yesss

[@oooh19]

There’s a lot of terrible parents and I’m glad I was an only child

[@jimnyxcricket]

This reminds me of downton abbey. Mary and Edith were constantly fighting. Poor Edith was also belittled so much by her family. That would be a nice topic @Amalia Costa.

[@magma4168]

What I liked about Gilmore Girls was that Paris (who was THE smart girl of the series, fight me) was a blonde and in her posse the blond Louise was quite smart (if vapid) and the brunette Madeleine was the comparatively dumb one.

[@suzygirl1843]

I think they refer to blonde bombshells. Paris isn't a bombshell, she was always a dork. Euphoria's Cassie and Lexie are explained well in Season 2 The Play. Reese Witherspoon played a Paris type character in an old movie with Matthew Broderick where she was pretty but obsessive and annoying - basically how Hermoine Granger should've been. But in Legally Blonde, she's hyperfeminine but just as smart.

[@samf.s.7731]

Didn't she graduate a Harvard MD/JD program?! Also, I remember Paris losing her virginity before Rory, instead of choosing to make her a prude, they made her normal... She's just extremely competitive, I think she has something called Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (Which is not the same as OCD), and ultimately she's very anxious and a perfectionist when it comes to things that matter to her because of it.

[@angeliprimlani9389]

Just throwing this out there: Paris might be blonde but she's also canonically Jewish, while Rory is a WASP. Paris is the exception that proves the rule: "brilliant brunette" is code for hard working outsider. You can slack around, get ahead and be adored if your family comes over on the Mayflower. (Rory was even a legacy admit to Yale! There's entire episodes centering on that!)

[@jennaeisel9072]

I'd never fight you on Paris being the smart one!

[@avi.chan23]

Agree. Paris, thought, she is a kind of toxic person, is my role model, I started to like her right from the start, because I could easily relate to her. In contrast to Rory, Paris really works hard and puts a lot of effort in everything, while Rory seems to enjoy life, eat a lot of crap still being slim and without any pimples (most teenage girls pretty sure hated her for this :D) and mainly reading books she enjoyed, not for education, being loved and pampered and praised for basically existing. Paris was an awesome character and, what I loved most about "A year in life", she succeeded in the end, while Rory didn´t even know, where exactly her underwear was... that´s justice :D and yes, the fact that Louise was way smarter than Madeline wasn´t that obvious, but added a lot to the show playing with the stereotypes. What I will never understand is, why Rory became the Valedictorian (is this spelled correctly) instead of Paris and also got accepted into Harvard, thought Paris got rejected. That never made sense. From the shows perspective, it makes sense of course, the ywanted to keep Paris in the show, so they needed to find a way for Paris to go to Yale instead of the Alma Mater all the Gellars before attended, but still, the way they did it felt just wrong and not realistic. Why not letting Paris decide for her own to not go to Harvard to get some kind of revenge on her parents? That would have fitted her character way more.

[@trinaq]

Brown hair can be perceived as plain and unnoticeable, so the brunette tends to pour most of her energy into academics. I like how more works are showcasing intelligent blondes, such as Paris Geller, Skyler White or Elle Woods.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Would you argue Sally and Betty Draper as brainy? (I do) Also Karen Wheeler getting blonder as she is more clued into her kids' lives and Debbie from GLOW becoming a cunning producer. Also we'd be remiss not to acknowledge the many Black Brainy Brunettes.

[@trinaq]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 Indeed, those are all excellent examples. Karen is far more perceptive than her children believe her to be, and it's hinted that she was rebellious when she was younger when she uses a hairpin to pick the lock on Nancy's bedroom door. Also, Debbie has a sharp, quick mind underneath her gorgeous exterior.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

@@trinaq OH yes, like Betty isn't savvy but she is well-read and studied Anthropology at Bryn Mawr and speaks fluent Italian. Sally has a keen emotional and intellectual intelligence.

[@llamacj]

I would add Betty Cooper from Riverdale as well.

[@angelicasmodel]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 Betty Draper is a deconstruction of the vapid blonde. The babysitters club predates these examples, with the blonde Stacy being a maths wiz. Janine Kishi was the brainy Asian brunette, but Claudia was not at all academic.

[@trinaq]

Please cover the Fiery Redhead trope, where a character with red hair is depicted as temperamental, assertive and argumentative. Nine times out of ten, if a character is a redhead, expect a joke to be made about their temper.

[@kaygallivan1466]

They did! It's a great video

[@millsgurl8358]

The take actually did an analysis on hie ginger hair people are depicted, especially based on their gender.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Also a lot of period set shows have at least one prominent redhead: Joan Holloway, Pamela Whalen, Barb Holland, Joyce Prigger, Rhonda Epinstall, etc.

[@Missmagazinebura]

Cheryl blossom

[@melodyclark1944]

They did a video about the sexual redhead and might have mentioned being fiery, but I'm sure it could use it's own video

[@infjelphabasupporter8416]

As a blonde female writer, my main character is independent, intelligent, seeks refugee in books, doesn't care so much about looks, etc (embodying many of the traits of this trope), and blonde. This video made me realize I almost darkened her hair because I thought "blonde hair didn't suit her", and didn't even realize I was subconsciously referring to this trope. She's definitely staying blonde now!

[@trinaq]

Your book and protagonist both sound wonderful, and very compelling. It's amazing how we automatically associate intekli with brown or black hair, when blondes can be JUST as capable and competent.

[@Pink_pr1ncess]

Can you add a redhead man as one of the love interest? It’s kinda sad to see how redhead men are portrayed as “losers” in tv and films because those tropes cause bullying among redheads

[@RachelIlacqua14]

Can you give updates or tell us the name of the book??? I’m trying to buy it 🤓

[@RachelIlacqua14]

Publish the book if it’s ready 👌🏻

[@infjelphabasupporter8416]

@@RachelIlacqua14 Thanks for the encouragement! It's not ready yet, but it will be soon. Keep an eye out for "Theory of Immortality" :)

[@carmelasantana3091]

I think what feeds into the "brainy brunette" trope is the combination of the idea that a woman can't "have it all" (looks and intelligence), along with the idea of the "blonde bombshell"- the blonde can't possibly be smart, because she is a sexual "object" and therefore devoid of feelings or intelligence- she is a "thing". Since we live in a predominantly binary system, the opposite of "sexy, dumb, objectified blonde" is the "intelligent, thoughtful" brunette. IMO, it's lazy Hollywood coding that has been ingrained into our culture.

[@Bleuryder]

I thought this thing too! God forbid a woman have Beauty, Sexuality AND Smarts. She needs to be color coded and one dimensional.

[@carmelasantana3091]

@@Bleuryder Right? Or are these dudes thinking that if a woman falls for any of their lines she's gotta be dumb, lol! I would love to see a film of a sexually unapologetic woman have an intellectually stimulating conversation with a male counterpart.

[@avi.chan23]

Sad but true. My best friend is blond, pretty and hella smart and educated, working on her master in Physics while having two little kids. She is the best person I know. I know a lot blond women that are highly intelligent while being "bombshells", I also know some brunettes that are... let´s say, neither smart, nor pretty or nice... inbetween of that, there are all kinds of people, no matter how they look, being impressive and multidimensional.

[@BloodyMary74]

If a blond is portrayed as smart in fiction they are also icy and manipulative like Emma Frost from X-Men, multiple Hitchcock women, Paris from Gilmour Girls, Cat Grant from Supergirl and even Samantha from SACT

[@PokhrajRoy.]

*SATC

[@erinbyerly6268]

I would not say Gentlemen Prefer Blondes falls within the realm of this trope of the Brainy Brunette as it's described in this video. Yes, Jane Russell's character is often framed as more intelligent that Marilyn Monroe's, but both are viewed as attractive and desirable to men throughout the movie. Jane's character is both attractive and intelligent. Also, the two women aren't pitted against each other. They're best friends who are loyal to each other and scheme to outsmart the men in their life (which they do successfully and prove that Monroe's character is actually very intelligent). If anything I would say that movie subverts the trope.

[@monline7207]

Blair and Serena are the definition of brunette/blonde stereotype

[@simonevolman4952]

i love how blair is very much both book and street smart. she’s popular in school so i feel like it goes unnoticed at times by other characters (Chuck comments in one of the first few episodes that people don’t give her enough credit for her wit). but she’s so successful in school, very clever and extremely street smart. i’m convinced that she’s the only character who would’ve gotten into an ivy league purely on merit.

[@kp782]

@@simonevolman4952 but Serena was great at school too. but everybody wanted to make her feel stupid and say she just got everything because of looks.

[@janeb533]

Serena doesn’t even have to try and she gets what she wants but I’m always team blair

[@phonkp]

I don't think this trope really applies to women of color the same way.

[@racheldavis4838]

Exactly!!!

[@jankinair9934]

True. Especially outside the Western world where most women naturally have brown or even black hair.

[@liamsmith210]

*snaps fingers aggressively* Yes please, any trope where hair color is relevant is exclusive to white people

[@witchplease9695]

We aren’t considered brunette, we’re put in an entirely different category like outsiders.

[@rockysalvatore435]

@@witchplease9695 then leave European influenced nations lol. You victim

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I owe a significant part of my personality growth from watching Brainy Brunettes on screen from Matilda to Dr. Temperance Brennan in ‘Bones’. Shoutout to all the Brainy Brunettes who made us all happy!

[@bi-indigenous-baker5865]

Aaaaah!! A fellow Bones fan in the wild! You never see anyone who loves Bones anymore.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

@@bi-indigenous-baker5865 It was such a fun show. Dr. Brennan is majorly girlbossing but despite a few flaws, I LOVED THE SHOW! Seeley Booth was a Himbo and Dr. Brennan was neurodivergent coded and smart and it was the best of both worlds.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

@@bi-indigenous-baker5865 I have a whole thesis on ‘Bones’ lol

[@post-electric]

All the love to the Bones fans!

[@migaish_]

So I'm rewatching Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated (2010), and I just realised the show breaks it's own tropes. Velma, the bookish nerd, is boy crazy, wears makeup and can be ditzy. While Daphne, the shallow pretty girl, is shown to be smart, assertive and solves a lot of mysteries. It's not perfect, but it's actually a really good incarnation of the series

[@arkhykatenka]

I feel like Hermione from the HP movie actually has roughly the same hair color as Paris in Gilmore Girls. It's rather that in the books she is written as brown haired.

[@kckazcoll1]

I agree, the onscreen character has mousey brown/blonde hair

[@rightweaponry908]

This was super interesting, and i have just now worked this out in my own life. I was always "one of the boys" and a lot of men would call me "manly" which always confused me because i am feminine presenting by general societal standards. It took me years to realize the reason people deemed me manly had nothing to do with how "feminine" i actually am, but how little i TRIED to BE a "girl" in the assumed way. I always had ownership of my body and never dumbed myself down and that was deemed as "masculine". That made me really sad to realize years later as an adult that i was only respected because my male friends saw me as not feminine and therefore "worthy" of their respect. How twisted that we genderize self respect and self assurance.

[@maya356556]

Stormi Reid wouldn’t be considered “ brunette” because she’s black so… Neither would Ameena. Poc aren’t classified as brunettes; we don’t refer to ourselves that way or have ever been referred to in that way.

[@agnessofiacastrocarvalho774]

Mostly in the U.S and U.K then how you americans would?

[@Princess-rb9yd]

Yeah this troupe does not apply to POCs. I think the Take just included POCs for the sake of inclusivity

[@maya356556]

@@agnessofiacastrocarvalho774 ? You literally make no sense. Structure your sentences better before you try to talk to me.

[@maya356556]

@@Princess-rb9yd Hard agree. Sometimes being “inclusive” can backfire.

[@Princess-rb9yd]

@Nang Lei you can just say white people

[@paulinaenck5797]

While the trope is very associated with hair color, I think it has more to do with time spent on appearance and femininity, at least in the real world. As a hyperfeminine brunette, I get treated as ditzy, vapid, and frivolous before people get to know me, purely because I like clothes and shopping and make up, and care about my appearance. A close friend labeled it “The brunette legally blonde effect.”

[@Princess-rb9yd]

Just bc a troupe does not apply to you, doesn’t mean it has no merit. Vivian in Legally Blonde and Jane Russell from Gentlemen prefer blondes were hyper feminine and were meticulously well groomed yet they get referred to as brainy brunettes simply bc of their hair color. Sure anyone who dresses hyper feminine would get referred to as ditzy but if you put a blonde and brunette together wearing the same clothes, people are going to think that the blonde is the ditz rather than the brunette

[@Pink_pr1ncess]

@@Princess-rb9yd agreed. Western Movies will always stereotype feminine blondes as the dumb mean girl.

[@AmarieRegin]

As an Asian living in the Philippines, with naturally black hair, I wonder how/where/if I fit into tropes like this haha

[@rhythmoriented]

There was a really good video on Asian stereotypes on this channel.

[@360shadowmoon]

We don’t - writers in Hollywood traditionally wrote as if POC didn’t exist.

[@liamsmith210]

High key no you don't

[@rockysalvatore435]

@@360shadowmoon go make your own movies. Why try to fit in with white ppl? Why can't Philippines bea giant industry in movies? Africa?

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I’m so happy that ‘Legally Blonde’ is referred to as a “watershed moment” because it totally is. 🔥

[@robchuk4136]

"Blonde Lisa Simpson".... Ok, this is opening up my brain. I never really thought about the color of Lisa's hair, because... we don't really know where her skin ends and her hair begins! She and Bart are a uniform wash of yellow. Obviously they doesn't have spikey skulls, but if they are read as "white/caucasian" does that mean technically they have... skin-colored hair?? Blonde-colored skin?? What does it all mean??!!

[@BebeLush2]

I always considered her an orange head. Never, ever considered her to be a blonde. The entire episode was shoddy writing, as are most of the latest Simpsons episodes.

[@fizzydizzystudios4768]

Brunette here, literally every blonde person I know is very intelligent and wise. So I don't understand media sometimes when they try and pass the dumb blonde idea.

[@raincandy1653]

Because blonde is seen as the most attractive hair color on woman and they seem to believe that a woman is either smart and ugly or beautiful and dumb. Brown hair is what most people would call basic and average so it isn't really seen as a beautiful

[@thepinkelephant2520]

Fr as a brunette I have 2 close blonde friends and they’re both SUPER smart!!

[@incognitouser8256]

We generalise beauty, intelligence and behaviour so superficially and with racism to sum it up.

[@lilil9752]

It was kind of covered on the "dumb blonde" video, the intense need of clasifying women into diferent boxes and hair color is a perfect excuse for people to do it

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

It's not just women. It's the same with guys. Blond guys are himbos or pretty boys. Brown hair guys are introspective (nerds geeks or outcasts). Red hair guys are the funny/stupid ones. It's a short hand to help us understand the characters better.

[@ephemeralmiracles]

Minor question but am I the only one who thinks Hermione's and some other characters' hair in this video are dark blonde?!

[@marionh922]

I think the same!

[@casleung2437]

Can’t speak for the other characters, but Hermione has brown hair in the books so maybe that’s why she was included

[@kckazcoll1]

I agree!

[@morganlefay195]

In countries like Spain (where I'm from) this hair color is called dark blonde, but in the Anglosphere is considered light brown. Cultural differences.

[@brittvaughn9447]

Okay, but WHY are blondes higher? My suspicion is that it's related to socioeconomic status and therefore, race.

[@CiriliaRose]

Mammals are wired to be attracted to sparkle and shine because it represents a water source and blonde hair reflects light better than brunette!

[@iamV10010]

@@CiriliaRose interesting

[@Princess-rb9yd]

@@CiriliaRose that’s just straight cap. People like blondes because it represents Eurocentric beauty standards, let’s not pretend there’s some biological reason for a purely social phenomenon

[@MelanieNLee]

That's the first thing I thought of: did they factor people of color into this? Not to say that POC are less intelligent, but too often POC get the worst schools situated into the most bereft neighborhoods deprived of nutrition, healthcare, and safety, often plagued with environmental hazards like garbage dumps. All those deprivations, plus the stress and distress they cause, impact one's ability to learn and to think.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Yes Mina Le did a video on Marilyn where she theorizes Blondes were popular in old Hollywood because they were seen as unambiguous white girls as opposed to raven haired women who could be "exotic" or mixed race or Jewish.

[@lygophilia4127]

I decided in elementary school that all the popular girls in movies were blondes, so I wanted to be blonde, too. I would look terrible as a blonde, but I had my mom put lemon juice in my hair to lighten it. I somewhat idolized Kelly Bundy from Married with Children, because she was blonde and pretty with sleek hair and a cool style, not realizing she got laughs because she was dumb!

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Which is sad because Kelly had an acid wit

[@PrincessLioness]

I feel like for the most part, the only time this actually a trope is when it’s contrasted with the dumb blonde archetype. And do Daria and Dr.Yang really count when Daria is auburn and Yang is raven haired? And as someone with black hair, where do we fit into this hair stereotyping.

[@Chris-rg6nm]

You can be either.

[@svgerd]

ive always wondered this! feel like people talk about blonde, redhead and brunette tropes but im curious as to what the raven-haired one would be, my guess would be mainly villainous or cunning characters

[@akankshaanand1191]

@@svgerd Agreed not many raven haired arch types are shown mostly its either red head or blond or brunette which is not the same

[@PrincessLioness]

@@svgerd That is so true most disney villains hair black hair. Mother Gothel, Gaston, Maleficent, Ursula in human form, Pocahontas’s villain, etc.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

I guess Auburn is brunette now?

[@cbpd89]

I know this is common in media, but does anyone actually think these stereotypes in their life? Like, have you ever assumed someone was smart or dumb based on their hair color?

[@profscarlett]

Tina Fey is really smart in real life. She is the writer in most of her shows. Emma Watson has a degree from Brown University (Ivy League in Rhode Island). Another brunette, Natalie Portman, has a degree from Harvard. Yes, brunettes can be smart!

[@arturocastroverde3349]

Smart and hot. Those 2 brunetters are everyone's crushes

[@kirsty307]

It’s wild, I have blonde hair and dyed them brown. Ever since I have brown hair, I get treated very differently, both men and women take me a lot more seriously.

[@lisapitre9819]

Although I'm not a blonde myself, I remember as a child appreciating the fact that Topanga on Boy Meets World was both blonde and brainy.

[@queenbee3561]

Oh you mean Cory?

[@1940semochild]

No...Topanga. She was a high achiever academically and her intelligence was one reason Cory was into her.

[@enzmondo]

Please. Belle started to like Beast when he showed signs of positively changing. And that happened when he did something nice for her by allowing her into the castle’s library.

[@correoordinario2010]

Funny to see how Hermione Granger is called brunette in the Anglo-Saxon world, while in many Southern countries she is seeing as a (dark/dirty) blonde. For me brunettes is everything between Belle hair colour and almost black. Another thing is dark brown and black haired women are seeing (in Hollywood perspective) as racial and dangerous woman. Look in Modern Family how Gloria's character perception changed the way she enlightens her hair colour, from black to dark blonde.

[@correoordinario2010]

@Nang Lei i'm not Italian 😆

[@correoordinario2010]

@Nang Lei as you said, blonde highlights. Blonde. So is in the edge between blonde and brown. It's all cultural perception of the colour.

[@isabellefurtado609]

As a Brazilian, I think it's funny you consider Hermione to be a brunette. For me, she's mostly blonde.

[@alessandralane]

Good grades, bookworms, these have nothing to do with intelligence. This type of girl is just stereotypically intelligent. I don't think that characters, such as Rory Gilmore or Hermione Granger, have a superior IQ, they are just above average, not superior, some definitions of intelligence are controlling their emotions, adapting to new circumstances, and learning from experience. Rory always cracks up if she gets something wrong, no one likes a perfectionist, although I think that people want to be perfectionists and that's why they admire perfectionists, and when she failed a test both in Chilton and Yale, she always needs Loralai to helo her from her experiences, although later on she never seems to learn from those fails. Hermione is basically the same problem, but she seems more intelligent than Rory, Hermione could manage better her emotions, she adapted better to the magical world as the story continued, and she learned more to accept her errors. That's just my own point of view.

[@Paula-kr2gj]

Actually, there’s a lot of intelligence types, being adaptive and persistent is way more desirable than just natural smart, some people are born with high Qi but if they have no interest in using it in something, it’s kinda useless I think, but yea, grades doesn’t mean intelligence, maybe responsibility

[@alessandralane]

@@Paula-kr2gj Well, some of them seem intelligent in another way, but the majority seemed a little stereotyped.

[@simonevolman4952]

i have a theory that both lorelai and rory have ADHD which contributes to both of them having so many issues with emotional regulation. rory is fairly emotionally intelligent in how she picks up on the relationships between the people in her life. she does however have intense pressure on her from childhood to get into harvard and is told her entire life that she’s smart and needs to accomplish what lorelai couldn’t. it’s natural that the first time school becomes difficult for her or she feels as though she’s not “perfect” she doesn’t know how to react. everyone learns at some point how to accept failure, they just usually learn as kids. most learn it a lot younger than rory does so in comparison i think it seems like a less reasonable reaction. hermione definitely does have a very high IQ. she learns how the wizarding world works, picks up magic, and analyzed situations significantly faster than any of her peers and even some of the adults at hogwarts, despite not having an exposure to the wizarding world prior to her first day of school. perfectionism is a common consequence of being labeled as “smart” because you begin to put your self worth and identity in the label. if you’re naturally intelligent it’s difficult to cope with failure and errors because you don’t learn how to adapt early on. but that says more about the adults in that child’s life than their intelligence.

[@itssarah3438]

Exactly !

[@Evamarie41]

@@simonevolman4952 Plus her mom constantly swoops in to "save" her and if not her, then the grandparents. Rory doesn't really learn how to fail and catch herself. There are a couple of exceptions where she will pick herself back up, but overall her Mom steps in when there is conflict to shield/shelter her.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Hey lot of fans think Daria is Auburn haired (it shows up a lot). EDIT: As is Lisa's Rival. I always saw "Brunette as dull or plain or 'exotic'" as a conspiracy....the world is populated by dark haired folk. Brunette here. Ever thought of doing the Big Beautiful Woman and how her treatment is similar to the Bombshell with the added handicap of her weight along with her curves? Smart Blondes like Lisa Simpson and Elle Woods and Cinderella.

[@PrincessLioness]

Is Cinderella ready a smart blonde character? Not saying she’s stupid but it was never an emphasized part of her character, like it is was for someone like Belle.

[@trinaq]

Indeed, I really hope ghat they cover the Big, Beautiful Woman Trope. There's even an entire song in "Hairspray" dedicated to be "Big, Blonde and Beautiful."

[@texashg85]

Here for a BBW trope

[@mewesquirrel6720]

@@PrincessLioness she's not exactly smart. We don't see her being smart or dumb

[@dorian417]

@@PrincessLioness The Take did a video on re-evaluating Cinderella as possessing underrated forms of intelligence: emotional, practical, and intuitive intelligence. she exhibits resourcefulness, creativity, perseverance, self-sufficiency, determination, patience, and an absolute commitment to kindness in the face of extreme cruelty. keep in mind that she was basically trapped inside her house as a servant with her toxic family; her class status probably didn't allow her to freely go to the library like Belle. she made the best of her life within four walls and a life of servitude until she had an opportunity to change her circumstances, at which point she passionately poured herself into attempting to make her situation better for herself. not saying the "look pretty and marry a prince" trope isn't still outdated and sexist, but that video did cause me to take a second look at how we perceive female characters who don't exhibit the stereotypical form of intelligence we see on screen, which is pure book smarts. i think sometimes people forget that higher education and the free time to read books is a privilege not afforded to all, and even if Cinderella wasn't "well-read," it doesn't make her not smart for being the hero of her own story.

[@c.decker3046]

How would you consider Community's case? Annie Edison starts out as the stereotypical brainy brunette and while Britta is blonde, she's also wordly-wise and the main "beauty". That quickly changes however and Annie definitely takes center stage in the beauty department, and while she's shown to be naive and not street-smart, Britta devolves into an airhead, often well-meaning but surely the butt of the joke. The show ends with Britta as a "dumb blonde" and Annie both being the "hot one" and going on to be successful (FBI intern, etc.). Thus, there's both adherence to the stereotype as well as subversion of it.

[@1940semochild]

Well said. I thought Community should have been added. Agree on your assesment!

[@arturocastroverde3349]

I always find bruttenets the hottest.

[@arturocastroverde3349]

Alison Brie will always be the hot one

[@c.decker3046]

@@arturocastroverde3349 I agree with that fully

[@PokhrajRoy.]

Moral of the Story: Let’s see more Blonde Detectives on screen and of course, Britney Spears should play one. Just thinking out loud.

[@anikajaumann8610]

Watch "Lucifer". Smart blonde detective :)

[@PokhrajRoy.]

@@anikajaumann8610 That’s a great point but we need more blonde detectives.

[@tam9856]

Amanda on Law & Order: SVU

[@tam9856]

Hailey on Chicago PD.

[@tam9856]

Lilly Rush from Cold Case.

[@tessy4018]

Not done with the video yet and will delete if not mentioned but I do want to highlight that the brunette stereotype only affect white women.

[@tam9856]

Delete… because race is mentioned.

[@takishaedwards273]

Yes, the blond and brunette hairstyles never really made sense to me as a black girl, these stereotypes apply to white women

[@Lauren-km7tc]

Love that you’re using the BBC version of P&P!

[@Leto85]

Just with a lot of other tropes I find it highly interesting to see how much depth and fluency the old tropes get in the newer stories. Diversity is certainly putting a stemp on todays society in so many aspects and I'm loving it. It is refreshing and so very well needed.

[@BioshadowX]

Because there's a cycle of needing a visual shorthand that then informs real life that then reinforces the expectations of that visual shorthand

[@UnboxingAlyss]

As other commenters have asked, it would be nice to see a take on black-haired women. II appreciate that they mentioned that more women in the brunette role are WOCs, but that is the ONLY role they can fulfill, of you only go by blond, redheads, and burnettes. Since the vast majority of humanity has black hair, it would be nice to see a take about that.

[@thefriesofLockeLamora]

The way Matilda and Hermione were my role models 😅

[@mescallado]

Why are some of the "brunettes" featured in the video are mostly redheads?

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

That's what I'm talking about

[@salonikullar3627]

And ofc this is another stereotypes we women have to face. Its like if you're blonde you're the pretty and stupid one, or if you're brunette you're the boring outcast and the intelligent one. As if we needed more stereotypes as a reason to change who we are. You do not become the person you are because of your goddamn haircolour. I'm so sick of these tropes Istg I just want to bury myself....

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

That's only because people like The Take frame everything that way. It's containing. Men are also "stereotyped" by hair color. Blond guys are pretty boys and brown haired boys are introspective. Every video from the Take just choses to frame things through the lenses of gender.

[@nallelychow]

The Beast's intelligence was not a match for Belle, at least not in relationship to the amount of books he owned, she had to teach him how to read.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

What a brilliantly composed Video Essay as always! Also, bonus points for mentioning ‘We Are Lady Parts’.

[@rouskeycarpel1436]

I think the dumb,hot blonde and smart,average looking brunette thing isn’t just about pigeon holing women into either being smart or pretty,it’s a part of a wider fugazi mindset that people can’t be physically attractive/athletic/outgoing and intelligent.Think of the dumb jock vs smart nerd.Society should stop trying to put people in a box

[@dmr1537]

Maybe Marilyn Monroe set up this trend esp. in Gentlemen Prefer Blonde? Before Monroe's movie, Ingrid Bergman or Grace Kelly symbolized cold intellect. And Ava Gardner or Elizabeth Taylor, voluptuous beauty.

[@beethovensfidelio]

Ironic since Marilyn Monroe dyed her brown hair blonde.

[@cedricjones7560]

My favorite brainy brunettes are Belle, Rory Gilmore, and Matilda.

[@jennaeisel9072]

One thing I feel that is critically important to point out regarding the intelligence level to hair colour comparisons is that, trauma from sexualization, subtle sexual abuse, does have consequences. The 'ditzy' blonde trope is from an era when blonde was considered more sexy, therefore got a lot more sexualization, and almost all of it unwanted. I fit the smart brunette type. I experienced trauma and my short term memory was impacted greatly, word recall, speech issues, and general but constant brain fog literally made me less smart than I was capable of being. Realizing this injury was from the trauma of my rights as a person being taken in favor of the right of a man to sexualize and sexually exploit me, woke me up hard, and even shocked me: Dumb blondes, aren't dumb, that's trauma.

[@izmend3s]

and we don't have those standards for men, which just shows how women always needs to fit a society standard..

[@angeliprimlani9389]

Is brainy "brunette" code for Jewish, Asian, Black or Latino? Is "socially inept" code for "immigrant" or "non-Christian"? I think it always was.

[@angeliprimlani9389]

@Nang Lei And yet they are using non-white examples like Meg Murray and Shuri as "brunettes" with spectacular lack of irony.

[@agnessofiacastrocarvalho774]

Is Lisa blonde? I thought that was just the shape of her head

[@hana_flower875]

I clearly remember an episode where she dyes her hair brunette because the council of something something didn't even want to listen to her since she was blonde. It was almost uncanny to see Lisa's face with completely different hair color and shape lol

[@martinenyx-filmstuff305]

Don’t want to be that one person, but… in some of the cases you mentioned the hair color is actually auburn, not brown. Which brings me to my second point: I think this “trope” exists only because our culture is fixated on the “dumb blonde” stereotype, so pretty much any other hair color will characterize someone as being something other than a bimbo, and it just so happens that brown is a very, very common hair color. Btw, a lot of the classical “blonde bombshell” figures, such as Marilyn Monroe, Brigitte Bardot, Jean Harlow, Pamela Anderson (even Margot Robbie) and others are actually natural brunettes.

[@Missmagazinebura]

Blair vs Serena is what I think of from Gossip Girl

[@KaylaNoelle1]

I used to like this trope until GROWN MEN started coming up to me saying things like “I always see you reading during your lunch break and I’m falling for you!” Like excuse me??? You are nearly my dad’s age AND we have never even spoken ONE TIME!???? It’s happened multiple times in my life and it’s so weird.

[@mewesquirrel6720]

It's a pick up line it's not that deep. Just say you're not interested

[@thewhitewolf58]

This still has me bad the brunette is smart, the blonde is fun and dumb, the red head is weird and black hair is either a goth girl or normal girl. Im still trying to deprogram it.

[@larisamustata6743]

In Zack and Cody series: London the brunette but with stereotypical blonde attitude and Maddie Fitzpattick the blonde with stereotypical brunette atitude is an interesting example of not the color of hair defines you.

[@leaczinkota1979]

Thank you In my story I have my plain blonde protagonist who's smart and her much more beautiful brunette friend who's also smart, and the brunette's more appealing and feminine and has a major crush on the protagonist's gorgeous male best friend, while the blonde is less desirable but won her boyfriend over with her personality. The blonde isn't boy crazy and her male best friend appeals to most girls in school and outside of school, but he's not her type.

[@leaczinkota1979]

The brunette is driven and a bookworm, but embraces her feminity while the blonde's personality is more gender neutral, plus the blonde loves art while the brunette loves STEM subjects, both are straight A students and bond over their mutual intelligence. The brunette's crush is the popular guy at school who's also a male brainy brunette, super nice and charming.

[@leaczinkota1979]

Plus they are really good friends and respected for their intelligence. And it's the intelligence AND feminity that the brunette's crush falls for.

[@leaczinkota1979]

Plus the brunette's somewhat popular herself too and the blonde is semi popular.

[@taweraka4806]

i would love to see a video about the firey red head. Why we’re seen as so angry all the time and how the stereotype started.

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

It too obvious to make a video out of. Red's the color of fire so red hair is short hand for a fiery personality.

[@miel6812]

Can you do the evil version? It seems like whenever media tries to portrays the seductress and temptress it would always be a dark black hair woman💀✋🏻

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

There's not really a lot to explain. It's color symbolism. Dark colors represent the unknown and dark personality traits like seducing.

[@nsteak4236]

London tipton and maddie Fitzpatrick

[@agnessofiacastrocarvalho774]

That was an inversion

[@agnessofiacastrocarvalho774]

That was an inversion

[@bethanyvarre9142]

I'm so happy the actresses switched roles!

[@amelieflorelle]

Elle Woods OBJECTS! 👩‍💼🧑‍⚖️

[@trinaq]

Agreed, I love how Elle is a deliberate subversion of a dumb blonde, and far more intelligent than she's given credit for.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Lisa Simpson joins in.

[@yashnas916]

Paris Geller vetoes!

[@leaczinkota1979]

Thank you In my story I have my plain blonde protagonist who's smart and her much more beautiful brunette friend who's also smart, and the brunette's more appealing and feminine and has a major crush on the protagonist's gorgeous male best friend, while the blonde is less desirable but won her boyfriend over with her personality. The blonde isn't boy crazy and her male best friend appeals to most girls in school and outside of school, but he's not her type.

[@thekaleidoscope2630]

Do Asians/Africans count as "brunette"? 😲 Dark brown/jet black hair is a racial trait of Asians and Africans. Dark hair in Asian/African society doesn't mean as much it means in western society, where there's variant natural hair colors. So I thought the term "brunette" is specifically means western people with dark brown hair.

[@thekaleidoscope2630]

Then I guess Cristina Yang doesn't really fit in the trope here?

[@1940semochild]

I would not have included her for those reasons.

[@annejohnson5875]

Hermoine Granger is a brunette?

[@melodyclark1944]

The books say so

[@8luvbug]

No her hair is dirty blonde/dark blonde

[@needisaymoore2138]

I would like to know the methodologies used in that study that supposedly determined that blondes are more intelligent than brunettes. It sounds shady to me to correlate intelligence with something so superficial. Especially since people often have a different hair color at birth then they mature into.

[@alejandracervantes7837]

As a burnett , I'm not super smart. But I'm really creative with art and crafts.

[@Exsugarbabe1]

Brunette with bad memory, dyslexia, possible adhd and passed high school maths at 48! I've worked incredibly hard for everything I've got and made myself smarter.

[@alejandracervantes7837]

@@Exsugarbabe1 thats cool. I could never handle math. Congrats though.

[@Exsugarbabe1]

@@alejandracervantes7837 Thanks.

[@kristalt.7404]

I was waiting for you to mention *Tiana and Lottie* in that brainy brunette and dumb blond comparison part.

[@lee210294]

I feel this trope (and the fiery redhead one) are not as widespread as the dumb blonde one, wonder why 🤔

[@Chris-rg6nm]

Because it's already implied by saying a dumb blonde.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

Reducing women to one dimensional stereotypes, my dear.

[@Chris-rg6nm]

@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 Yes media tends to do that because it's easier to write. People need to stop acting like TV and movies and real life.

[@madnessarcade7447]

But by the time Gilmore girls a day in the life came around Paris was the success and Rory ended up a failure so I’m not sure if they are the best example

[@akankshaanand1191]

can u please do this character types with Black haired good bad or grey shade characters I feel like they are not presented as they come often within brunettes but that's not always the same anyways this was a good video

[@gabrielleduplessis7388]

I have to say something about Lorelai. Yes, I know she is supposed to be the ditzy character, but she was very cunning and manipulative and as she says in the end, “…smart when she wants (needs) to be”. She can persuade people with valid arguments. But people mainly only focus on her ditzy statements. I am also glad Gus saw her for who she is. He was not satisfied with her “diamonds of a girl’s best friend” performance. And he does not judge her like other men did. Yes, her looks played some part of that, but I think her personality played part in their relationship as well. This is why Jane Russel’s character respects her and is friends with her. They also have common interests. I just hate how people mainly saw Marilyn Monroe and some of her characters as just the “dumb blonde”. In reality Marilyn wasn’t dumb and she did not start out as a blonde. She was a brunette. Way to subvert expectations.

[@elenavthorn]

I would like to point out that in gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Lorelei was not a ditzy blonde in the traditional sense- she pretended to be one/never focused on using her intelligence and this is pointed out in the film in the brilliant scene "don't you know that a man being rich is like a girl being pretty? You might not marry a girl just because she's pretty, but my goodness, doesn't it help?" Had this brilliant, wonderful, amazing film been released 50 years later it might've had a Legally Blonde aspect, but regardless I think it does the trick. Other than that, great video!

[@c.eb.1216]

Yes, I wouldn't expect a dumb person to know that PM stands for post meridian, which she is shown to know when she sings "every post meridian" before realizing her slipup and quickly following with something dumb. In another movie, the whole "dumbness" was pretty much the result of refusing to wear her glasses in order to better comform to beauty standards. Plus, at the end of GPB, it's strongly hinted by her friend that it's all an act.

[@kayleighdriessen]

I may not be like an proffessional writer but since a few years ago I wrote a female-character who happens to have like dark brown hair who does happend to be very intelligent but not nessecarily just in a stereotypically nerdy 'book smart' or anything academics-related because there's more than one type of intelligence, and like she happens to share a few traits usually/typically assocated with redheads.

[@TheLoverbug567]

Actually seeing a production of Matilda tonight!

[@shelliorzach4542]

Buffy the vampire slayer dismantled the blonde trope well too!!

[@alyzu4755]

"Derry Girls" is brilliant. That is all.

[@victoriaa9933]

on 30 Rock Jenna has dark roots - so the blonde hair is her choice. As are a lot of people's because the majority of humans have brown/black hair. I guess that's supposed to send a similar message about what kind of person she wants to be and what's important to her?

[@esmeralda5781]

you can see this in real life too. i'm a blonde girl and this year i haven't really done anything else except for studying. i managed to heighten my grade in every single subject and got nearly straight a's during this entire school year. despite this, when we handed out "labels" to everyone at the end of the year, i got goldilocks haha. and it took me YEARS to convince my peers that i'm actually smart, i remember when i sat next to this guy in maths and he was shocked when he found out i had an a in the subject. he didn't believe me at first, i had to literally show him. very annoying lmao

[@blythetaylor4063]

As a girl with ADHD symptoms fighting past stigma has always been more difficult. I made the awful mistake of dying my hair blonde in mid high school and experienced this first hand- it was actually incredible how many more doors slammed in my face and how much harder I had to work- just because of a hair colour! It’s the kind of thing that would only make such an astounding difference for women. I’m so glad to be back to my natural auburn and I hope you know how talented you are and that society is bullshit.

[@hadihassan372]

Girls with black hair are completely ignored since the Europeans don't really have black hair

[@melodyclark1944]

Southern Europeans have black hair

[@hadihassan372]

@@melodyclark1944 Italians for example were considered non white in the US for along time

[@wutanglza1235]

Americans are so weird 🙈 of course europeans have black hair wtf

[@Taleneki]

What? There's lots of black haired people in Europe all across the continent. I don't know if you came up with that or someone else, but whoever did has never been to Europe apparently.

[@josefk7437]

Smart girls have a bunch of books. This is a TV generated image. Having a bunch of books allows girls to be smart without being a threat to the insecure tech bro guys.

[@exoticsamba492]

What do you mean?

[@josefk7437]

@@exoticsamba492 A bunch of books is shorthand for showing that girls are super smart. Being super tech savvy, being super good at math, having lawyer-like debating skills or being like McGyver can also be used to show that a character is super smart, but the brainy brunette is shown to be smart by having a bunch of books, usually the ones we were forced to read in English class.

[@VidWatcher01]

Brunettes = Brainy Redheads = Fiery Blondes= Fun Raven-haired= ????

[@melodyclark1944]

goth

[@avi.chan23]

I am a natural brunette, I love books, I work in IT, I am considered really smart. I don´t think, this has anything to do with my hair color, but maybe, when I was really young, I also was affected by girls and women in TV shows, anime, movies and cartoons following the trope. One of my best friends in school was a petite blonde with, well, let´s say it as it is, big boobies. She also was way more intelligent than all other people in our class. She was creative, intelligent, like really intelligent, hard working, focused. Still, she had it way harder being taken serious. Not only by classmates but also by teachers. I also had a time when I dyed my hair blonde (mainly, to color it pink, blue and all other sorts of colors) but every time, the blonde started to show, I was treated completely different. With my natural dark hair, I am taken more serious, in my job, as a mother and as a person in daily life. In the end, we all are way more than the trope we fit in because we look a certain way. I might be brunette and bookish and intelligent and highly determined, but I also love romance, unicorns, everything that glitters, is pink, rainbow or pastel colored. I can´t go pass any cute stuffed animal. I am nerdy, kind of Big Bang Theory nerdy, but I also love shopping, have way to many bags and shoes and lots of make up. I assume, all people out there are more than what they look like, despite the trope they fall in. I wish, this whole trope thing would change, at least in a way that society understands that what we see in tv shows is not the reality. I hate seeing my blonde colleagues having a harder time being listened to, just because of their hair color. I really wish, that looks just don´t play such a big role in society at all.

[@thedarkdane7]

You lost me when you called the cardboard cutout, Mary-Sue character that is Rey as a good role model.

[@ARKAEA33]

lol at acting like the brainy brunette trope is supposed to indicate Rory Gilmore is less romantically/sexually desirable than her blonde counterparts when in the show every single hot guy is basically going to whatever extent possible to show Rory how much they love her.

[@anabeleme]

is there a trope for black hair ( I mean, raven black hair) or does black hair fall withihn the brunnette category?

[@melodyclark1944]

Black hair means someone's creepy. It's separate from brown hair.

[@kckazcoll1]

apparently so. "Raven haired" is an older fashioned description

[@jeannesuzanne6425]

Great video! But wasnt Hermoine a blonde herself? Just a darker shade? :)

[@danimimi1234]

As a natural blonde I do relate to a lot of this so much. Because in that stereotype system, I would have a brunette brain and personality but still my blonde hair - I feel - often misleads people to not see me as the deep thinking, reflective, book worm person I actually am.

[@taleytaleytaley]

I wish y’all would have mentioned Maddie & London from The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. Casting Ashley Tisdale to be the smart blonde & Brenda Song to be the dumb Asian brunette was an amazing swap of societal norms. Seeing that as a child was great.

[@gingergoddess8953]

Whens the one about Fiery Redheads coming out? Probably the tropiest of the hair tropes...a redheaded leading lady will almost always be portrayed as hyper-sexed and have anger issues. Ive seen smart blondes and not-smart brunettes, but have yet to see a redheaded leading woman as anything but a loud, assertive, sometimes antagonistic character.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

I remember Barb on Stranger Things being a quiet, passive character and Pamela from Mrs America and if we count dyed hair, Paula Jones as seen on ACS Impeachment.

[@Bleuryder]

Wasn't the main character in A Wrinkle in Time (I forget her name), a redhead in the books and an awkward one at that? I know it's different in the movie, but I feel like that's a statement in itself. It feels like they changed the character physically to fit that trope.

[@oliviasommerville4733]

Yeah (her name’s Meg) and she was described in the book as having red hair

[@renatashp]

women can be intelligent, beautiful, powerful, funny and they can be all of these things together regardless of the way they dress or act! point ❤

[@silver1021]

Who the hell thought to edit the good at everything no weakness non-character Rey to the line "iconic" female role models? Little girls should be and are inspired by real feeling women who struggle but achieve great things, not ones who are just magically handed everything like re-boot Mulan.

[@demonica180]

Part of the inspirational you missed “Princess” General Lea Organa. Smart, sassy and commanding.

[@renatashp]

the problem with all this is the fault of men who think they know how to write female characters! THEY DO NOT KNOW . That's why we need to support more women in film career!

[@lindapawlowski660]

I believe that people who think haircolor indicates intelligence are less intelligent than people who don't :)

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

No one over the age of 10 actually thinks that.