The Smart Girl Trope, Explained

[@thetake]

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[@azikiwesnay7718]

I want monica and chandler. You ouwe us that. Remember? You people support the toxicity of Rachel and Ross but refuse to support the beautiful and healthy relationship that is Monica and Chandler. Joey and Phoebe were covered and they were never a couple even Gunther and Janice. Please guys Monica and Chandler are worth mentioning they should be celebrated

[@trinaq]

@@azikiwesnay7718 Seconded, they already have Roschel and Joebe centred videos, now all we need is a Mondler one!😻💘

[@azikiwesnay7718]

@@trinaq Yes please Mondler should be iconic. Now thats the kind of love people should aspire to, stop celebrating the toxic Ross and Rachel

[@JB-ex8ko]

Why are you still promoting this scam?

[@azikiwesnay7718]

@@JB-ex8ko me?

[@sofiarueda.8657]

The “dumb” girl trope plssss (Karen Smith, Aimee Gibbs, Brittany S. Pierce, etc)

[@andreakoeries7230]

Sofia Rueda. they did a dumb blonde one

[@justink5000]

Aimee's not dumb!

[@kamarassakka9922]

@@justink5000 she might not be but she is portrayed as that

[@luhaguilar]

@@justink5000 100% agreed! Aimee is innocent, optimistic and ingenuous, but not dumb. She's too sweet, and that sometimes might come off as dumb because she tries to see the best in everything and everyone, but she's intelligent...

[@trinaq]

Aimee is FAR from dumb, but her cheerfulness and naive may aid in making her SEEM that way to some, especially in comparison to her more studious best friend Maeve.

[@ellie4328]

“This says women can either be smart or pretty” Guess I break the stereotype as I’m not either

[@fluffybirdy7720]

I bet this is not true.

[@izzydog111]

A mood

[@zigzaglychee7324]

Lmaooo same girl same

[@marie-henrietterixhon1882]

Ooh self burn. Those are rare

[@goodnightmyprince2716]

Same

[@DKsilverghost]

I really dislike how a lot of those 'overly perfectionist' type of smart girl are portrayed. It's almost like they can't just show a girl who's smart and really ambitious - they have to make her almost neurotic too. As if a girl can't get good grades just because she's smart and curious and enjoys studying.

[@BeeHatGuy]

That would make the character a Mary Sue

[@kaitlnwhite6809]

I disagree. I’m intelligent and ambitious and while I’ve run into problems with the idea of perfection, I don’t see why you have to be vilified or seen as a lesser person because of it. You should never be fault for doing what you care about or doing what you love. Being passionate about learning and knowledgeable is a fundamental part of this archetype and many real people.

[@izzydog111]

@@BeeHatGuy they can make them smart without this specific stereotype. Eg. I'm a complete idiot but I still stashing As

[@mercygal1]

This trope makes for some weird IRL stereotypes too. I wasn't a good student in high school, but in college I started studying and consistently got straight A's. And once during college, my grades were brought up and my older neighbor was like "what happens if you get a B?" And after a bizarre line of questioning, it became apparent that she didn't think that I would be able to emotionally handle getting a B. I barely graduated highschool. She was there. Like how in the hell would getting good grades instantly destroy my ability to cope with minor disappointment?

[@Yuyupi14]

I believe this media portrayal of 'smart girls' and irl 'smart girls' influence each other. The trope considers how much societal pressure affects young women, since the tiniest mistake can invalidate their intelligence and make them the subject of mockery. I don't think this is explicitly shown quite enough, but it is able to explain the neuroticism in some of these characters. Personally, I do find myself relating to the overly perfectionist type. Societal stereotypes and parental expectations for East Asians, I believe, have helped shape my own expectations regarding academic achievement. That aside, perhaps Maeve from Sex Education is a good divergent example of this trope?

[@anaespinosa5084]

The worst part about having been the smart girl your entire life is when you realize you were only smart in comparison to your peers but in the real world your intelligence is mostly average. Suddenly the one quality you once thought gave you an advantage over others isn't even real anymore.

[@divpreetkaur8381]

Why u exposing me like that?lmaaooo

[@clementiefreya]

and now you dont even know what youre good at anymore and suddenly your future goals dont seem reachable anymore

[@marif2993]

wow thanks for expressing my worst fear :)

[@Yammerzaki123fr]

facts bestie

[@bull3tcoff1n]

You really do be here calling us out, this is exactly how I feel.

[@adeladybughowell1703]

Remember٫ there is a difference between doing good in school and being smart.

[@susanjoyce4244]

This needs more likes

[@swl6786]

That's true. The example is me, a good student but dumb as hell. :")

[@flowergirl5962]

*doing well

[@evitasidera7259]

So many people seem to just not understand that

[@justanotherpersonthatdraws8232]

Nice, now your giving me a headache thinking about if I'm smart or just good in school XD

[@samynaxaidan]

I think one key point missed is that the smart girl is smart because she is a hardworker. There's still the trope that she has to work hard, to study hard to achieve the same success. Not often will they be simply a genius.

[@joaninha3484]

Excellent point. The smart guy is often a natural genius whereas the smart girl has to work for it.

[@lorrie9462]

This is because smart women are questioned of their legitimacy in the way that smart men aren’t, so she has to be seen working twice as hard

[@joanageorge205]

I think Lindsay from Freaks and Geeks is a nice exception. If I remember correctly she even has a line that goes something like "I can't be in the top 1%! I don't work that hard. Are the kids in Michigan that stupid?". The video didn't do justice to her character at all. She really doesn't fit this trope at all.

[@leannepardypower397]

you're comment makes me really angry and immediately defensive but I guess that's how I know you're right. These stereotypes are honestly so depressing.

[@spinacetta89]

Agree that it wasn't pointed out in the video, but some of the characters portrayed are actually smart without seemingly working too hard: Lindsay from F&G, Cady from Mean Girls, and I'd argue even Rory to a point, particularly when confronted with Paris (they are both shown to study really hard, but while Paris pushes extra hard, Rory still seems to perform better, and more effortlessly, in the end); the whole point of Booksmart was that the main character thought that to be successful academically she had to work hard but she discovered that others, who wheren't so focused on studying, were equally successful (hence the title). Princess Shuri is the ultimate genius, and is never shown to study, she is the smartest person in the MCU universe, does everything effortlessly.

[@umbrellacorporation4435]

Heathers is one of the few 80's movies that depict a multi-layered smart girl. Veronica is a mix of the tough girl, the cool girl and the smart girl.

[@tychowozniaki9269]

And through the Heathers she also gets to be the superficial pretty girl.

[@FabalociousDee]

Heathers is amazing. One of my favourite movies.

[@mysticc6232]

And played by Winona Ryder so like she's perfection

[@xubs5919]

YAS

[@mariunfabregas7533]

And then the musical came and ruined her character by turning her into just another one-dimensional, quirky, "I'm NoT lIkE tHe OtHeR gIrLs" girl. Don't get me wrong, the soundtrack of the musical was a banger, but I always hated the way they devolved her badass character. Along with the fact that they turned JD into this emo, tragic, soft boi UwU™ character instead of portraying him as the manipulative psychopath he truly was :/

[@fakecore9811]

If y'all haven't already, you should break down the nice guy trope! Or the protagonist who the "Cool girl" is written for

[@timothyo718]

fake core I have some good ideas for male character tropes that I hope to see: -Short angry tough guy (e.g. Joe Pesci, Al Pacino). Man has a short fuse and has something to prove. -Funny fat guy that hangs out with the popular crowd but has no female love interest. Acts as comic relief and uses self-deprecating humor -Smart/nerdy Asian guy (trope that limits the idea that an Asian guy could be a slacker, not academically inclined) -Asian martial arts masters (applies to both males and females) Angry black woman trope (black women aren’t often cast in roles as being shy, soft-spoken, and ultra feminine

[@fakecore9811]

@@timothyo718 I definitely remember watching a video on the angry black woman trope, but I can't remember who it was from? I tried searching but couldn't get results for the video I watched, but it was really well done. But yes! Id love to see this channel take on these tropes too!

[@fakecore9811]

@Derrick Pino that's also a neat idea tbh! with my original comment, i wrote it because of those films with female protagonists who get dumped by their probably dumb jock or just douchebag boyfriends, and either fall in love with their best friend who's been in love with her for ages and was basically just waiting for her to get dumped/dump her boyfriend, or they fall for a "nice guy" who's also kind of a douchebag, so that could also make for a "character duo" video

[@milkman8467]

ted mosby and gus cruikshank

[@dustinmaxwell259]

@Derrick Pino "the “career driven woman” and “underachiever guy with potential”,- Kim Possible

[@joyce3003]

One of things that hit me about the smart girl is that sometimes we dedicate ourselves to being so ‘smart’ that we begin fearing it is all just surface level intelligence, like we might one day not be smart enough to be ‘the smart girl’ Edit: wow I didn't know that there was a name for this? :0 It's apparently Imposter Syndrome, but in all seriousness it's comforting and sad to know we're not alone in this

[@thistubeisraw3748]

Well it's nice to know I'm not alone in these thoughts.

[@mlagv4045]

That is very true, which is why young girls really need to realize that they don’t have to be seen as ‘just the smart girl’. (Easier said as done, especially for me at least) I think because the ‘smart girl’ is challenged a lot by her male peers especially in media. (Intelligence is often paired with a male character- just like the breakfast club example) Just look at this video, a lot of the male roles are seen ‘challenged’ the character’s intelligence in a way. But sadly women has always been seen to be placed in only one category. Which can result in said girl to almost be obsessive with being the perfect example of her category. Oh and also: You are smart. No dumb person would worry about the level of their intelligence to such an extent. Just never stop feeding that need to learn and discover. x

[@foxsisters6257]

this resonated

[@mythicdawn9574]

Very true. It also applies to males, with maybe some small differences. As I sais in an other comment. I'm male and I always identified with the smart character (boy or girl) when I was a kid. Boys may not have the problem of "legitimacy" girls can encounter, but they can be as insecure about their intelligence and their value. Talking from experience, that's why I 100% relate to your comment ;)

[@djkb125]

The Dunning-Kruger effect in action. I always wonder if I really am as smart as it feels I am when I'm around other people. Lol. Basically we're at least smart enough to know we still have a lot of limitations. Lots of people dont know enough about a thing to even know that they are lacking knowledge if it.

[@yes8297]

I feel like they should make a smart girl that doesn’t obsess over going to Ivy League or something.

[@yes8297]

And is a perfectionist or whatever.

[@Onlylaurenarnes]

I obsess over Ivy League and I'm perfectionist.... And my ass is black, it likely doesnt exist 😂😂😂

[@Southforthewinter]

How about a smart girl who’s really attractive and doesn’t care about school or success

[@crowe3627]

Yeah. A waste of potential. Exactly what we need to see.

[@heatherheath3834]

@@crowe3627 It doesn't have to be a waste of potential. Give me a previous 'smart girl' who does practical subjects, like tech, hospitality, or goes into the creative arts like music (which is seen as a 'smart' thing anyway), art or drama because there's value in different types of intelligence too. Academic subjects are all fine and well, but ivy league schools aren't the ideal for creative types. Give me a smart girl who wants to go to Julliard, the RCS, The Royal College of Music, ect. It's harder to get into Julliard than it is to get into Harvard because of the amount of skill needed, plus the sheer number of applicants, all in underfunded disciplines which require massive amounts of self study and dedication to get anywhere. Or if they're still interested in science and shit, what about sound and light production? You need physics, maths and chemistry in order to use pyrokinetics safely and on a large scale, how to rig up stadiums to be up one minute and down the next on command, ect ect. Yeah ivy leagues are good, but for sheer connections other institutions are better.

[@mxar2074]

I am loving this "insert girl" series

[@timothyo718]

mana_narie x I want to see more “insert boy” videos. Think this channel could benefit with having a male voice providing an analysis on a character trope.

[@netpunk5890]

Timothy O 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 no

[@mixxuie]

Timothy O this channel has a very particular perspective and voice, hence looking at the tropes for women in media. They always look from a woman’s perspective, and a “______ boy” video would match that If you want videos about harmful tropes for men and relationships from a masculine perspective, I recommend Pop Culture Detective. Unfortunately he deals mostly in negatives, but he handles them with empathy so there’s no “boy-bashing” there

[@shramanadasdutta3006]

Maybe a similar guy series would be as fun too.

[@eltiospike7672]

What male tropes do you think is harmful for boys and/or girls?

[@juliannaflores125]

I'm loving this series of breaking down female archetypes!

[@trinaq]

Me too, I hope that they challenge the depiction of the working woman who is often forced to choose between settling down or focusing on her career!

[@timothyo718]

Julianna Flores Hope the channel starts a series on breaking down male archetypes as well.

[@360shadowmoon]

This series is one of the best things going on in my life right now. I grew up watching a lot of movies/TV with female protagonists so I am enjoying this!

[@ambriaashley3383]

Yes. Feels like therapy + a sociology class + media critique all in one

[@Pikachu-vu2ri]

Same all these shows are amazing do you know the name of the show at 11:00??

[@lisah8438]

And I also like to mention smart people are not always straight A students. There are people who are smart but don't even try in school. I would love to see a storyline like that.

[@altycoggydeer]

I think Lyra from the 2019 series His Dark Materials is like that. At times she`s more courageous than smart, but her strategic way of thinking makes her equal to the adults of this world, even though she`s just 12 years old during the first season.

[@notyourmum7883]

I feel like Buffy Summers from Buffy the Vampire slayer is like that...she isn’t a straight A student but is still wise beyond her years. She makes mistakes but learns from them and always wants to protect her friends and the people she loves. It’s easy to dismiss her as tough dumb blonde but she’s much more powerful than that both physically and mentally. Idk that’s just my take.

[@childofgod759]

I feel like people associate good grades with intelligence. There are people who are complete idiots but have straight A's, and geniuses who dont try at school. Lol

[@isa12rae]

Ferris Beuller

[@violetraven8323]

I love the point you made, I believe that’s the next best step forward for “smart girls” or smart characters in general. There are several forms of intelligence and fiction hasn’t fully explored them all with the depth I think it can. Show us smart characters who aren’t straight A students but has a reputation of intelligence and wisdom beyond there years for a reason. Have popular kids who are also smart- and how they dress and act doesn’t rule there IQ. Let’s have characters that express multiple forms of intelligence in unique ways. Most of the time I’ve been treated and perceived as the smart girl even though I’ve never gotten straight A’s in my life. I want more character like that- I feel like plenty of authors could do them justice and teach a much needed lesson to audiences.

[@THaWoM]

I think the rise of the 'smart girl trope' was just a reflection of reality: girls started outperforming boys academically. I remember going to an award ceremony at my university for the students with the highest marks, and someone commented on how unusual it was that so many of the STEM awards were going to young women, and someone else replied "No, it's always like this."

[@JoshuaRellick]

I think it is a sad state of our culture that when girls were under achieving, there was a lot of talk about helping girls get into STEM or other areas, but when men started underachieving, people just didn't care. Why is gender imbalance in education only seen as a problem when boys are doing better? Why shouldn't gender imbalance be just as much of a problem when girls are doing better?

[@ookiedokie7081]

@@JoshuaRellick in Australia this is incredibly common, girls have been outperforming boys for decades. It was a sad time back then for girls because we could ascertain the causes, misogyny, teen pregnancy and poor self image. In Australia the difference is due to more boys heading off to do trades work/vocational training, job pathways that are highly advertised to boys (and not girls)

[@Sarah-ml4fv]

@@JoshuaRellick dont worry, you guys still make a dollar to our 70 cents so youre crying all the way to the bank

[@alannas1128]

@@JoshuaRellick While yes, gender imbalance can alienate both genders, and yeah, currently girls have been outperforming boys in school, the actual careers in STEM are almost entirely male dominated. In order to equalize the fields for adults, more girls need to be funneled in as kids. And as uncomfortable as it may be for boys, there needs to be a higher rate of girls getting into those fields to even start tipping the scales to get it back to an equal area.

[@brynmcclennan973]

@@JoshuaRellick I think you think you're comparing the same thing but it's not. Underperforming is not the same as just not being accepted into something because of your gender.

[@LynnHermione]

I wish I wasn't so smart, said no smart person ever. This is "the smart girl written by people who aren't smart". The reason Hermione is such an iconic character is because she's a self insert of Rowling-at-11, who is herself that smart. That's why she never wished she was dumb, she's not hindered by her intelligence (the thing she has to get over is her reliance of book knowledge and authoritative sources over instinct, and creativity) AND she gets more dates than the boys do. Rowling wanting to subvert stereotypes is why Harry wears glasses and not Hermione. It's not a sign of intelligence, his eyeballs are just misshapen!

[@RealNormHall]

Very interesting yet contrasting comment compared to the other comments on this page! You get 1 like, dont spend it all in one place please :)

[@anubhutigupta1123]

I think what you're saying makes a lot of sense but it's not the complete picture. Intelligence often comes with sensitivity, introversion and hyper awareness of how much you don't know (not necessarily, but often). Smart people don't just read words. They read the pauses between them, the tone and the intention as well. This hyper awareness can often be extremely exhausting and may bring a feeling of "left out", loneliness, not fitting in, being weird, broken etc which in turn even gives way to depression. The blues might replace the "yellows" of success. Hermione is incredibly intelligent but not soft, vulnerable or sensitive (emo baby type). A lot of smart people are. It's the latter ones who suffer a lot. And rightly so. People like Hermione are smart and strong and go on to achieve a lot. Smart and "not strong" may suffer great deal (and might rise as literary/ creative geniuses. Like Mary Shelly) So considering Hermione (or women like her ) only is actually only looking at one type of smart girl. The spectrum is wider.

[@sharlottehilder2904]

I've got to say I disagree. I'm not school smart but have an IQ of 157 so idk if I'd qualify as how you'd define a "smart person", as everyone has their own criteria as to what makes someone smart, but I constantly wish I was of average intelligence. I really don't mean to be big headed and I promise I'm not boasting in some weird way, but I think being "smart" really can hinder some people. I absolutely hate school, have social anxiety, and am constantly beating myself up for getting bad grades and I think it's because I, and other people, have labeled me "smart" and it's really hard to try not to live up to that. It really does turn everything into a competition, and for me it's usually one I can't win bc I'm not actually academically smart, I think I just have really good common sense. This is turning into a really long comment now, but the point I'm trying to make is that the expectations people hold for "smart" people put them under a lot of pressure and can cause anxiety, so i wouldn't be surprised if others wished they weren't as smart either.

[@katherinewu3224]

Sharlotte Hilder this!! this comment!!

[@HudaefCares]

I was the type of student who never studied yet scored very high on tests. (And also sucked at recitation so my grade were still bad lol) While I never wished I wasn't smart, there were certainly times I wished I can relate more to my friends that had study sessions and gossiped about people, love teams, reality TV shows and the pocketbooks they read. I mostly watched anime, discovery or went to the library and leaf through books published in the 1960's.

[@WillScarlet16]

I would love to challenge everyone by asking - if a character like Tony Stark were a woman, how popular would he be? As a man he's smart, sarcastic, and more than a little bullying but everyone thinks 'He is so badass!' If he were a woman with the same attitude, would audiences think the same? Or would they think 'What a bitch'?

[@chocotoasties2671]

I think what makes Tony Stark a popular chracter is that he suffers the consequences of his actions and learns from his arrogance. There are a LOT of people who dislike him because of his attitude (just look at the Civil War discourse). On the other hand, people only like arrogant characters who they think are hot. If Tony was unattractive, I'd think there's be some criticism

[@sailortwilightmoon]

Honestly, Antonia Stark would probably be hated by male audiences, regardless of what character development she has. Tony is a male power fantasy; smart, rich and a super model magnet. Every man wants to be that guy. But Antonia? She's that successful, powerful mega-bitch who's not sexually available or interested in the schmucks watching at home (e.g unlike Charlize Theron in The long shot) She's a woman to be feared, not revered.

[@theveggiest]

Captain marvel is literally a feminine version of iron man and all I see online are male fans hating on her character

[@Georgie13]

Could Miranda Priestley be a Tony Stark? She is smart, powerful, rich, fashionable, sarcastic ("Florals in spring, groundbreaking") and a bit of a bully.

[@chocotoasties2671]

@Creed Bratton Tony's first movie was him suffering the consequences of his stupid actions and having to humble himself.

[@UATU.]

Hi Take, would you consider covering the trope of ugly=evil? In lit and films unattractiveness is often used as an indicator of character and motivation but you never see much analysis of the trope. Love your channel ❤️

[@trinaq]

I second that! In the "Wizard of Oz", Glinda tells Dorothy that "Only Bad witches are ugly", which sends an unfortunate implication in that villainous women are unattractive, while the heroines are typically conventionally cute.

[@itsgaylebitxh]

Old as evil too

[@kerrychristensen7204]

Harry Potter!

[@UATU.]

Kerry Christensen That was at the top of my mind. Rowling did it a lot with the Slytherin characters, e.g. “pug-faced Pansy Parkinson”. I’ve always thought it pretty damned lazy writing.

[@kerrychristensen7204]

@@itsgaylebitxh the old Crone, bitter and plotting to take down other women/ manipulate men because she's lost her youth/beauty

[@themoonarcana9979]

It’s funny to me that in the media there is just one smart girl surrounded by bland female characters because it’s largely created by men so the protagonist can say “you’re different/not like other girls” as a compliment. Maybe it’s time to stop making this girl so special by making the other girls bland cause we are all unique in our own way

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

Ok

[@nicelypenn]

In every movie about a smart male, all the other males that surround the smart male are bland or morons that try to challenge the smart male. This is because it's largely created by X? so the protagnist can say "you're different/not like other *?!" as a compliment. Maybe it's time to stop making these guys so special by making the other girls bland cause we are all unique in our own way. Honey, the girls just like the boys that are smart in these movies are smart because they're smart and most everybody else is indeed not smart. These girls are unique and they are special. There can only be one Einstein in the world. There can be more than one punk teenager that bullies a girl in school because she is smarter than them.

[@bobbaby6170]

Nicely Penn how dare you!? Please stop mansplaining, you bigot. It’s about time you and your patriarchy stops oppressing us with logic. Hhrrrmmph. :,-(

[@TheRedHaze3]

The protagonist is *always* unique, male or female. It's why they're the protagonist.

[@darthducky7002]

“Smart” is a comparative term. You are not really considered smart if everyone else in the room is just as smart as you. So yes a character portrait as smart must stand out somehow.

[@JoshuaFagan]

It's interesting (and by interesting I mean depressing) that when a guy's smart, he's considered "leadership material," but when a girl's smart, she's still pushed into a support role, and if she does express a desire to lead, she's considered conniving and careerist.

[@TheRedHaze3]

That's because guys are generally more assertive and confident, and desire leadership positions, while girls are more neurotic and typically desire support roles. Generally speaking. There's a reason that video games with support roles are more popular with girls. Or why jobs like nursing and psychology are dominated by women. Also just because a guy's smart doesn't mean he's considered leadership material.

[@suoutubez19]

Personable Person you’re basing your argument on stereotypes.

[@TheRedHaze3]

@@suoutubez19 No I'm not, I'm basing it on psychological tests and surveys. You know, science? Shit, where the hell do you think stereotypes *come* from anyway? They're based on trends. The Asian nerd stereotype, for example, came about because Asian parents and cultures (Chinese, Korean and Japanese ones at least) place a lot more importance on academic achievement and values jobs like lawyer and doctor more. Not all Asians are doctors and lawyers, but it's a way higher percentage (of their population) than any other demographic.

[@willek1335]

You must have missed the nice guy trope - a nerd and loner. There's two sides to every story.

[@姫里さくら-r2m]

S what he/she said is true tho

[@shrutimahant]

Harry Potter gave us two drastically contrasting smart girl characters too, Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood. Only they are both imperfect in their own ways and both very much real.

[@elenapelayo2101]

probably why they're my two favorite characters, coming from someone who's often been labelled as the "smart girl"

[@Meg_intheclouds]

And yet I am a combo of both somehow 😂

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

I wanted to agree at first, but it might be a bit of a stretch to call Luna Lovegood a smart girl. She has a lot of ideas which occasionally end up really helping Harry, but her being the "weird girl" takes away from her being the smart girl.

[@Meg_intheclouds]

@@jeremiahnoar7504 the idea I think is that she’s a creative kind of smart, she sees the world differently and so can come up with stuff no one else does

[@SingingSealRiana]

@@Meg_intheclouds same

[@sugaredoleander409]

I love seeing women in media who get to be smart but also pretty or athletic or extroverted or assertive or a basket case or all of them while also having their individual flaws and strengths. It's just a lot more reflective of reality and real women who are always multi-dimensional.

[@Ps3luvr260]

You know all people are multi-dimensional right not just women

[@Bloomingtide]

@@Ps3luvr260 Yes obviously, and still you often get subpar, one-dimensional/cliche writing when it comes to female characters in particular, whereas male characters are put front and center in stories and its narrative. Things are slowly changing thankfully but equal representation is still far from where it should be.

[@Ps3luvr260]

Bloomingtide thats a simply untrue fact in modern Hollywood. Just remember time does move so it’s not always going to be 20 years ago when these things were true. Modern Hollywood is clearly pro feminism with a vast focus on female leads and main characters as a posed to males. Just because female characters were one dimensional in the past doesn’t mean it’s okay to act like there the only ones who face this treatment. A one dimensional character is bad whether or not they are a female

[@Future_Pheonix]

@@Ps3luvr260 I think they meant that most female characters in the past were often even more one dimensional and were simply put in place either to be eye-candy, the bitch, or just "that one female character". Of course, this wasn't true in all cases and sometimes the man was one dimensional too, but they'd often be glorified for it rather than vilified or ridiculed. And today we're facing the perfect mary-sue type of character, that isn't helping women's image in society at all. But things are slowly changing and I hope women and men start being represented more realistically in popular media soon.

[@nicelypenn]

@@Bloomingtide Tell that to Homer or Sophocles.

[@km1dash6]

The smart girl trope goes back to ancient myths across cultures. Athena was a goddess of wisdom and war. The Crone was meant to be the wisest person. Even in patriarchal societies, she was councilor to kings. Other societies deemed the smart woman as having forbidden knowledge (hags and witches), or having the solution to problems no man can think of (faeries and angels). Smart women are also sometimes identified as animals, like the Kitsune in SE Asia.

[@jerkel]

There's also the story of Pandora to consider. She was pretty and pretty cunning and was sent as a punishment to men. Her opening the box, in the original myth, was done on purpose.

[@Lea-ep1bi]

Emi V She was not only cunning, she was supposed to be extremely smart as well in most tellings and by proxy intelligence in women was characterized as something dangerous and scary. She didn't dump everything bad out of the "vase" she was given, because she was curious. Additionally, e.g Artemis was widely known to never date and always stay a virgin. The only Greek heroine I can think about being actually strong is Adalanta.

[@km1dash6]

@@jerkel We don't have the original myth. Some interpretations say she's smart and beautiful, which makes her evil. Other interpretations paint her as insatiably curious. I purposefully left her out there because of her contradictory characterizations, and how both sides of the contradictory are very tropy.

[@yoonmikim5663]

Kitsune is Japan, specifically. Fox Spirits in general stem from China, and also were imported into Korea and Japan, but depending on time period and cultural context are different. The idea of Kitsune being evil and wanting to eat men's livers (since the liver was the center of a man's courage in East Asian lore) is actually a much later idea after the downfall of women in Chinese society. Before that point, they were considered special messengers of the Gods, and could be male or female. The white ones in particular were said to lead souls to their rightful place. But I also kinda think in order to cover this, you need to know about the Maiden, mother Crone model. BTW, Athene was also said to be a "virgin" and was equated to be man-like coming from Zeus's leg.

[@hermenegildakociubinska6665]

Crones, goddesess, and traditional witches have nothing to do with this trope, because none of them are girls. Greek myths don't talk about the teenage years of Athena.They are all old, very mature women and have completely different tropes associated to them. If you're looking for earlier examples of 'smart girls,' try someone like Anne Shirley, who is actually depicted as a girl in the stories about her.

[@asterfall8019]

My favourite is elle woods, she proves you can be good at anything and still be that girly girl.

[@Passions5555]

YES!

[@imsad8531]

and also be friendly and help other students instead of viewing everything as a competition

[@Passions5555]

@@imsad8531 this!

[@asterfall8019]

im sad right

[@Underpants678]

Long live Queen Elle!

[@r.babylon2885]

This "confidence" study just seems like smart people in general. Most intelligent people I've met have serious issues because they view things differently. Suicide rates are higher. Hell, there's an episode of Simpsons where Lisa makes a graph about it when Homer finds his newfound intellect problematic.

[@tavern2468]

I always think about that episode about his crayon 🖍 in the brain. That’s why they say Ignorance is bliss

[@helloworld7818]

Intellectual people have more consciousness and cognitive functions. So they are much more existential, and don't get conformed with things that other people are satisfied with, they're usually deeper than the rest. There are two kind of smart people: the ones that are smart because study a lot, and the ones that are smart because their brains work differently from the rest. Everyone can study a lot and get good grades. But not everyone can be deep and phylosophical or analize everything that sorrounds them. Dumber people are highly satisfied with their basic lives: they love eating, doing sports, getting a job, and getting married and having a family and having a lot of sex. This is just what every human being wants and they're just satisfied with this. If you look at this, you wouldn't see any difference between a chimp and a human. These are the same aspirations as a chimp could have. Intelligent people want something bigger and further, sometimes something unachievable. That's why people who study physics or maths study these things, not always, but it's because they see farther than just being a car mechanic. Or whatever

[@samtheflutegirl1373]

I think this is because, and I liked that this video addressed this, smart people think differently than other people and that makes it difficult to relate to others. Being smart isn’t just knowing a lot of facts, it’s having an innate desire to understand how things work and put that knowledge to use. So when I’m explaining to my friends a cool way to solve a problem and they just want the answer their brains are operating in a way that is fundamentally different from mine, a way I can’t understand. And that can be very isolating.

[@perennementeh4049]

Hello World I have a university degree in math and I want exactly what other "basic " people want, a happy quiet life. Being intelligent doesn't mean to want to end unhappy or to achieve the impossible, nor to consider getting married, being sportive etc as chimp desires; anyway, at the end of the day, we are animals but try to not fall in the " I'm so intelligent that I see all other people as mediocre" . Furthermore, having a high iq and don't use it to have culture and knowledge doesn't sound smart, especially if you live in the occident and you have all the privileges other people around the world don't have. I remember in the high school, the man who clean the classrooms etc I always use to see him reading book from Dumas, Dostoevskij etc that means all intelligent people have culture but not all the people with a degree are intelligent.

[@helloworld7818]

@@perennementeh4049 having a university degree in maths doesn't mean you're intelligent. It just means you studied. Anyone can do the degree they want just by studying. That doesn't make you a conscious individual, nor intellectual.

[@adaada4847]

Whenever I see a content related to being smart vs being pretty. I keep thinking about our biology teacher in high school who said that a woman can not be beautiful, smart and funny at the same time. He said that there would always be something missing. He said this to 16 year old girls. I didn’t realize how toxic it was till now...

[@she_wizzdom4410]

What a perfect piece of shit

[@anaionescu8913]

I used to think that too, as a teenager, but then I became hot and completed the trifecta 😂

[@krishafyme]

He's yet to meet me

[@asher-360]

it's probably because all the "beautiful, smart, and funny" girls avoided that man like the plague because they were too good for him :p

[@lana9656]

Movies: "smart girls wear glasses" Me:is stupid wears glasses

[@katzenfraeulein]

If you call yourself stupid you're smart enough to realize the things you don't understand and that makes you smarter than most human beings.

[@PhoenixRising87]

Don't be so hard on yourself.

[@trinaq]

I'm sure that you're not stupid, everyone is smart in SOME way!😀💞

[@aimdog2000]

i never understood that stereotype. I mean you literally have to fail a test in order to get glasses

[@lunatykoszczypior]

Me: is a fuckin genius has perfect eyesight

[@trinaq]

One thing I love about contemporary media is many works show that you can have brains AND beauty, you don't have to choose between them. I adored how in "Booksmart", they showed that just because the popular kids MAY focus on partying and having fun, doesn't mean that their futures are less bright than brainy protagonists Molly and Amy. It's cool to be smart, as fellow smart girls Matilda Wormwood, Annie Edison and Lisa Simpson demonstrate!💜📚

[@unprofessionalcritic3107]

This is the main reason I loved booksmart so much. I've never seen any other media demonstrate this. It's not like there's only a couple brainy students in any institute. A lot of them ARE very smart but not all of them are nerdy - glass wearing- don't know how to dresss or party type.

[@adotburr6494]

This is unrelated, but I like your profile picture (The Addams Family is awesome)

[@trinaq]

@@adotburr6494 Oh, thank you very much!😊 You're a fellow musical theatre fan, I see, "Wicked" is one of the BEST musicals ever created!💚🎭

[@Pikachu-vu2ri]

I totally agree!! Do you know what show is 11:00????

[@GreenWhimsy]

YES! Matilda definitely should have been included! Though I guess she's too young to be struggling with the same level of social pressures at school as the more common teen smart girls.

[@irenelehane290]

You should do "philosophic, smart, depressed" trope and "morally grey, cold, smart, ruthless, powerful, manipulative " trope I dont know if they exist but i would love to watch it 👌👌

[@usushshshshhshahahs9661]

hah basically maeve wiley

[@arkieologist]

First trope sounds like me

[@megasocky]

Ooh thats where the "i hate highschool" quote came from. Other than that, the whole "being attracted to the freaks of the school" feels so real. Not because theyre quirky, but theyre usually the most real and accepting of you. Theres an egotistical part of me that wishes to be more popular and distance myself from them, but i always feel drained and surrounded by shallow people when i try to chase after the upper people

[@hayleysataniaa_]

what film is that? can u pls tell me :(

[@hadild.8007]

sayaka igarashi it’s a tv show called Freaks and Geeks

[@LittleHobbit13]

_"Having beauty or brains is an either/or."_ This was one of my biggest complaints about Big Bang Theory. They fell HARD into this stupid narrative. The pretty women were painted as dumb even against the "nerd" intellect, and the nerdy/smart women all had something physically unappealing. The only real exception, Leslie Winkle, ended up being shifted off because she and Leonard disagreed on a theory -- A THEORY -- and so he and and Sheldon dismissed her intelligence as undesirable. For a show made while we're trying to move away from that either/or, it was a pretty bullshit depiction.

[@ebonyplummer4621]

How about Bernadette? She was both pretty and very smart. I think she was the smartest character.

[@LittleHobbit13]

@@ebonyplummer4621 Her height. They literally made a running joke out of how short she was.

[@bobbaby6170]

LittleHobbit13 I don’t like Big Bang theory as well. It’s a show mocking nerds written by high school bullies. But Penny is street smart if not book smart, Bernadette is pretty, she just doesn’t dress up as much (which is nearer to the reality of such people). Also, they go super harsh about this stereotype on the men than women (and sadly you didn’t even mention it).

[@TheRedHaze3]

Being short does not detract from a woman's attractiveness. Even if it's made into a joke.

[@PlanetZoidstar]

Big Bang Theory is a series drenched in stereotypes and problematic storytelling. That's the kind of show it is.

[@tamarag9975]

I feel like you should evaluate some of these tropes. The dumb jock, the blank protagonist, the new girl/guy, the delinquent with a heart of gold, the nice guy, good girl and bad guy love story, "she can fix him" cliche Please reply some of your favorites and I'll edit them here

[@keilamedrano1298]

The nice guy trope

[@trinaq]

The "Good Girl" being attracted to the "Bad Boy" and the "Nice Guys Finish Last" trope!😊💗

[@afiamahmood1313]

The bastard boyfriend and the bastard girlfriend trope where a characters abusive attitude towards their love interest is romanticized.

[@Firegen1]

There isn’t much to say about the “blank protagonist”. It’s an audience insert character. They are built so audience can put their own personality on top supposedly. It’s deeply silly as people always engage with motivated characters who think like them instead of the blank slate but that’s all there is to it.

[@dianaantoinette]

I'm so glad these characters are now being seen in a positive light cuz as a geek myself I went through this phase of pretending I hated school to fit in.

[@ZaxorVonSkyler]

I like learning and the idea of school, but the execution of it in the states is borderline offensive.

[@dianaantoinette]

@@ZaxorVonSkyler there are admittedly flaws in our education system and that does make school way less enjoyable cuz studying for tests and quizzes kills the creativity in us but I still find the concept of "learning" really exciting and I have had to pretend I didn't enjoy it and I'm so glad I don't have to pretend anymore.

[@trinaq]

I concur! It wasn't until the 2010's that being intelligent was perceived as being cool. In a lot of the 80's, 90's and 00's shows and movies I grew up with, there seemed to be a strong case of anti intellectualism, especially in "Saved by the Bell", where the male nerds are seen as creepy and undesirable by the girls that they try to ask out.

[@lilmess5234]

Sameen Ejaz 😂 instead of “geek” I read “greek” and then I was wondering why u pretended to hate school as a “greek”

[@fdscrl6016]

It honestly gets better once you are older and people are more mature. I'm only 21 but even when I was 19 every time I wanted to talk about more "nerdy" topics everyone was so turned off but now people also engage in those conversations. Still get made fun of for liking geeky stuff tho but honestly idc

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

I can't help but think of Nancy Wheeler as a Smart Girl and a Tough Girl. (Thanks for including her in a clip) I love that you tied this in with your dumb blonde video. Joan Holloway is both Mean Girl and Cool Girl (except not freaking skinny) and the Smart Girl.

[@analeonorcastilloramirez5085]

Jessica Victoria Carrillo remember that the cool girl stands for men’s fantasy, and in the sixties curves where the thing.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

@@analeonorcastilloramirez5085 True

[@ryleehiggins2142]

Wow that’s so true about Joan! Ugh I love her

[@ethicallysourceddonuts]

Nancy Wheeler is one of my favorite characters. I love how they bring Robin and not even a strand of competitiveness is put between the two. Although i think Robin's sexuality might have something to do with it, but i'll take whatever i can get man. In my opinion Nancy is at core a smart girl, which is true to her introduction and until the last season when she's fully aware that she's way overqualified for her job. What's great about nancy i feel like we need to give some credit to prominent male characters in her life too, such as 1. Presumably her dad who taught her how to use a gun, and 2. Jonathan who ditched his job because he believes in his girlfriend's vision. The truth is you can never really change a smart girl, not even a system, or collective shaming, stereotyping or sometimes downright ostracizing, so the least you can do as a part of a group who isn't a smart girl is just let her be who she is, or at times give her a little hand to be the awesome person that she is. Because best believe even without your help she's gonna get there herself so at least what we should do is make the world a little less hostile. And as for why i think she's a smart girl first, i think she became tough BECAUSE she is smart, the fuck-it-ill-do-it-myself type.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

@@ethicallysourceddonuts Honestly I always thought her sarcastic "Have you seen my parents?" Meant that Ted and Karen are neither outdoorsy people who get their hands on heavy duty weapons or tools

[@jazzy3037]

you should analyze "the redhead girl" trope.. aways an eccentric weirdo or an overly sexed up siren

[@aliowens1870]

Jasmine Welter Absolutely!!!!! Please do this!!!

[@crod9905]

Except for Agent Scully!

[@jazzy3037]

C Rod shes an outlier 😌

[@KindredKeepsake]

+Jasmine Welter Or a massive mega-bitch. T_T It's so mean.

[@talknight2]

Well, I still haven't met a redhead who was a "normal, average person".

[@Mini-Toast_]

Why wasn't Cristina Yang on this list. Smart girl who is very confident in herself with a hilarious streak.

[@sofia_rms]

Yess

[@Mini-Toast_]

Got my wish I guess

[@ElaBlu3]

Is this a trope? Cuz this video just describes my life. Perfectionnist, overthinker, overachiever, confident about my smarts but plagued by insecurities. Lisa Simpson, Topanga and Hermione were my role models growing up.

[@Georgie13]

Me too! Belle was and still is my favourite Disney princess. That library!!!!!!!

[@taylor_green_9]

It's a character type. You can call it a trope too, but it can be a realistic trope

[@Tima-oz5te]

I related as well, except I'm not much of a perfectionist like I used to be

[@plastictree7635]

I relate more to the analyzing people on becoming their friends-

[@_anhedonia]

i'm the same as you and i relate to all of these characters too. if you like MBTI, i'm an INFJ and several of these characters are too i think

[@luhaguilar]

Jesus Christ, I just found out that I’m a walking Hollywood trope. The ovethinker, hypersensitive and insecure girl whose grades always preceded me. The only difference is that I’m so insecure that sometimes I don’t even have the confidence that the usual smart girls do have. Nice...

[@debbieuzo9362]

Me too😪

[@ingeborg418]

Same

[@hindsightpov4218]

Luiza Aguilar Have confidence by trusting your instincts. When you see your instincts led you to making good decisions, use that to build your self esteem.

[@rainbowcake4771]

Agatha z No. Hollywood tropes are taking certain characteristics of real people and then reducing them to extreme stereotypes.

[@Missmaddiemac]

I’m in this post and I don’t like it 😩🙃

[@sokkvabekkr5973]

actually I think the glasses being associated with intelligence might come from the fact that reading a lot (like, a LOT) will hurt your eyes. I had perfect eyes as a kid but now as a teenager I had to get glasses and my eye doctor said it was because of how much I read as a kid and as a teenager. And usually ppl who read a lot are more educated and thus seem/are smart

[@dustydoe7436]

What if you read fan fiction porn all the time? It's still reading are those people smart?

[@childofgod759]

@@dustydoe7436 pfffttt-

[@AD-eg9cw]

And we're all reading right now...

[@funkyfranx]

When people read, or stare at screens, they tend to blink less. This dries your eyes out and can potentially harm your vision. Not specifically reading books.

[@sokkvabekkr5973]

@@dustydoe7436 and that's why I said *usually* lol

[@lindsaykearney5089]

Rachel Berry certainly belongs here. She was a “smart girl” but her focus was being the very best in music and theater

[@marchforth3515]

I’ve never felt more like a “smart girl” than I have felt from this video. although I am a huge procrastinator and don’t like to do more than I need to lmao

[@prateekshyaayushi4155]

Same!

[@julespeace3901]

Same. When I left everything in last minute I feel like I waste part of my potential.

[@ummesalmatahir6745]

Lol same

[@rosejasminegwyn-willis824]

May I point out some badly made trends and misunderstandings with this trope? 1. The smart girl being used as google search. The only time she talks is when the movie/story wants to pass some information to the audience. 2. Being smart= being 100% logical. They dont have morals, emotions or pretty much any feeling that makes them something other than a robat. 3. Look stereotypes. More glasses and less blonds are typical for this role 4. The smart girl that needs help. Dont even let me get started on this one. The smart nerdy girl that is just so desperate for love until the moment her party girl friend gives her the makeover and removes her glasses and suddenly she is saved and is allowed to shine. Great. Just great. 5. The girl that we are constently told that is smart (usually by the love interest) while there is nothing to show that since she is too busy being romantic and pretty. 6. The smart girl being compared to the main character, often trying to say that the main character is the real genius here while the smart girl is just a bookworm know it all. Because that would glorify the main character. 7. This character rarely shows up as main character and when she does she is changed to make sure she wont bore everyone with constant lectures. 8. Again the problem with being one dimensional. The smart girl can't fight, can't be pretty, can't like music, is too busy correcting people's gammatical mistakes and oh she absolutely can't have bad grades because being smart equals being best at school right? 😑

[@caseywilde7931]

Dude I hate these stereotypes. Hollywood really went all out on making the most one-dimensional character ever with this trope. I'm glad smart girls are starting to turn into real characters now. Although, I do ironically fit into the stereotype of a smart brunette with glasses xddd

[@rosejasminegwyn-willis824]

@@caseywilde7931 i do too 😂

[@dax_enfinity]

@@caseywilde7931 Same I also fit into the stereotype of being a brunette smart girl with glasses and I’m also tall

[@christianali5431]

Not another teen movie: "how can a girl with a ponytail AND glasses ever be beautiful enough?" The real-world facts of life: because that girl is going places and is probably destined to get a really awesome and high-paying job, which means that whoever was lucky enough to become her husband, can kick back in life and have virtually no responsibilities at all, except maybe homemaking and caring for his children. I don't know a man alive that wouldn't want that. Getting a job is boring AF.

[@BariNgozi]

Best smart girl is Matilda. Change my mind.

[@millyrobinson5757]

PERIODT.

[@5-starmichelin760]

She's aspie I think. Most of aspies are hella smart.

[@raginimishra1931]

Jo March

[@robertaavila4744]

I'd like to see a "crazy/messed up / junkie girl" trope explained (Effy Stonnen)

[@fernandaisidora2027]

Dark Paradise yasss

[@slulshie4851]

YESSSS

[@ashleyen1]

That would be interesting!

[@adannayaelicia9342]

Thats the woman child trope

[@adannayaelicia9342]

They already have a vodeo on that

[@squidwardtentacles7144]

I love how being "smart" is associated with academics and book smarts when the dictionary definition says nothing about that(smart:having or showing a quick-witted intelligence). That's all being smart is. It has nothing to do with academics. You can have good grades in school and still be "dumb". You can be smart in school and dumb on the streets. To me intelligence varies. You can be knowledgeable about one thing and ignorant when it comes to another. We shouldn't associate having good grades with being smart because that's simply just isn't the case.

[@brandon9635]

I'm sad I didn't see this yet , so damn right

[@sarcodonblue2876]

A person could have dyslexia and have terrible trouble with written communication and maths but could be incredibly intelligent and insightful.

[@mishynaofficial]

Agent Carter is the Smart Girl, Cool Girl and Tough Girl. I fucking love her.

[@grace5033]

Hi! I've got some ideas for future character type breakdowns: 1. The ingenue (she's not just this pretty princess waiting hand and foot on a man. Take this character and analyze her, not her character type. For a clearer idea of what I mean, please watch Kat Steele's princess makeup tutorial) 2. The popular girl's sidekick 3. The character with a backstory (this is typically the villain, but there are many non-villain examples)

[@carolineharvey2534]

Grace Wilbourn would love to see the sidekick one 😍 no one ever talks about them

[@Fififashionista27]

Popular Girl’s Sidekick!!!

[@Heskenclark]

Or what about “crazy girl”’s best friend? They’re really down to earth and stable

[@trinaq]

The leading lady's best friend, who is usually the token gay guy, or the sassy black woman, and how they are usually stereotyped.

[@elleyeah746]

KAT STEEEELLEEEE

[@synflwr]

The smart girl protagonist in my story isn’t booksmart, she’s extremely ambitious and clever in a cunning and manipulative way but still very intelligent. She makes people think she’s weak to avoid making enemies, increasing the chance of her surviving in her situation. So basically a Slytherin lmao.

[@nezzylearns]

Moon-Vo!d 😯 yes that’s so true. Great analogy

[@trinaq]

Coolness, there are more ways to be smart than simply "booksmart", but that's generally the most common type of intelligence that springs to mind when we hear the word "smart". 📚

[@Karma-zp7pb]

That kinda sounds like Johanna from the hunger games AKA sounds amazing

[@fangus5076]

Also the media's portrayal of smart Asians is usually really physically unattractive with no personality.

[@lahasainaypayaso3386]

I think Cho Chang from Harry Potter is quite the opposite. since aside from her being smart she's popular in the school and there are some boys who are crushing on her cause they found her beautiful and good at Quidditch. but I wish Rowling had fleshed out her character more. since her majority scene in the books is her crying over Cedric's death not much of her other personality is portrayed. but I don't considered her a bad character though.

[@kuramacabre]

@@lahasainaypayaso3386 I hated that character from the books and also from the movie. Also, she wasn't that brilliant.

[@lahasainaypayaso3386]

@@kuramacabre Well couldn't argue with that. but my main point of my previous comment is to point out that Cho Chang is few of those fictional Asian/East Asian characters that surprisingly don't have "American media stereotype" and also, same thing can be said to Viktor Krum being a jock. instead of him being an incompetent dumbass like many of jocks in Hollywood films he's instead; a brilliant and kind hearted introvert. I quite appreciate Rowling's fresh take on some western stereotypes.

[@nataliemunoz8600]

I hope my story helps someone: I've been the "smart girl" my whole life. And this is 100% accurate. I was also good at athletism and have other talents as good at drawing, artistic, good at languages (my native language is spanish) etc. That's also a lot of pressure you put to yourself. You have to be always right, and be excellent at everything. I studied Industrial Design because it combines art and technical skills. What I can confirm, is being the smart kid can be lonely at times. For some reason, people don't like when you are smarter than them, have multiple talents or you are right most of the time. Specialy men (as a romantic interest). You can be as smart or less smart than them, but never smarter. You can be, but then you will be just friends. Now I'm 37, and after years of analizing and overthinking about people, I have reached a level of understanding of "this is just the way it is". It's not bad or wrong, it's just human nature. And now, I don't give a shit of what people I don't know think about me. I can act or be stupid sometimes, but I know I'm mostly smart. I can make mistakes and not feel pressure to be always right. It also helps that I work for one of the most important tech companies, and they embrace learn by doing and trial and error. Also there a lot of smart people in there, so you feel like just another one. But for sure, I can recommend: use your full potential, do not hold back just to fit in. If the people around you is not happy with that then change your circle of friends. Be the best, and try to join the best. And if you can't, then do it alone. But do it. Some of the worst things in life, is to waste your talents. That's why they are called "gifts". Use them.

[@RealNormHall]

When it comes to dating smartness can be the same money for women where she might want you if you are rich as her or richer than her but NOT poorer than her, sad! But as with everything not everybodys the same, eg I know many women who know many guys that are into them intelligence and all but choose the guys that are problematic instead and leave the other guys in the friend zone.

[@nataliemunoz8600]

@@RealNormHall interesting comparison.

[@sunny100294]

I'm not super smart, but probably above average. Most men I have dated were "not as smart" as me, or at least they were always in awe of how smart I was. Also in my group at friends (we're master's students and some starting their PhDs now) all men feel attracted to smart or even smarter women. I am 25 so maybe times have changed and maybe I'm just not so smart, that it would intimidate men, but yea can't fully confirm that.

[@vsboardza]

Thank you!

[@rhyscooper3693]

One of the reasons that "smart people" can feel alienated or attacked is because of a culture of competition. It can also make the smart person act from a position of supremacy and thus patronising, rude and obnoxious. Even the way that you've phrased the above, being "the best" means you've put yourself into an elite place in the hierarchy. If someone else has skills or talents that you don't have, you will often make a hierarchy of hierarchies so that you continue to feel validated. Bullies drag you down when they can't compete with you fairly. Everyone is insecure and defensive in a context like this.

[@rymiox8109]

My sister is the most smart and prettiest women I've ever seen in my life , I don't think being smart means you have to be away from others and can't get along , both of my siblings are pretty and smart and so much lovable between others , so you smart women or men should be proud of yourselves there's no shame in taking care of your self while feeding your brain with knowledge and interacting with people, in fact interacting with people who has different way of thinking than you and still bonding with them makes you a wonderful person.

[@NatureFreak1127]

Get out of her own way - to transcend her hypersensitivity and overthinking, so that she can do something to improve the world. This is literally what i was thinking about today.

[@js66613]

"I pick up books like you pick up beers." Okay, that part was definitely me when I was younger. Had to slow down a bit for various reasons. But coming from Lisa, saying this to Homer, it really is saying something about how many books she reads. XD Also "then you have a serious reading problem" sounds even more hilarious within this video for some reason. Not sure what episode that is from again, but I'd love to watch it, having heard that quote.

[@JovianKronos]

The episode is called "at long last leave", the one where the Simpsons got kicked out of Springfield. It's was also the 500th episode.

[@dsmyify]

What was interesting about that part was it showed how framing of the argument can hide information. With the smart girl framing it was completely missed that Homer admitted to being an alcoholic.

[@sophiafinucane1724]

This makes me REALLY want to see a The Take ugly Betty analysis please

[@lornai7171]

Diane Ngyuen in BoJack Horseman is one of my favourite characters: complex, intelligent and witty, although prone to making questionable choices in love and career.

[@kal2487]

It's like someone finally sees me. This was worth several years of therapy.

[@melikec6996]

Can't get enough of these archetype videos because I feel like I do some sort of psychonanalysis on myself

[@realsanmer]

Amity Blight is a fantastic take on this trope. Used-to-be perfectionist and a hostile star student that gradually shifts into a loving, awesome girlfriend for the main protagonist, as well as making amends with those she hurt in the past, *while* keeping her characteristic organization and intelligence intact. The Owl House is such a good show, I swear.

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

Interestingly, you would think the Smart Girl Trope would include a lot of Asian characters due to old and lingering racist fears of the Asian American Whiz Kid of the 80s and Rise of Asian Countries or the stereotypes of Asian Math Whizzes.

[@thefrancophilereader8943]

Right. This Asian smart girl is part of the damaging "model minority" stereotype.

[@esyphillis101]

It’s got to do with Asian parenting. Which hasn’t changed all that much. But things are evolving slowly. :)

[@timothyo718]

The Bronze Age of DC Comics Hollywood typical casts Asian females as the attractive love interest of a white male protagonist instead of the smart girl trope. Asian males are more likely casted with the smart/nerdy boy trope.

[@clocko2700]

Woah, being seen as smart... that sucks

[@timothyo718]

clock o Don’t be obtuse. No one is arguing that being smart is bad. However when it relates to Asians the smart Asian stereotype creates limitations. It so ingrained in society that the smart Asian trope is expected not the exception. Being a slacker, or even of normal intelligence is simply not allowed. IRL people will look at you weird if you suck at math as an Asian.

[@kinrateia]

I was put into smart girl trope since really young age. It's so refreshing to watch this and relate, I finally feel like someone understands

[@katykinard1610]

This hit me right in the feels. As a “smart girl”, I always felt the pressure to perform and achieve. I’m in my 30s now and I’m very privileged that I was able to pause my career and be a SAHM (this has greatly improved my mental health) but I still feel the weight of others expectations

[@Sam_on_YouTube]

If you like this, I also suggest the Trope Talk playlist from Overly Sarcastic Podcast. Very different style, but also a great take on a lot of tropes.

[@korereviews8088]

Very well done, as usual. Thanks for this! One thing I would have liked to have seen was a connection of the smart-girl trope with the ugly-duckling trope. Because in soooo many versions of the smart-girl, she starts out with glasses and tied-back hair, only to be "revealed" as a hot girl by the end of the story, when she throws her (always) long hair back and tosses away the glasses, thus making the (totally awful) point that it's only okay for girls to be smart if they can also pass as "hot". And even now, most of the examples of smart girls in the clips you showed were of barbie dolls with glasses on. Yes, there's been some progress, but still too often girls get the message that intelligence may be okay, but hotness has to be their priority.

[@edonaasani3714]

But why do smart girls have to be academic genius’ that are socially awkward and hostile or can we have a socially adjusted smart girl that isn’t defined by her intellect, its just one of her traits.

[@rainbowbgood]

Well, when society reflects intelligence we'll be well-adjusted! I've used my smarts to find out it's mostly trauma and health issues that prevents that from happening. Intelligence is highly linked to being on a high vibration. Outside of fear.. the world is just highly traumatized and that makes things uncomfortable for everyone. Shows a lot on smart people because it's not in line with us to just get comfy on that low vibration. We are always fighting it ha ha. So it's a good thing.

[@RealNormHall]

Do you know smart and sexy guys.. Other than Sheldon Cooper that is ;) Also would you say you are 'smart girl' who is also socially adjusted yourself?

[@sarcodonblue2876]

Society only sees people as being one dimensional and people emulate what they see on TV. Most people are defined by one or two aspects of themselves and choose to do this to fit in.

[@lemontales5859]

I graduated #9 in my class and then in my 20s i got into a horribly abusive relationship, got addicted to drugs(of and clean for 5 yrs now), wracked up so much (and i cannot stress this enough) stupid debt, lost custody of one of my children from all this and now currently live in a hotel room. Its extended stay, mind you, with a cute kitchenette. Im working my way back to normal and safe now. But that feeling of being the smart girl in school led me to believe i would be ok through the sheer grace of my smarts.

[@TheEureka00]

Learning more about neurodivergence in general I feel like some tropes come from actual traits more pronounced among individuals with ADHD, ASD etc. Among them anxiety, rejection sensitivity and injustice sensitivity.

[@draco89123]

I think a lot of the reason people slot people into either or groups is the psychological wrangling of envy. That person is beautiful, they must be dumb. That person is smart, can't be street smart. Etc. Accepting the sad reality that there are people with all those things or none of those is a tough pill to swallow. But I will say this. You play the cards your dealt, even if it's a shitty hand. People respect game, maturity, and humbleness more than anything.

[@learn2draw716]

Humility is for suckers.

[@esmeraldaloschuetz9120]

What particularly struck me as limiting & unfair when I was growing up in the 90ies, was the notion that a smart girl always has to be uptight somehow, boring & square, a buzzkill, and sexually demure or restricted. There are very few examples of smart girls in media that are also very openly sexual / sensual. It's a centuries-old prejudice, stemming from the early days of female education - when people seriously believed that too much brain activity could make a woman infertile or frigid; that a smart / educated woman can't be a sexual being with carnal desires at the same time. I feel like a lot of us are still struggling against that deep-seated societal prejudice.

[@ElaBlu3]

Damn! Yes!!! Never thought of this but so true!!!

[@RealNormHall]

Yeah you hardly see smart guys being very sexual, unless you think braces, suspenders and lisp is sexy/sensual?

[@safsafware1088]

Maybe she is uptight because she doesn't want to invest her time in bad relationship since most people isn't as smart as her ,she thinks of them as shallow and dumb, or she doesn't want to get pregnant by mistake because that would hold her back from her ambition.

[@esmeraldaloschuetz9120]

@@safsafware1088 I really think the writers of these characters didn't think this through so far. I think they were prejudiced and couldn't imagine a girl as smart AND sexy. Simple as that.

[@DefineMorena]

@@ebonyplummer4621 👏🏽 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@Krisvasileva-w7z]

Jane Eyre is definitely a smart girl

[@monicaganderson9431]

And Lizzie Bennett

[@bobsburgers8497]

Lol I hated that book so much but u right

[@stefaniewithanf7026]

I dunno, marrying Rochester doesn't seem all that smart to me.

[@estelle0377]

She judged other girls without knowing them and always talk like she’s above the mundane girly matters. She then proceeded to compare herself to those girls and felt insecure. Like sis i thought you said you didn’t care about their vanity? And are we supposed to feel sorry for you now? Umm no...

[@kgrimes4934]

Hmm, I don't know, while she values and wants an education, she see some higher pursuits as frivolous. Someone mentioned "not like other girls". I think that fits better.

[@femininefamous22]

The "bad guy who gets nice after you spent time to get through his layers" trope

[@renato_steveng]

I can't believe that the 2010's ultimate smart girl, Spencer Hastings didn't even get a clip.

[@climbinguphill]

I’m sorry but Rory is not idealistic, she can be extremely selfish and manipulative. She can be a pretty bad friend, daughter, or girlfriend at any given time. I am not really sure what Alexis was referring to...

[@steamboatwill3.367]

So are a lot of male characters but no one brings that up.

[@climbinguphill]

Steamboat Willie. I agree, and they aren’t idealistic either. I would never want anyone regardless of gender to think that someone who uses other people or leads them along is an ideal.

[@danix4919]

climbinguphill ikr I think Alexis was saying her opinion on Rorys character change from after college. How she was a perfect student and became a mess

[@MrDavidKord]

Rory started out idealistic, and the writers didn't realize they were ruining her character with some of their decisions. The trope still applies, imo.

[@MrDavidKord]

@@climbinguphill Jess didn't arrive until season 2, homeslice. It was Dean only season 1.

[@isabelberger9441]

Currently wondering how much of my personality today came from admiring characters like this during my formative years (and some today to some extent). 🧐 Time to have an existential crisis.

[@soumyachandrakar8697]

Do you have a favourite character that you often find yourself finding similarities with?

[@vineetkaur7701]

@@soumyachandrakar8697 diane from bojack😶

[@soumyachandrakar8697]

@@vineetkaur7701 Bro sameee!

[@5-starmichelin760]

Literally same.

[@isabelberger9441]

@@soumyachandrakar8697, Lisa Simpson, Hermione Granger, Daria, the list goes on and on lol.

[@evildoesnotsleep-x2b]

my mother said 'you can be smart or pretty' when i was a girl and it took me so many years to escape this false dichotomy

[@finer3732]

Your mom was "the pretty" one, i guess?

[@noonebossesthegarnet2890]

Mizuki Miu Ouch lmao 😂

[@leaczinkota1979]

Well, you can be both

[@sarahthomas8670]

@@finer3732 😭☠️🤚🏾

[@isabellegrayson9134]

This is one of the most psychologically intellectual channels I’ve seen on KZbin. Their analyses are so socially intelligent and they covered many common tropes in movies/shows that usually put into words descriptions I normally couldn’t or skip over.

[@antiawarenessawarenessclub]

The fact that I didn’t realise Shuri was a “smart girl” until she showed up in this video, wow

[@robinfa1477]

I know she was in the tough girl video, but I think Mulan is a smart girl as well. Her way of thinking is ahead of its time and she has a hard time fitting in because of it. She wants to be able to speak her mind more freely, and is a creative problem solver, coming up with strategies that Li Shang (who was first in his class in military matters) or any other soldier couldn't come up with. It seems like even her martial arts skills may have tapped in when she tried studying them from an intellectual perspective. We also see the creative way she feeds the chickens, her chess (or go or whatever that game was) skills, and how hard she is on herself. She was even asked to be on the council. In books and comics, she is also seen as very intelligent as well, with a strong desire to learn.

[@RedVelvetUnderground333]

They’re made to be ‘ugly’ but I don’t see it 🤷‍♀️

[@warbler1984]

I never got the Ugly Betty one...they took someone who is fairly attractive and did a poor job of making her unattractive.

[@hindsightpov4218]

The smart girl is usually not fashionable more so than being physically ugly. Give her a makeover and she becomes one of the prettiest girls in group.

[@caseywilde7931]

My mom and I never see any girl as ugly for whatever reason. I'm telling you, there's always SOMETHING pretty about every girl, and this is coming from someone who is a straight girl so it's not even limited to sexually preferring girls.

[@caseywilde7931]

@@hindsightpov4218 Unfortunately, Hollywood's idea of makeover is "take off her glasses and ponytail"

[@RedVelvetUnderground333]

Casey Wilde saaaame

[@neversaynever997997]

I sincerely love your videos. You opened a world for me, helping me to understand how media, movies and tv shows can influence the way we think, and that sometimes this doesn't always reflect reality. I'm feeling more aware and this is because of your videos. Thank you for your work. It really inspires me.

[@kirk001]

As the sheldon cooper stereotype myself, I really appreciate the smart girl/smart woman types, especially awkward ones. LOL

[@000-m7q]

I have associated myself with the Smart girl for the most part of my life. Yet I also have a strong feeling that I'm not actually one. More of a good liar who pretends to be extremely put together, hardworking and nice while at school. At home I just lie down for the most part, or play music, or draw. I have quite big problems with my diet. And overall my image of the Smart one is so not true that I feel like a liar most of the time. It's exhausting.

[@riverAmazonNZ]

Евгения Левушкина sounds like you have good work-life balance to me

[@eltiospike7672]

Well, there are two possible explanations for that. 1. You Are pretending to be smart and deep inside you know that you are not 2. You are suffering from Impostor Syndrome. In both cases, you shouldn't be worried tho.

[@5-starmichelin760]

If you're seen as hella smart and spend lots of time doing "nothing", I may tell you you're actually *very* smart, since you barely need effort to get there.

[@Toboe512]

I hope they do the quirky girl trope next Also, I’d like to see a whole video on the nice guy trope

[@pichrasmeyrin3629]

I cried my eyes out when I failed my Statistics mid-term examination last week. So tragic, so humiliating.

[@MyKrabi]

It does get better .... don't let it get you down. You can always retake the course. Believe I know - same thing happened to me and am now on my way to med school.

[@vluessky]

Your KZbin channel should become a Netflix show, not because Netflix deserves it, but because all of these videos you guys make should be watched by everyone, especially girls!!!!

[@gwena9043]

Absolutely love the trope series, you guys always do such an on-point analysis ❤️

[@danielanunez9852]

I study social anthropology and I can say it really does help to make socializing much easier I love it ❤️

[@siddhiraskar5464]

Your channel is gold!, love these stereotype breakdown series

[@Sophia.Stark17]

You guys should really do an analysis on How I met your Mother at some point! (yes of course the ending was crappy, but still it has some brilliant writing moments)

[@hhhhh-me1fb]

As a smart girl living in Korea and being half Thai, fully Asian, I’ve always been pressured since I love studying and learning new things, but then I over achieve and then if I don’t I feel like I’m having a downfall.. I still think that, it’s just so deeply in my brain, if I fail I feel that I’m not good enough.

[@222-p2q]

I didn't do well in school at all but in college I'm thriving. I think it's only because I don't have to worry about 10 totally different subjects and can put all my focus on topics I'm interested in. Also I started doing extra curricular activities and discovered that I m not stupid rather I'm a very fast learner, my trainers were really impressed. I thought if you fail School then ur life is over but in reality it's a new start to numerous opportunities

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

Please do the TOMBOY TROPE! Please!

[@seamr05]

The Bronze Age of DC Comics look at the cool girl trope. The cool girl is a guy in a girls body.

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

Cool Girl is what replaced Tomboy. Look back and you will find a difference.

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

To clarify for the ignorant: The Cool Girl and Tom Boy are not the same. The CG has elements of TB like interests but the TB eschews traditional femininity that the CG possesses in spades. Also, the TB is socially a rebel and challenges the boys, even confronts them, while the CG (The Elaine Benes type) is unrealistically one of the boys. Bottom Line: The TB is Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird while the CG is Mikayla Baines.

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

@@seamr05 No. See the second comment I just added.

[@livlaughloveanime]

This reminds me of the Candy Apple books I read when I was in middle school. There was one I really liked where a smart, social outcast started running for class president under the assumption that the preferred candidate, a pretty and popular girl, was only running for status and didn't actually care about making the school a better place. It wasn't until she actually talked to the popular girl that she realized how intelligent and caring she actually was, and how all of the stereotypes she had generated were unfair and wrong.

[@carom4996]

I think I’m a smart girl, but I’m lazy AF

[@aimdog2000]

you don’t have to box yourself into one personality

[@arricherie]

A C thats so true, thank you

[@nrkgalt]

Being smart but lazy has its advantages. You will be motivated to work more efficiently.

[@MrPolyalert]

This is why I love Book Smart! It really puts into perspective how the old “smart girl trope” affects girls in how they perceive themselves and others. Wish I saw that movie when I was in high school...

[@jbennett87]

Id love to get into the "angry black woman" trope, or even the "best friend" trope, who are usually women of color supporting White women (but not always, Lucy and Ethel).

[@bbrbbr-on2gd]

I wish Major Margaret Houlihan was included in this. She had a great episode in M*A*S*H* where she explains how she feels to the other nurses and about being left out as a peer. It's an amazing episode that's honestly one of the shows best.

[@Georgie13]

I love that episode. She was never my favourite character when I was younger but after rewatching MASH as an adult she became one of my favourites because she was so driven.

[@aryssamansfield9735]

That episode hit my soul

[@nrkgalt]

bbr64 bbr64 The other nurses assumed that she would regard fraternizing with them as a breach of military protocol, especially since she was an Army brat and was raised in the military.

[@aryssamansfield9735]

@@nrkgalt the reason she was so intense on the military protocol was because she never fit in with the other nurses. She feels alone and isolated by her ambition and dedication to regular army. She wants to prove she's better/the best but also wants to be included. top tier smart girl trope

[@douglasphillips5870]

great example!

[@ComfortablyPlump]

Can you do some underrated black movies for Black History Month? Like Belle, Queen of Katwe, Dreamgirls, and Beyond the Lights?

[@parisedits5453]

joseph adel I lost braincells reading this... your joking right? Because that would be the only reason you would type something like this 😂🤦‍♀️

[@alext3480]

@@parisedits5453 this person is a FOOL

[@shinobukouchou680]

Hey girlie, I'm guessing you are a black girl and wanted to see this channel seek out more black girls to represent those tropes. I, too, am also a black girl. This channel focuses on tropes portrayed in movies not analysis of the movies themselves. We have so little representation in movies that we don't even get to see ourselves much in tropes. Please ignore the two heartless, condescending comments above mine. Their ignorance blinds them from the understanding where you are coming from. You are not stupid nor are you a fool. You just noticed we black girls don't even have enough characters to even have tropes. I mean this so lovingly (:

[@idontknow7005]

I love how now everyone in the comments has suddenly got an IQ of 150

[@curiousbaby7918]

Used to think or actually is smart . But then I get curious and wanted to be that cool and popular girl going to club, smoke sometime, skip school. Then it affects my grade and then think I am actually dumb and start to accept that. But I remember being smart and love reading before social media came to me and highschool movies . Now I don't give an f anymore. I don't really like club tbh. And I hate smoking. I hates bad grade I love reading. I love staying home and watch KZbin. I even quit social media cause I'm not myself there. And I am better now. Live with less expection of other. Honestly just be yourself. Do things that actually matter for you. And you truly enjoyed what you are doing.

[@ferreiraisabella]

same

[@VultureClone]

"Don't give me that women's libs crap." Imagine having a character say, "Don't give me that black rights crap." Or, "Don't give me that gay rights crap." You wouldn't dare. But for some reason it's acceptable (still) to ridicule women's rights..

[@toomuchinformation]

Because the above egs include MEN.

[@greatwavefan397]

Reminds me of a meme: "Me running from the library after putting a book on women's right's in the comedy secton:"

[@collegestudent967]

Idk based on that woman’s hair in that clip, that show came out a while ago. That absolutely wouldn’t fly by today’s standards and if it were in a show, that character would most definitely be one dimensionally bad