These girls are alright

By Rachel Montpelier Gender stereotypes seem less and less pervasive with these young women around. How the past two decades have seen a rise in the Outside Girl. Who are the “Outside Girls”? The Outside Girls do not need—or, some- times, even want—people to like them. The This character trope has appeared in litera- fact that they are unlike anyone else only ture and popular culture throughout history, adds to their self-esteem. Their appear- but has become a much more frequent ances are not their top priorities. Boyfriends occurrence since the ‘90s. The Outside Girl and girlfriends come and go, but none of is a character (usually in her late teens or these women are defined by their romances early twenties) who is unable to relate to or a desire for love. That being said, these her peers and actively withdraws from them. women are allowed to be sexually agentic She is intelligent, independent and funny. without warranting the viewer’s judgment. Yet she cannot or will not fit in. In fact, her Basically, the Outside Girl is who she is and isolation is twofold: she is different from accepts that. And, as a result, we accept everyone else in her universe, but she is her. also an anomaly amongst the usual female characters. Characters fitting this description include:

This trope started centuries ago—think Miss ♦ Daria Morgendorffer of Daria Bennett rejecting Mr. Darcy’s initial proposal ♦ Juno MacGuff of Juno or Edna Pontellier walking away from her marriage and children for the potential joy ♦ Jessica Darling of Sloppy Firsts, Second in solitude—but has repeatedly pervaded Helpings, etc. by Megan McCafferty our culture, beginning with the multiple ♦ Veronica Mars of Veronica Mars examples of girl power in the mid-nineties. ♦ April Ludgate of Parks and Recreation Instead of seeing constant depictions of ladies ceding their identities to the men in ♦ Angela Chase of My So-Called Life their lives or trying desperately to be just an- ♦ Lindsay Weir of Freaks and Geeks other face in the crowd, modern audiences ♦ Enid Coleslaw of Ghost World by Daniel have the privilege of experiencing more and Clowes more women living life on their own terms. These women are not Rachel Greens, Car- …and many more. So, if these ladies are rie Bradshaws, Meredith Greys, Jess Days not happy-go-lucky Everywomen, who are or Pam Beeslys. In fact, the Outside Girls they exactly? would probably actively mock the preceding characters. The bitch is back many ways—rape, loss of a friend, parental abandonment, social isolation—that we feel In Robert Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychol- how hard it is for her to connect to anyone ogy of Persuasion, the author describes one else. And if you overcame all of that to stand of the most powerful persuasive tricks: the on your own two feet, wouldn’t you also liking rule. Basically, Cialdini argues that we want other victims to take the same route are more willing to be persuaded by or for and stick up for themselves? Veronica is the a friend, or another person we like. What is viewer’s hero, but she can also be cruel if interesting about the Outside Girls is their others do not adhere to her sky-high stan- behavior—which is not always objectively dards. likable—and how the viewer can’t help but root for them and constantly keeps coming Or take April Ludgate, whose apathy and back to them. In other words, even when the anger just adds to her hilarity. To be frank, girl is acting like a complete bitch, we are her unpleasant demeanor and rude remarks almost always on her side. are the traits that enable the audience to like her. She says the thoughts we wish we The Outside Girls are human; they are could verbalize. When April enters a beauty three-dimensional characters complete with contest—purely for the award money—she contradictions, vulnerabilities and mistakes. quits in the middle of the competition when And being completely human, they do not she learns that the cash prize goes towards automatically win the audience’s sympathy building a new fence. She walks off stage 100 percent of the time. Honestly, some- and, with a straight face, announces to the times you hate them and sometimes you camera and audience: “No, I didn’t win. love them, but you always like them. They But at least I didn’t make any new friend- are real characters, real representations of ships.” April is not only wholly unconcerned what it means to be a young woman with a about how others judge her appearance, brain. You relate to these girls, whether they she can’t even be bothered to pretend she are enacting the best or worst versions of cares about other people liking her. This, in themselves. turn, makes other characters and the audi- ence like her all the more. In fact, her boss For example, when Veronica Mars verbally characterizes her secretarial expertise as attacks a high school patron in “Hot Dogs,” “aggressively mean and apathetic.” But Ron the audience winces at her callousness and Swanson doesn’t see that as a bad thing: her refusal to nurture another outsider. But “April really is the whole package.” Even we also get it. Veronica has been hurt in so though the Outside Girls can be difficult, sar- are happy to be excluded by their vacuous, castic and brutally honest, Ron’s perspec- idiotic peers. Don’t mistake their sarcasm as tive shows how people other than the viewer masked self-loathing. I’m sure these women can appreciate them. April is a valued part of have their doubts and insecurities, but also the Parks Department because she cares so know they are better off on their own. After little about other people’s feelings. The less all, who is less bearable: Daria or Brittany? she cares, the funnier she is, and the more the audience laughs. An intertextual inclination And then there is Daria, a crucial predeces- sor to Veronica and April. As Rebecca C. Consider the following nods to other texts: Hains notes, this character “dislikes many ♦ Joss Whedon, Alyson Hannigan and things about the world in which she lives Charisma Carpenter making appear- and has a pessimistic view of the social life ances on Veronica Mars and quality education at her high school.” ♦ Lisa Simpson meeting idol Daniel Although Hains correctly makes the case Clowes that an unpleasant attitude results in “social exclusion,” she fails to note that charac- ♦ Jessa Johansson’s interaction with ters like Daria do not underestimate alien- Danielle Brooks of OITNB ation. Daria’s demeanor is dark, but what ♦ Claire Fisher mocking the girls of Buffy makes her special is that she is obviously the Vampire Slayer completely fine with herself. Everyone else ♦ Frances Ha featuring Girls’ Adam Driver sucks. “Don’t worry. I don’t have low self- esteem,” she assures her mother and fa- ♦ Aubrey Plaza (April Ludgate) playing ther. “I have low esteem for everyone else.” Daria for CollegeHumor And she makes that startlingly clear. When ♦ Alia Shawkat (Maeby Funke) and talking about bubbly cheerleader Brittany, Michael Cera appearing on Veronica Daria remarks, “she’ll have to watch out for Mars and referencing the show on ferrets building a nest in her head.” Brittany Arrested Development is conventionally attractive and kind to a Or the other references to existing scholars, fault, but there is next to nothing going on writers and artists: upstairs. The best part of Outside Girls like Daria goes beyond their independence and ♦ Rory Gilmore’s reading list, pop cultural skewed view of life. It’s the fact that they references ♦ Marjane Satrapi reading The Second eye-rolling. In fact, these women are linked Sex by Simone de Beauvoir by more than their general philosophies. ♦ Alison Bechdel making sense of her There are constant callbacks and nods to relationship with her father through the other Outside Girls. As Karin E. Westman Icarus myth aptly puts it, “as a viewer, you either get the reference or you don’t.” But, trust me, if you ♦ Enid Coleslaw mocking Sassy are paying the least bit of attention, you will ♦ Alex Vause reading Wild by Cheryl notice the connections amongst all of these Strayed women. ♦ Kat Stratford reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, cemented his show’s influence over ♦ Margot Tenenbaum and Suzy Bishop Veronica Mars by making a cameo appear- reading Wes Anderson-specific books ance. In turn, Alyson Hannigan (Willow) and ♦ Jessica Darling’s preoccupation with Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia) also had movies from the 1980s recurring appearances in Neptune, Calif. ♦ Jenny Mellor lying about meeting C.S. Lisa Simpson encountering one of her per- Lewis in order to sneak off with David sonal idols, Daniel Clowes (the Ghost World writer and cartoonist), is her way of showing ♦ Juno MacGuff bonding with Mark through solidarity with Enid. Frances Ha received music and horror movies multiple comparisons to Girls because it In her analysis of Persepolis, Nancy K. follows a young, narcissistic underemployed Miller observes the literary and feminist con- woman in New York City. This similarity is nection between Marjane and her mother. deepened—and implicitly acknowledged— Miller describes the “relations between texts by Adam Driver’s presence in both texts. and readers—readers existing in different Claire’s disdain towards Buffy and the other historical times and ideological situations, as Scoobies is very ironic, considering that well as quite literally different physical loca- Claire and Buffy have a lot in common and tions, who connect through books.” To incor- the fact that the two shows share plenty porate additional books, film and television of guest stars. Lena Dunham’s choice to series to Miller’s argument, the Outside Girls cast Danielle Brooks (Taystee of Orange is are different because they are inherently the New Black) is her way of acknowledg- aware of one another. Amongst these young ing another female-run show about strong women, intertextuality is as common as women. Aubrey Plaza playing Daria in a CollegeHumor video underlines how April need each other and we couldn’t exist with- Ludgate could not exist without Daria’s trail- out each other. The Outside Girls are not blazing presence. Alia Shawkat appearing random, mutually exclusive, disconnected on Veronica Mars and being jokingly-cen- feminist creations. They are characters who sored from mentioning it on Arrested Devel- are aware of each other, share mutual re- opment is a sly reference to the competition spect and are responsible for promoting and between networks. It is also a sign of ca- thanking their predecessors and peers. maraderie between two critically-acclaimed/ viewer forsaken shows. No one watched And think about this: I know that these them, but at least they had each other. characters read religiously because their creators depict them reading and mull- The preceding connections are more than ing different artists and intellectuals’ work. mere coincidences; they are the artists’ Not many television shows, movies, or acknowledgment of each other’s presence even books depict their characters actively and common ground. Their awareness of studying and reading. This character trait one another and the subtle references to is a depiction of the Outside Girls’ evident each other suggest that the texts are not intelligence, but it also signifies the way merely standalones. These texts span differ- art and theory influence the way they live, ent mediums, time periods, universes and whether those influences are specific to the plotlines. However, they all work together character’s universe or not. to bolster these unique female characters and their presence in our culture. As Miller We need to see Kat reading Plath in order to claims, the “past inhabits the present and understand her feminist leanings. The story the present reinterprets memory.” Even if of one woman’s crumbling sanity is what Kat Daria and Parks and Recreation premiered needs to preserve her own. Likewise, we a good decade apart from each other, they need to consider de Beauvoir and Marji’s are still intrinsically connected, as are all of relationship to her mother in order to fully the Outside Girls. understand why reading The Second Sex shapes her life. Marji mimics her mother and While this continuous intertextuality amongst follows some of de Beauvoir’s advice, all different characters and their respective while discovering her own feminist identity. creators is seemingly a pay-off for devoted Juno’s preference for cheesy horror movies fans and pop culture academics, it is actu- over contemporary films is a clue as to why ally signifying something quite different: we she feels more comfortable talking to a mar- ried man than to her own friends. In short, and as much as the Outside Girls them- knowing the characters’ interests, inspira- selves are probably proud of going against tions and favorite texts means we are able the grain, there is another element that must to know them better. be addressed: most of the Outside Girls are white and upper middle-class. Although they Take Alex Vause’s choice to read Wild. Alex are subversive and unique in the universe might be reading that because she is incar- of pop culture and literature, they actually cerated and trying to imagine life on the out- represent a real portion of the population side. Or maybe Strayed’s account of healing that already has lot going for them. Rachel after personal and familial tragedy is how Dean-Ruzicka opines that this overarching Alex stays inspired to survive her seemingly whiteness (among the Outside Girls and endless sentence. In either case, we are the general media) “appears to be the un- better able to relate to Alex by seeing her marked norm that all others are measured personal interests made manifest. Or con- in relation to.” This isn’t to diminish the white sider Rory Gilmore’s never-ending reading Outside Girls in any way, but it is important list. Part of understanding why she is differ- to consider. When you are white, financially ent is acknowledging her addiction to books. comfortable and live a pre-destined life Rory’s constant reading (an emotional es- complete with numerous expectations, it is cape from the world around her) contributes relatively easy to walk away from it all. But it to her spatial distance from others. is also easy to come right back when things What all this means is that you are doing get real. so much more when you are watching Girls Some Outside Girl texts are whitewashed or reading Fun Home. You are consuming without comment, while others use their that text and the remains of the other media racially privileged leads for political com- that informed it. Following one Outside Girl’s mentary. As Caralyn Bolte notes in “Normal story is to follow all of their stories, and to is the Watchword,” Buffy and Veronica Mars be aware of the interests, art and education are on opposite ends of the spectrum that that shape them. depicts contemporary racial and class ten- sions. “If Sunnydale is a remarkably white, Poor little rich, white girls upper middle-class, political issue-free zone, Neptune is its polar opposite,” Bolte As much as I credit them for being outside explains. “The 90909 zip code, white, rich, the mainstream (which takes a lot of guts), and spoiled, is juxtaposed against the mul- tiethnic, distinctly working class neighbor- rally separate her from the crowd. Marjane hoods on the outskirts of town.” Veronica, cannot return to Iran without giving up her despite her whiteness, forms alliances with rights as a woman, yet she is constantly the economic and racial minorities in her on the outside in Europe because of her hometown. Even though Veronica and a few exotic looks and her knowledge of Iran’s other white Outside Girls are aware of their tragic devolution. Both of these ladies make privilege and work for social causes, they a conscious choice to walk away from the still have the room to explore—and possibly status quo, but the outsider status they reject—their lives on the margins. The Out- were born with makes it impossible to ever side Girls of color do not have that liberty. really return. Heroines like Veronica Mars might be aware that injustice surrounds them, but they still Now consider Marjane and Alike in rela- benefit from the inequality (whether they like tion to Angela Chase, Lindsay Weir or Rory it or not). Gilmore. All three of those young women make an active choice to walk away from There are a few international Outside Girls their set group of friends and try something I have noticed, including Adele of Blue is different. Arguably, Angela and Lindsay do the Warmest Color (who also comes from it for voyeuristic purposes. Before they in- a working class family), but the only char- evitably go to college and get on the edu- acters that are racial minorities or deal with cation-job-marriage-children conveyor belt, blatant racial relations in their stories are they want to experience life on the other Marjane of Persepolis and Alike of Pariah. side of the tracks. Sex, drugs and rock ‘n Although both women come from middle- roll follow, of course. Even though audi- class families, they do not have the luxury ences can recognize the characters’ need of choosing their otherness. Yes, Marjane is to step away from their previous selves the one who exiles herself from Iran when and experience anything else, there is no she is in her early twenties. Likewise, Alike real assumption that they will stay with the chooses to leave her family when it be- Rayanne Graffs or Kim Kellys of the world. comes clear that her parents will never ac- We don’t have the privilege of seeing them cept the fact that she is a lesbian. Make no through to adulthood, but there is a whiff mistake, both of these women are extremely of impermanence when Angela dyes their strong and brave, but neither is fully in con- hair and Lindsay dons her dad’s old army trol of her own status. Alike cannot shed her jacket. Rory, on the other hand, walks away skin or her sexuality, both of which natu- for educational purposes and to give her mind something to do. She doesn’t outright studies about female representations in the reject Lane Kim or her other friends in Stars media. Most of the time, female characters Hollow, but they are not living the life she are either sexualized beyond recognition or desires. Her constant studying and long they are confined to the goals of marriage, term goals (Harvard and a journalism ca- motherhood and a happy home. Guess reer) subtly steer her away from the life her what? Most women you encounter in reality mother made for herself. In any case, Rory will not fit in either category, or might even is also always welcome to go back to the be in both at the same time. That’s why it hole she left at home. is refreshing to consider the Outside Girls. It is hard to put them in boxes, which is a You see, there is no threat of political or so- positive sign for the trajectory of the female cial exile for Angela, Lindsay or Rory. At the character in pop culture and literature. end of the day, their families are always able and willing to take them back when they are The Outside Girls actively resist norms done thumbing their noses at convention. I within their own worlds and, in turn, are able love and relate to Angela, Lindsay and Rory, to destabilize common assumptions about but I also recognize that there is a racial gender in the real world. As Faye Murray and economic privilege to being able to flip and Holly Golding point out, Joss Whedon off your old friends and family and still feel actually made a conscious decision to cre- secure in knowing that they will always be ate Buffy Summers as a character that tran- waiting for you. Alike cannot return to her scends any stereotype: “The first thing I ever family without pretending to be something thought of Buffy: The Movie was the little… she is not. Marjane cannot go back without blonde girl who goes into a dark alley and physically and emotionally veiling herself. gets killed, in every horror movie,” he said. When they turn their backs on their previous “The idea of Buffy was to subvert that idea, lives, it is for good. Whiteness and money that image, and create someone who was provide innumerable unfair advantages and a hero where she had always been a vic- opportunities. One of them is the freedom to tim.” Instead of placing Buffy as the damsel try something new without worrying that it is in distress, Whedon and his peers decided for life. to build a universe where a petite woman always saves the day (and often the male suitors in her life). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Not your typical female characters is just one example of how the Outside Girls In the communication field, there are a lot of are evidence of a revolutionary shift in liter- ary and media depictions of women. In fact, Coleslaw of the graphic narrative Ghost a major reason for the text’s acclaim is due World. She has sex, ironically dons an to “the frequency with which the show sub- S&M/Batgirl headpiece and talks about verts and reverses traditional gender roles.” her amorous encounters without pretense or shame. But I wouldn’t say that she is And, obviously, Buffy is not the only charac- overtly sexualized or that her sexuality ter in this position. Unlike scholar Saman- takes away from her character. I would say tha Bornemann, I do not consider Veronica it’s more about her posturing or performing Mars the first step in this change in gender different identities while seeking one that representation. However, I, like Bornemann, actually gives her fulfillment. And, no, that believe that Veronica lives in a unique time does not mean that she is defined by sex. for feminist/literature/communication stud- It means that she realizes the world is a ies. Like Veronica, the other Outside Girls disappointing place and actively looks for a preside in “a new, third wave of teen girl way to make it a little less grating. Besides, drama, in which the stakes and the hurts are the only time we see Enid truly devastated as heightened as the real world will allow, in the book is when she and her best pal and the lead must bear the brunt of them.” Becky have a falling out. Those two have Bottom line: these girls are as complex as a completely platonic relationship and yet their reality-based counterparts. they are each other’s first loves. Enid is Take Juno. Considering that this movie’s a fully realized, complex character who plot revolves around the titular character’s never speaks about marriage or children pregnancy, you would think she falls into the in a positive way, if she does at all. She MATERNAL AND/OR NURTURING box. But also avoids being objectified without being she doesn’t. In addition to being pregnant, asexual. It sounds like her gender category Juno is funny, sardonic, confident in her is as specific as her surname. own sexuality and handles her reproduc- And now, let us discuss the ever-polarizing tive choice with certainty and grace. Even Hannah Horvath. The best part about this though she brings a new life into the world, character is that many have made the argu- she also uses the term “pork swords” and ment that she is sexualized and/or defined refers to herself as “the cautionary whale.” If by men (which I don’t believe). And yet she her character fits neatly into one category, I does not fit into a gender stereotype, due to would like to know what it is. the fact that she bears her stomach along Then there is the peculiarly-named Enid with her breasts. She has a real, imperfect body, which is not what you usually see on aware of each other, privileged, isolated TV. I would say Hannah is most associated in multiple ways and are all beautiful ex- with her big mouth, as opposed to her body amples of revolutionary female characters. and sexuality. In the series’ second episode, In other words, the Outside Girls are alright. she is thisclose to landing a job but ruins it They give me hope that the times really are by cracking a joke about her potential boss changing. § being a rapist. Oh yeah. In another memora- ble moment, she tearfully tells her two-night stand that she actually wants what every- one wants: to have a normal, happy life. While this moment had a chance of fitting into the maternal box, Hannah’s unsolicited revelation turns off her male suitor and is just another notch on her belt of humiliation. Hannah is unlike everyone else, even when she tries to fit in. Of course, it is probably because she always reads the room wrong.

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In short, the prevalence of the Outside Girl trope is a sign that we are breaking away from the media’s Madonna/Whore com- Written by Rachel Montpelier. Rachel is a plex. None of these girls are strictly sexual soon-to-be graduate at Nazareth College. If or always have babies on the brain. A few you hadn’t guessed, she is also an Outside them are in the middle of that spectrum Girl. To read more about the Outside Girls, and others are not present on it at all. They follow Rachel’s blog (http://outsidegirlsblog. are individuals in their respective worlds, wordpress.com/) and keep an eye out for and individuals on the literary and media the forthcoming book. landscape. Their existence has the power to redefine how women are represented in literature and pop culture and provide better, more believable examples of young women. These girls are at times surly, passionate,