Week 6 - The 'It' Girls

The stereotype in schools that I am analyzing  is the ideology of the ‘It girls’. Though an American-based idea that originated from the likes of Marilyn Monroe, it is vastly seen and represented in near enough any everyday high school.

The first media text I am going to analyse, is an image that was well-used in the advertising of the 2004 film, Mean Girls, featuring Lindsay Lohan and the up-and-coming star of the time, Rachel McAdams.
     The actual image features four of the films main characters, all fitting the basis of the ‘It girl’. All four of the girls are stereotypically attractive, with pretty faces and long hair. This is the first instant feature of the ‘It girl’, they tend to be pretty, and in most cases, highly lusted after. All four of the girls are wearing t-shirts, and tiny mini-skirts. This relates to the vain, materialistic aspects that make-up the stereotype; the main interests of ‘popular’ girls apparently fashion and glamour. The main colour used in the clothing is pink. The colour pink on its own connotes the likes of femininity, and ‘girl’. This could also imply that how in the film, the girls use their femininity to their advantage, whether it being to get the boy they want, or to get out of trouble.
           The posture of the four girls is identical in that they all appear to be sitting cross-legged position, with their finger over their mouths. This automatically implies the girls are  all sharing a secret. Another feature of ‘it girls’ tends to be they all share, and bask in gossip. Most of their lives tend to revolve around bitching about others, and so perhaps this gesture in the photo is an instant throw-back to this. 

The next media text, is a cover of the teen-girl magazine, ‘Seventeen’, featuring Selena Gomez, who is perhaps known as the modern-day most famous ‘It Girl’.
         Selena has a huge smile on her face, whilst playing with her hair, which helps to identify Selena with her age at the time. Wearing a necklace, waistcoat and bright pink t-shirt, the image of fashion and girliness is yet again represented here. This also hugely ties in with the straplines of the magazine, including titles such as ‘Amazing Hair’ and ‘Fashion & Beauty Ideas!’. The themes including the likes of materialistic  ideas constantly appear when trying to represent ‘it girls’.
           Selena is represented here as a much kinder, and ‘sweeter’ version of the it-girl. Society constantly is given the idea that popular girls are nasty and vindictive. By using the likes of Selena Gomez on a magazine such as this, hugely helps to appeal to her fan-base. Though her management obviously want to represent Selena as an ‘it-girl’, they certainly don’t want her to appear anything less than angelic. 

The final media text I am going to analyse, is the character of London Tipton from the Disney Channel sketch show, ‘The Suite Life of Zack and Cody’. London Tipton (Brenda Song) was the daughter of a famous, wealthy hotel owner. No ideas as to who that could possibly of been based on...
                  London, surprisingly was yet again represented as a young fashionista. As in common with the other two media texts, London could be described as society’s idea of pretty. Her long flowing curly hair not only helped to ground her femininity, but was also used as another materialistic, narcissistic trait. The outfit she is wearing is also yet again, pink. ‘It girls’ tend to stereotypically a fan of all thinks pink and girly, and so the outfit chosen by the costume-designers hugely helps to define her character, expressing her feminine ways.
            If given just one word to describe London’s character on the show, it would be ‘dumb’. This is perhaps one of the meaner, more vindictive  traits of an it-girl. Society has in some created the belief that if you are pretty, you are also stupid. Created by the likes of female entrepreneurs, this perhaps is just the jealously of those who though enviously smart, aren’t as lucky on the outside.  By defining the it-girl as being dumb in this t.v show, it also helps to create humor to viewers.