Dumb+Blondes

Tori Long Mrs. Culver 1/2/12   Blondes: Misunderstood, or Dumb? Since ancient times when Roman __women__ lightened their hair with goat __fat__, blondes have been called foolish or considered dumb. If not stupid, blondes are considered below average at best. Although most people believe that blondes go through their lives dumb and confused, many blondes are actually smart and hard-working. Most people consider blondes dumb regardless of whether or not they actually are. First of all, there are specific qualities a person must have in order to __qualify__ as a dumb blonde. Obviously, the person must have blonde hair. Second, he or she would definitely have to act stupid to be a dumb blonde! And lastly, the blonde will be confused and will most likely refrain from using proper grammar. According to the blondenetwork.com, only 16% of the blondes in the United States are natural blondes. However, more than 16% of blondes are smart. It is a shame that all blondes must suffer from the awful stereotype of dumb blonde mainly because of how the media portrays them. Celebrities like Paris Hilton and Kelli Pickler may be good to look up to for __fashion__ advice or singing, but as far as __book__ smarts, these girls are shown doing “dumb blonde” things. Such incidents will be mentioned and discussed below. There are a __number__ of movies, commercials, __and television__ shows that portray blondes as dumb. For example, Kelli Pickler is a wonderful country singer, but an awful contribution to the dumb blonde stereotype. When she participated on the television show __Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?__ she thought that the continent of Europe was simply a country. Her blood curdling answers were put on display to the world as a YouTube video called “Can She Be THAT Stupid?” However, her cluelessness should not represent all blondes! Another example doesn’t use a specific blonde, but rather a random actress. For a __Subaru__ car commercial in which they state that “beauty is nothing without brains,” of all the actors and actresses, a blonde was chosen. She is shown walking into a library and trying to order “fries, a burger, and a milkshake.” As if that wasn’t bad enough, when the blonde was told that she was in a library, she repeated her order, but in a softer tone. That commercial has to be one of the harshest dumb blonde __advertisements__ I’ve ever seen. The last video example is the character of Karen in __Mean Girls__. Anyone who has seen this movie will remember at least one of Karen’s clueless remarks. For example, when Karen meets the new girl, Cady Heron, a girl who has recently moved from a research camp in Africa, Karen asks Cady, “If you’re from Africa… Why are you white?” It only gets worse from there. Karen later puts a rhinestone ‘K’ on her chest for a __school__ dance. Now, that’s not necessarily a dumb blonde thing, but Karen used a mirror to make sure that she put the rhinestones on __correctly__, leaving her with a big backwards ‘K’ on her chest. The most memorable aspect of Karen is that she believes she has “ESPN or something” because she believes that her chest can tell the weather…as it is happening. It may be hilarious to watch, but it is horrendous to all blondes that are trying to prove we are not all dumb. Those visual examples aren’t even the beginning of everything you can find. For instance, the poem “Totally, Like, Whatever, You Know?” depicts a person who obviously doesn’t use proper grammar and also describes life and its daily events as “totally, like, pointless, you know?” Lastly, the __New York Times__ has an article titled “Blond and Blonder: It’s Not Easy Playing Dumb” in which the author describes what it must be like to play a dumb blonde in movies and television shows. In this article, the author also says that the majority of blonde actresses don’t have to pretend to be dumb in their roles as dumb blondes. I hope she realizes how wrong she is. There are many examples of smart blondes, but no one bothers to acknowledge them because the stereotype makes money in comedies. However, if a person looks for a smart blonde, even in movies or other aspects of the media, it may be difficult, but they do exist. For example, Reese Witherspoon in __Legally Blonde__, begins her journey of becoming a strong and successful lawyer as a spoiled, rich girl. In the first five minutes of the movie, Reese’s character’s boyfriend breaks up with her for not being smart enough. Determined to prove him and everyone else wrong, she begins studying to be accepted into Harvard Law School. After many months of hard work, she is accepted into Harvard Law School where she quickly forgets about proving her ex-boyfriend wrong, but focuses on proving all the teachers and her peers wrong. At the end of her college career, Reese’s character is a very successful and happy lawyer. Another positive example of a blonde would be Dakota Fanning in __Uptown Girls__. Dakota Fanning’s character, Rae, is a very smart and disciplined eight-year-old. Rae’s mom is always busy working, so she hires a nanny for Rae. However, Rae is a very difficult child who doesn’t like many people, and has a new nanny nearly every month. When Rae meets a woman who is more of a child than she is, she is appalled and tries to avoid her. Rae hopes to get rid of her, but they soon begin to grow on each other. In the end, Rae teaches her nanny, Molly, to be more like an adult while also being fun. In return, Molly teaches Rae how to have a fun and exciting childhood. Lastly, the article “Prejudice Against Blondes” on the Miami Independent Media Center website depicts how hard it is to be a smart blonde in the world we live in. The article states, that, no blonde is not a “race,” however blondes are judged nearly the same as a racist would see someone of a different race. Blondes must fight for their intelligence because starting in the early days of our lives, all we see is blondes who know nothing. It is unfair that blondes are judged for their hair color. If someone wants to look down on someone due to an intellectual aspect, you cannot simply look at the hair color of that person. In conclusion, just because someone is blonde, does not give you or anyone else the right to assume anything about their level of intelligence. Even though we mostly see blondes portrayed as stupid or clueless, we can change that by looking for smart blondes in the media. If enough people search for them, it won’t be hard to find a smart blonde just walking down the street. Hopefully someday blondes will no longer be seen as dumb and will finally be able to live comfortably without being judged for their hair color.

__ Bibliography __ 2005. Nov. 21, 2011 www.nytimes.com/2005/07/31/movies/moviesFeatures/31gold.html.\ http://www.taylormali.com.
 * “Blond and Blonder: It’s Not Easy Playing Dumb.” New York Times. Sylviane Gold. July 31,
 * “Can She Be THAT Stupid?- Youtube.” Youtube- Broadcast Yourself. 7 Dec. 2007. Web. 15 Nov. 2011. http://youtube.com/watch?v=Cey35bBWXIS&feature=related.
 * “Dumb Blonde Commercial-Youtube.” Youtube-Broadcast Yourself. 31 Jan. 2007. Web. 15 Nov. 2011 . http://www.youtube.com/watch/v=fXT3Sma4-rg7.
 * Bertalotto, Jessie. __Legally Blonde.__ 13 July 2001. Movie.
 * Waters, Mark, dir. __Mean Girls.__ Paramount Pictures. 31 Apr. 2004. Movie.
 * Meanise, Denise. "Prejudice Against Blondes." Editorial. // Miami Independent Media Center // . 21 Apr. 2005. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. [].
 * Mali, Taylor. “Totally, Like, Whatever, You Know?” Taylor Mali. 2009. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.
 * Dahl, Julia. __Uptown Girls.__ 15 Aug. 2003. Dakota Fanning. Movie.