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Umm yeah....
I saw her just two days days when she gave a talk at my school. She had a very rehearsed speech that was dissappointing to those who are from Greek Life and those who are against it. * I had a rather lovely discussion yesterday with someone who was from the latter group that accused me of being a snoby rich girl THOUGH WE NEVER HAD SPOKEN TO EACH OTHER BEFORE. * Yeah, the fact that I many girls pay for all their own dues while having part time jobs just didn't click in her mind and her accusations of them just wanting to be snobby rich girls made it more evident that she didn't know what she was talking about. Rather than getting angry I just agreed to answer her questions (yes, there were freshmen there that were PNM's) and she just kept digging. Who knows why she hated it all so much; I never hated her and still don't. Alexandra Robbins is just another person putting her spin on a topic. If you watch TV or read the news, it is much the same thing. If she did pledge or initiate a sorority there is no one that we can be angry at. There are people who have joined orgs. for worse reasons throughout history and good investigative journalists have to put themselves on the inner circle to get a story. I do think that she uses many things out of context and plays things up to be much more than they really are. People need to realize that one quote or one event does not represent a diverse whole. By being overly citical of her, you are doing nothing more than stooping down or below some of the things that she had said. Always read something before throwing your opinion out there FYI! |
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She huffs about a Sigma Kappa who was turned away from initiation because she had black-toed shoes. When a national officer was present at the initiation. How DARE we require our members to show up in appropriate attire for ritual events, when there's someone from HQ there no less. :rolleyes: And within the storyline itself, there was the girl who's boyfriend was, IIRC, verbally and emotionally abusive and the author is critical of the sorority sisters who want the girl to leave the guy. Because they "just don't understand" or some such. It is unsurprising for the girl to feel this way, for the narrator, it makes no sense. It's just a chance to be critical of those ostracizing sorority women again. |
I didn't see anything positive about the book. She's an outsider writing about something she's never been apart of. She focused more on the "stereotypical" negativity for ex: the body piercings in certain spots, the drain pipes that were filled with stomach acids from the eating disorders, the racism, and no offense to NPHC sororities but the little she said about NPHC sororities was mainly positive, like their GPAs, life long commitment ect. ect. ect. She really could have written that book without shadowing sorority girls, based on the stereotypes she was writing about.
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It was typical Eastern liberal garbage - if you're in certain groups everything you do is fine, and if you're in what's termed part of the "patriarchy" you could do the exact same thing and you're awful. It's really amusing when it comes out of people who went to IVY LEAGUE SCHOOLS (which are, of course, very selective institutions). And as for believing "we are all sisters and we all love each other" - well, all it takes is one visit to a regional or district conference to see that there are sisters who you have ZERO in common with, and chapters you would have NEVER made it into (or wanted to be in). Unless you're hopelessly naive, she's really not saying anything new here. PsychTau - I think Ole Miss and such are really extreme cases. Not only that, I'm sure there are girls who went thru rush at Ole Miss, got a bid from (whatever the "low woman on the totem pole" sorority is there) and wanted to accept it, but her mom or sister talked her out of it. I don't believe 18 year olds are as unrelentingly shallow as we sometimes make them out to be. But that is one of the things I like about deferred rush - yes the girls do hear all the rumors and reps, but they've probably also gotten to know some members as actual PEOPLE and they've also seen the other side of the "perfect" group. |
I don't have a problem with the author. I read her book about overachieving high school students first, and I actually thought that one was pretty good.
The thing about Pledged is that the book was salacious and sensational. Okay, maybe I'm a little older than the whole Girls Gone Wild generation, but she didn't really say anything new or provide any big revelations or great suggestions. The four women profiled were hardly a fair representation of the hundreds of thousands of NPC members. So it is what is is. I just wouldn't pay for her advice for women interested in NPC membership, as she clearly can't provide a fair and balanced opinion. I can see why people want to read this stuff. If you're on the outside the whole thing is a little mystifying. Isn't that what we like about it? I'm mystified by competitive cheerleading that starts with little girls at age six. And their moms. Maybe she can go undercover and investigate all that next! |
/Hijack/
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/End Hijack/ |
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#1 - Why did she need to reveal any organizations's secrets? It their organization, it's their choice if they should be made public or not. Did she reveal the secrets of her own organization? #2 - Yes, most Nationals/Internationals/HQs do get a little out of touch with the collegiate groups. Times change and our HQs need to understand that and see how the changing times are effecting them. But, remember this, your HQ is made up of members of your org who threw down and partied in their day. They haven't really forgotten (or gotten out of touch) as much as matured. (Heck, I would love for Carnation, PenguinTrax, DeltAlum and many of us to start a post about some of the things we did. Or, better yet, maybe we shouldn't.) |
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1) To make money. That's what she's out to do. 2) Maturity is what it takes for an org with 205 active collegiate chapters to operate. I would not have much faith in my orgs if there were no alcohol rules/badge attire/regulations set upon us by nationals--because then we would crumble and die. Collegiate members are not mature enough to make sound decisions affecting the sustainability of their chapter. Those regulations are set in place by people older, wiser, and more experienced than us. Frankly, I have no problems with the rules my HQ(s) have bestowed upon me and my chapter. |
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One of the main flaws I found with the book was that she was reporting secondhand information in the first-person as if she were there. The detail that she includes from meetings and private conversations at which she was not present proves (in my mind anyway) that this book is at least partially a work of fiction. Additionally, she had to rely on these 4 members passing information to her. I have found in my many years as an active collegiate member and as an advising alumna that girls will complain a great deal when they are upset, mad, or disappointed about something. However, when things are going well you don’t always discuss how much you are enjoying yourself. As an advisor, I have often found that “no news is good news.” It seems as though these 4 members used AR as a person to confide in and vent to when things were not going well. AR took that as an indication that these women were constantly unhappy. Lastly, I found that AR’s tone throughout the book bothered me. She discussed how great non-NPC groups were, yet included stories that could have sounded just as salacious if she had used her “NPC tone.” One of the hazing stories she included was 2 AKA “pledges” who allegedly drowned in the ocean after forced calisthenics. She fails to mention that this was not an NPC organization. I’m not saying that because some non-NPC groups haze it’s okay for NPC groups to do so as well. I am simply attempting pointing out her inconsistent reporting. |
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Times change - ask any women who went to college in the 1950s - 1960s about parietal rules. If those colleges would still have those rules, they would have shriveled up and died. |
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I <3 that. It has been a few years since I read the book, so I may have a few details missing. Sorority membership is shallow, but so is all greek membership. I mean, seriously, how many of us have sat in a MS meeting and said "yes, sally has 3eyes, gaping teeth, and resemebles frankenstien's monster, but she really does meet our membership standard. I think we should invite her to pref!" I was talking to an AXO today who was telling me about a 35 year old woman who had registered for recruitment and OMG, why did she do it? did she really think she would get in somewhere. Some of the standards are set forth by our HQ and I think that what happened at DePaw is completely and udderly wrong--but it is the minority. I can't believe that a chapter consultant would tell you that you can't take Jesse Black because she has red hair and we are not a red hair chapter. And, as for HQs not passing discrimination clauses and such, I'm sure that eventually they will catch up. You can't stay behind the curve forever. |
I'm going to be bitchy here but - you are not in an NPC group. You don't have to deal w/ total and quota. Your experience is different.
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She did not present a wholistic view of greek life. Mainly just NPCs, a few mentions of NPHC, and one or two locals. But, yes, my experience has been different because both of my orgs don't have a quota and we can take whomever and how many ever of them we want. |
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