Looks

[twinstars]

this article is interesting... part of it is about why women's looks matter during rush... it seems kind of true what they have to say about why attractiveness does matter. check it out:
http://www.student.virginia.edu/~dec...ord/woman.html

what do you all think?

[33girl]

twinstars, re that article: help!! get out your bullet proof lipstick, here come the feminazis!! Some of that is somewhat true, most stereotypes are, but it is pathetically obvious that the author is focusing entirely on the negative aspects of sorority life.

I can assure you that we didn't sit around at rating/voting and say "will we get an extra mixer with the Crows if we give this girl a bid?" To put an article that seems to have such a low opinion of women on a woman-focused website seems like a big contradiction to me and probably anyone else with common sense, but welcome to the world of gender-victim feminism.

[This message has been edited by 33girl (edited January 29, 2001).]

[sigmagrrl]

My heart sank further and further as I read this article. Is this shit really going on? Are women really being told during rush that the sorority is the most popular with men? Is this what is important to women rushing these days? How many guys you can potentially hook up with? Is the social viability of a chapter the main thing potentials are looking at? Man, I am .....I have no words. I need to digest this some...

[33girl]

First off, before we beat ourselves up too much, the emphasis on looks isn't just a Greek problem, it's a HUMAN problem that goes back to the dawn of man. Survival of the fittest and all that rot.

I do agree with what Allie said about like attracts like, and vice versa. Part of the reason I didn't choose a certain sorority was because I felt like I would never measure up to the rest of the sisters as far as my looks were concerned. They are fabulous girls and I'm friends with some of them to this day, but I would have never felt truly comfortable there. The reverse applies too. How much would it suck to be the most jaw-dropping beauty in the sorority and have everyone be jealous of you because of it?

We've taken girls who fall far short of the "conventional" standards of beauty, but more than make up for it with brains, campus involvement, and great personalities. We've rejected girls who look liike models, but had such rotten attitudes and lack of interest we couldn't wait to hustle them out the door.

I also agree with what sigmagrrl is saying. To say 'well, the prettier girls always get picked & that's just how it is"is a copout. Maybe you have a not so physically pretty friend who would be a great sister. Stick up for her! Introduce her to sisters outside of the craziness of rush so they get to know her qualities like you do. Yes, most of us do rate rushees partly on "appearance" but that is not supposed to mean supermodel - it means that you make the most of what you have, dress nicely for your figure, and carry yourself well.

To make any changes in this everyone has to truly believe what's inside is what matters, and unfortunately that doesn't seem to be happening. I've heard of chapter consultants and national officers bitching at chapters because they took "undesirable" girls. It's kind of hard to change the "pretty counts most" mindset when it is coming from the top down.

And as far as the guys having it easier - NO WAY!! As a matter of fact, I think it's harder for guys because a lot of times they have the pressure not only to be good looking but athletic. We feel your pain, guys!!

[Billy Optimist]

Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. One more reason not to go to UVa. My cousin is in a house up there, and he it sucks not having parties at the sorority houses. But I don't think that's a rule. It's just that they want to not have to clean up the next day. Good call girls

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Once in every lifetime, you'll know what life is. Oh I need you, you need me, oh my darling, don't you see? The Young Ones. Darling we're The Young Ones. The Young Ones. Shouldn't be afraid! To live. To love. There's a song to be sung. 'Cause we may not be The Young Ones for very long!!!

[USFSDTAlum]

I just want to say that my use of Cindy Crawford was not because she is a supermodel but more someone who well all recognize and is universally accepted as an attractive person. I was in no was incinuating (sp?) that any prospective rushee's should like like her, or not rush. Just to clear that up.

[kmullini]

Twinstars, I thought that article was very interesting but definitely very shocking. She brought up some interesting points but I really question the validity and truthfulness of many of her observations. Whether they are all things she saw with her own eyes or just hearsay or things she made up to give her arguement shock value.

Kevin

[This message has been edited by kmullini (edited January 30, 2001).]

[twinstars]

i definitely agree... some parts of the article sound pretty strange to me... i've definitely never seen stuff like it in my chapter. but i thought the part about rush made sense... when a chapter gets a "hot" pledge class, its "stock goes up" with the fraternities at that school. you'll be asked to mix more, and your name carries more prestige. if a house gets a few "bad" classes in a row, they will have less social options, at least at my college, since we really are dependent on the guys to throw mixers. we never have parties in our houses, since it's against national rules to even have alcohol in the house, and at my school rules are very strictly enforced. it would be pretty much unthinkable for us to throw a party in the chapter house. if a sorority wants a good social life apart from its own date functions, it helps to be attractive... naturally, those houses are the ones guys prefer to mix with. the same thing kind of goes for fraternities, too, though. there are some fraternities on my campus that (almost) no one will mix with.

[This message has been edited by twinstars (edited January 30, 2001).]

[Miami1839]

Twinstars,

I agree with on the Rush part too. I saw that every semester as an active.

Kevin
Beta Theta Pi Alum
Epsilon Mu
George Mason University