Stereotypes In Mean Girls

In the movie Mean Girls, Cady Heron shows many common characteristics of teenage girls in the twenty-first century. The film explores ideas of social organisation in high schools such as cliques, and also addresses gender stereotypes for adolescent girls. Cady Heron is illustrates a dramatised version of what high schools are like and the issues that students may be faced with including peer pressure and bullying.

Like most Australian High schools, North Shore High School in Mean Girls has many different cliques including: “Asian Nerds, Cool Asians, J.V Jocks, Black Hotties, fat girls, thin girls, band geeks, want-to-be’s and The Plastics”. Cady Heron begins the movie as a part of the “Art Freaks” clique with characters Damian and Janis Ian. Throughout the film she transitions to the clique described as “the worst people you will ever meet”, The Plastics. The Plastics are the stereotypical “popular” …show more content…
Over the course of the movie Cady transitions from an average teenage girl to a stereotypical arrogant, rude and self-absorbed person just like Regina. Cady experiences peer pressure, from the Plastics to conform to the norms of the group in order to become accepted within the clique. Consequently she is forced to change her beliefs, so that she can feel admired and more accepted. Cady and her friends show traits of an unhealthy relationship such as a lack of; trust, disclosure and authenticity as well as lying, and passive aggressive behaviours in communication. Cady’s pro communication skill are further hampered by failure to listen and the use of the “ shut-up” to cut off Aron when she is nervously attempting to engage with