# data[].attributes.body
Popular

mean

ignore others

thinks highly of themselves

lots of friends

Dumb

can't be smart

fail tests

say stupid things

can't read

ditzy

Self-Centered

only care about looks

disregard others

image obsessed

selfish

Blonde Privilege

get what they want

viewed more highly by the opposite sex

Promiscuous

slutty

low standards

gets around

Can't Drive

bad at driving

gets in a lot of accidents

hits animals or people

reckless

fast

Oblivious

bad social ques

gullible

things go over their heads

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Unpopular
Nerd
intellectual friend group
chess club

Smart

intelligent

top of the class

valedictorian

straight A's

CEO

impressive job

Cares for Others

selfless

puts others first

kind

Driven

hard worker

adorable

good work ethic

achiever

Refined

professional

wise decision maker

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This piece is from our series, Hair Story. We interview an array of women from different walks of life to discover what their hair means to them. From photographing non-binary people who challenge society's norms by wearing their hair in bright colours, to investigating stereotypes, this series explores the intrinsic link between hair and identity.

Being blonde is loaded. You can be an expensive blonde like Gwyneth Paltrow. You can be rock'n'roll blonde like Debbie Harry. You can be sexpot blonde like Marilyn Monroe. Hell, you can be any kind of blonde you want - as long as you're a dumb one.

Of course, of all the stereotypes women face, the 'dumb blonde' is a mild one, especially considering how harmful and dangerous the hair stereotypes faced by women of colour can be. But it is curiously persistent. I've been blonde for all my adult life and a generous fraction of my childhood. Born blonde, like many Caucasian babies, I enjoyed nature's very own caramel highlights until I was about six or seven, when my Neapolitan genes kicked in. I waded in the waters of dirty, dishwater blonde until I was about 18, and then I was finally allowed to dye my hair the way I really wanted. First, a half-head of highlights. Then, a full head followed, with appointments every 12 weeks, until I finally decided I wanted to be even blonder, and the lighter hue I desired pushed me into the 'hairline and parting every six weeks' club.

I climbed down from those giddy highs after a year, fatigued and with a sore neck, and have since settled for a mixture of a half-head and balayage that only needs attention every four or so months. I can't ever remember being particularly concerned about being thought of as dumb (when you tell people you work in beauty, you can often see them docking points off your IQ and, quite frankly, I don't care if anyone so superficial takes me seriously or not). But I've never forgotten a date in 2016 when, after an evening of what I believed to be pleasant chatter with a man, he uttered the immortal words: "Well, you don't look clever."

It's believed that blonde hair has been around for over 10,000 years and is the result of a genetic mutation. If you're naturally blonde and able to digest lactose, congratulations - you're officially a mutant twice over. Give Professor X a call. The lighter pigment of blonde hair allows more sunlight to penetrate to the scalp, which means better vitamin D absorption (or so the theory goes), which was useful in parts of the world that were cold and dark. It was rare and so, like a potential partner with a holiday home, became desirable.

Historians roundly agree that the notion of blondes being dumb dates back to a play performed some 250 years ago, titled Les Curiosités de la Foire, based on the misdemeanours of the legendary courtesan Rosalie Duthé, which established blondes as both stupid and sexually available. Duthé took long pauses before she spoke, leading people to believe she was literally dumb, as well as stupid. Fast-forward to 1953, and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes hit the box office with Marilyn Monroe as Lorelei, epitomised as the dumb blonde. Portrayed as absentminded, slightly scatty and interested in marrying solely for money, some of Lorelei's most famous lines only emphasise the stereotype: "I can be smart when it's important, but most men don't like it." In contrast, her co-star, Dorothy (a brunette) is characterised as smart and more capable.

Aside from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Hitchcock, who described blonde characters as "virgin snow", spoke of his preference for casting them in his films, as he believed that the audience would not find them as dubious as other personas. Meant to project an air of unsuspecting innocence, it seems Hitchcock employed blonde hair as a tool to throw viewers off course when narrowing down suspects.

But the dumb blonde trope transcends popular culture, as Shona Pickersgill, Refinery29's marketing research manager, recalls. "In interviews there is sometimes a look of shock when I explain that I did my dissertation on the salience of the term 'terrorism' in the Arab-Israeli conflict, and not a good kind of shock. I work in insight and when debriefing large, data heavy research projects to clients, questions about my work are often directed to men or other more senior people in the room. This leaves me with quite a strong sense of self-doubt."

Shona's case is not an isolated one. Production manager, Liz Kyneur recounts: "It drives me mad whenever I'm labelled as a 'dumb blonde'. I worked in a company with a lot of men and my blonde hair was always the go-to joke they made whenever I would question the rationale behind anything or suggest a different approach to a project. That said, I'd always have a snappy response handy. The sad thing is, though, as soon as I joke about my light locks, I feel like my opinions are considered less worthwhile, even if people don't realise they're doing it!"

Interestingly, it seems the dangerous stereotype is ingrained in blonde women themselves, as Jess Commons, lifestyle director, adds. "There are times I've felt stupid myself because of my blonde hair. Often, I have felt like I didn't appear as intellectual as women in the room who had cool or short, sensible haircuts. In the past, I have felt as though I was being judged for being stupid and basic - when I almost certainly wasn't being judged at all."

I've never forgotten a date in 2016 when, after an evening of what I believed to be pleasant chatter with a man, he uttered the immortal words: 'Well, you don't look clever.'

Over time, the dumb blonde trope has morphed into the 'beauty and brains' dichotomy, which at least allows a whole other crop of women to have their intelligence questioned. This is not a step forward, even if it does represent inching away from Western beauty ideals. Calling a blonde 'dumb' is a surprisingly effective way to curb someone's appetite for life and confidence in their own abilities, effective enough to render them docile so they can't unlock their powers. But then think of Valencia in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend or Gretchen in Mean Girls. It's not blondeness that renders them dumb - it's their beauty. If blonde is beautiful (and for the record, I wholeheartedly believe Eurocentric beauty standards to be violent colonialist hogwash, but I digress), then as we know from the trope, a beautiful blonde will empty your wallet (Rebecca Romijn, Femme Fatale), ruin your marriage (Glenn Close, Fatal Attraction) and perhaps even end your life (Sharon Stone, Basic Instinct).

Dumb blonde is just another stereotype in a long line of misogynist lies that aim to silence and humiliate women. In the Venn diagram of stereotypes, blondeness is the overlap between stupidity, promiscuity, gold-digging and naked self-interest. But one thing is for sure: just because I'm blonde, don't think I'm dumb, because this dumb blonde ain't nobody's fool.

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The Dumb Blonde: Why Does The Stereotype Live On In 2019?

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This piece is from our series, Hair Story. We interview an array of women from different walks of life to discover what their hair means to them. From photographing non-binary people who challenge society's norms by wearing their hair in bright colours, to investigating stereotypes, this series explores the intrinsic link between hair and identity.

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Blonde stereotypes are stereotypes of blond haired people, especially women, and its sub-types of blonde bombshell and dumb blonde. Blondes are differently stereotyped from brunettes as more desirable and less intelligent. There are many blonde jokes made on those premises. Although said jokes are chiefly aimed at women, there have been blonde stereotypes sometimes associated with men, such as "dumb jocks" or "surfer dudes".

Background

There are several aspects to the stereotypical perception of blonde- haired women. On one hand, over history, blonde hair in women has been considered attractive and desirable. Blonde hair has been considered attractive for long periods of time in various European cultures, particularly when coupled with blue eyes. This perception is exploited in culture and advertising.

In contemporary popular culture, it is often stereotyped that men find blonde women more attractive than women with other hair colors. For example, Anita Loos popularized this idea in her 1925 novel Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Blondes are often assumed to have more fun; for example, in a Clairol commercial for hair colorant, they use the phrase "Is it true blondes have more fun?" Some women have reported they feel other people expect them to be more fun-loving after having lightened their hair. In much of the Americas, such as in North America, the blonde stereotype is also associated with being less serious or less intelligent.

On the other hand, a blonde woman is often perceived as making little use of intelligence and as a "woman who relies on her looks rather than on intelligence." At the same time, people tend to presume that blondes are less serious-minded and less intelligent than brunettes, as reflected in "blonde jokes". The roots of this notion may be traced to Europe, with the "dumb blonde" in question being a French courtesan named Rosalie Duthé, satirised in a 1775 play Les curiosites de la Foire for her habit of pausing a long time before speaking, appearing not only stupid but literally dumb (in the sense of mute). The latter stereotype of " dumb blonde" is exploited in blonde jokes. In Brazil, this extends to blonde women being looked down upon, as reflected in sexist jokes, as also sexually licentious.

Alfred Hitchcock preferred to cast blonde women for major roles in his films as he believed that the audience would suspect them the least, comparing them to "virgin snow that shows up the bloody footprints", hence the term "Hitchcock blonde". This stereotype has become so ingrained it has spawned counter-narratives, such as in the 2001 film Legally Blonde in which Reese Witherspoon succeeds at Harvard despite biases against her beauty and blonde hair, and terms developed such as cookie cutter blonde (CCB), implying standardized blonde looks and standard perceived social and intelligence characteristics of a blonde. Many actors and actresses in Latin America and Hispanic United States have blond hair, blue eyes, and pale skin.

Annette Kuhn divides blonde stereotypes in cinema into three categories in The Women's Companion to International Film:

The "ice-cold blonde": Kuhn defined it as "a blonde who hides a fire beneath an exterior of coldness". She provided Grace Kelly, Veronica Lake, Kim Novak, Mae Murray, and Eva Marie Saint as examples.

The "blonde bombshell": Kuhn defined it as "a blonde with explosive sexuality and is available to men at a price". She provided Brigitte Bardot, Lana Turner, Jean Harlow, Joan Blondell, Mae West, Barbara Eden, Marilyn Monroe, and Diana Dors as examples.

The "dumb blonde": Kuhn defined it as "a blonde with an overt and natural sexuality and a profound manifestation of ignorance". She provided Jayne Mansfield, Marion Davies, Alice White, Marie Wilson, and Mamie Van Doren as examples.

In cognitive linguistics, the stereotype uses expressivity of words to affect an emotional response which determines a gender role of a certain kind. In feminist critique, stereotypes like the blonde bombshell or the "dumb blonde" are seen as negative images that undermine the power of women.

Blonde bombshell

A blonde bombshell is a gender stereotype that connotes a very attractive woman with blonde hair. The blonde bombshell is one of the most notable and consistently popular female character types in cinema. Many showbiz stars have used it to their advantage, including Jean Harlow, Marlene Dietrich, Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van Doren. A review of English language tabloids from the United Kingdom has shown it to be a recurring blonde stereotype, along with "busty blonde" and "blonde babe".

Jean Harlow started the stereotype with her film . Following her, Monroe, Mansfield and Van Doren helped establish the stereotype typified by a combination of curvaceous physique, very light-colored hair and a perceived lack of intelligence. During the 1950s, the blonde bombshell started to replace the Femme fatale as the mainstream media stereotype. Marjorie Rosen, the historian of women in films, says of the two top blonde bombshells of the time that " Mae West, firing off vocal salvos with imperious self-assurance, and Jean Harlow, merchandising her physical allure for the masses, transformed the idea of passive female sexuality into an aggressive statement of fact". In 1993, Sharon Stone hosted a documentary about Jean Harlow, Harlow: The Blonde Bombshell.

Dumb blonde

The notion of "dumb blonde" has been a topic of academic research reported in scholarly articles and university symposia, which tend to confirm that many people hold to the perception that light-haired women are less intelligent than women with dark hair. There is no evidence to support this perception, which raises the question of its origin. It is believed the originator of the "dumb blonde" was an 18th-century blonde French prostitute named Rosalie Duthé whose reputation of being beautiful but dumb inspired a play about her called Les Curiosites de la Foire (Paris 1775).

A possible explanation is that attractive women have less pressing incentives to cultivate and demonstrate their intellect in order to ensure their future, since attractiveness is an asset as well. The validity of this explanation is corroborated by its applicability to a similar pervasiveness of the " dumb athlete" stereotype. The dumb blonde stereotype (and the associated cognitive bias) may have some negative consequences and it can also damage a blond person's career prospects.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (a comic novel, a Broadway musical, and two films) explores the appeal of blonde women. The Encyclopedia of Hair describes Marilyn Monroe's blonde role as that of "a fragile woman who relied on her looks rather than on intelligence-what some people refer to as 'dumb blonde'." At the same time, in the film she demonstrates a certain amount of wit regarding her life position expressed in her hit "Diamonds are a girl's best friend". Madonna emulated that screen-persona of Monroe in her music video Material Girl.

Many blonde actresses have played stereotypical "dumb blondes", including Monroe (dyed blonde), Judy Holliday, Jayne Mansfield (dyed blonde), Carol Wayne and Goldie Hawn, best known as the giggling "dumb blonde", stumbling over her lines, especially when she introduced Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In "News of the Future". In the American sitcom Three's Company the blonde girl (originally Chrissy played by Suzanne Somers, and later Cindy and Terri) is sweet and naïve, while the brunette ( Janet played by Joyce DeWitt) is smart.

Blonde jokes

There is a category of jokes called "blonde jokes" that employs the dumb blonde stereotype. It overlaps at times with other jokes that portray the subject of the joke as promiscuous and/or stupid. Some blonde jokes rely on sexual humour to portray or stereotype their subjects as promiscuous. Many of these are rephrased sorority girl or Essex girl jokes, much as other jokes about dumb blondes are based on long-running ethnic jokes. Many of these jokes are mere variants on traditional ethnic jokes or jests about other identifiable groups (such as Italian jokes involving Carabinieri, Sardarji jokes or Pathan jokes). Similar jokes about stereotyped minorities have circulated since the seventeenth century with only the wording and targeted groups changed.

Blonde jokes have been criticized as sexist by several authors, as most blondes in these jokes are female, although male variations also exist. In fact, dumb blonde jokes are overwhelmingly female-specific: according to an extensive search in various publications and on the Internet, about 63% of dumb blonde jokes are directed exclusively at females (compared to less than 5% that directly referenced dumb blond men). Research indicates that because of this, men report being amused by blonde jokes significantly more than women do. The fact that in most of these jokes the target is invariably dim-witted, female and sexually promiscuous makes them even more sexist. In the 20th century, a class of meta-jokes about blondes (i.e. jokes about blonde jokes) has emerged. In a typical plot of this type a blonde complains about the unfairness of the stereotype propagated by blonde jokes, with a punch line actually reinforcing the stereotype.

Blondes versus brunettes

In a November 16, 2011 article titled " Blondes vs. Brunettes: TV Shows with Betty and Veronica-Style Love Triangles", media critic Tucker Cummings cited several TV shows that featured a "classic war between blonde and brunette love interests", including (where lighter haired Pam Beesly competes with brunette Karen Filipelli for the attention of Jim Halpert), (where blonde Jenny Griffith competes with brunette Rachel Zane for the attention of Mike Ross), and (where blonde Rita Bennent and brunette Lila West compete for the affections of Dexter Morgan, the main character). Typically, she wrote, "... the blonde (is) stable, and typifies the 'girl next door,' while (the) ... brunette, is haughty, and a bit more exotic." In Archie comics, Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge have been engaged in a mostly friendly competition for over 70 years.

A number of studies have been conducted over the years to measure society's attitude toward blondes and brunettes. Many of the studies have shown that men, especially those of European descent, find blonde women more attractive than brunettes, redheads, or women of other races who had darker hair, eyes, or complexion. A Cornell University study showed that blonde waitresses receive larger tips than brunettes, even when controlling for other variables such as age, breast size, height and weight.

In a 2012 interview with NBC News, Dr. Lisa Walker, Sociology Department Chair at the University of North Carolina said that hair color "absolutely" plays a role in the way people are treated and claimed that numerous studies had shown that blonde women were paid higher salaries than other women. In a study by Diana J. Kyle and Heike I. M. Mahler (1996), the researchers asked subjects to evaluate photographs of the same woman with "natural" (not dyed) looking brown, red, and blonde hair in the context of a job application for an accounting position. The researchers found that the blonde-haired applicant was rated as significantly less capable than her brunette counterpart. In addition, participants designated the female applicant's starting salary as significantly lower when she was depicted as a blonde than when she was shown with brown hair.

A study that looked at the CEOs of the London Financial Times Stock Exchange's (FTSE) top 500 companies investigated how hair color could be a potential barrier to professional success. In another study by Brian Bates, two sets MBA graduates were given the same Curriculum vitae of the same women split between two sets of attached photos - blonde and brunette. The brunette was considered more for an managerial position and for a higher salary. A 2011 University of Westminster study evaluated how men perceived women who entered a London nightclub as a blonde or a brunette. The study, published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, used the same woman and had her dye her hair a different color for each visit. The results showed that, as a blonde, she was more likely to be approached for conversation than as a brunette. However, when the researchers interviewed the men who spoke to her, the men rated her more intelligent and attractive as a brunette than as a blonde.

French magazine believes that the rivalry is more prevalent in the United States. In a 2012 article, Le Monde argued that American TV has almost, without exception, characterized blonde women as having the positive values of purity, goodness, and sincerity, frequently at the expense of their brunette counterparts. The article provided several examples including (where Samantha, the blonde witch, displays a sense of tolerance while her dark haired cousin Serena plays the wild one), (where blonde Krystal pitted against brunette Alexis), and (in both the original series in 1984 and the remake in 2009 shows an intelligent, humanistic blonde battling a brunette leader of the alien cannibals).

In Russia, according to a 2011 survey by the Southern Federal University, brunettes are considered more attractive than blondes. One theory forwards, as an explanation, the concept the feminization of blond hair, which can be seen by the overwhelming association of the dumb blond persona with females. This idea draws on the stereotype that females have a lower psychometric intelligence than males.

Counter representation

At the same time, there are many examples where the stereotype is exploited only to combat it. The film Legally Blonde starring Reese Witherspoon featured the stereotype as a centerpiece of its plot. However, the protagonist turns out to be very intelligent and is shown to have been underachieving due to society's low expectations of her.

Country music entertainer Dolly Parton, aware of this occasional characterization of her, addressed it in her 1967 hit " Dumb Blonde". Parton's lyrics challenged the stereotype, stating "just because I'm blonde, don't think I'm dumb 'cause this dumb blonde ain't nobody's fool". Parton has said she was not offended by "all the dumb- blonde jokes because I know I'm not dumb. I'm also not blonde."

The author of the comic strip , Chic Young, starting with "Dumb Dora", gradually transformed the titular character into a smart, hard-working, family-oriented woman.

In To Surveil with Love Lisa faces prejudice with her brunette peers because of her blonde hair. She dyes her hair dark brown to prove her point that not all blondes are dumb and people need to look past every stereotype.[citation needed ]

References

1. Hornaday, Ann (May 4, 2014) "In Praise of the Dumb Blonde" The Washington Post, page E14. Retrieved May 4, 2014 [1]

2. Revista Anagrama, Universidade de São Paulo, Stereotypes of women in blonde jokes pp. 6-8, version 1, edition 2, 2007

3. "LatinoLA - Forum :: Blonde, Blue-Eyed, Euro-Cute Latinos on Spanish TV". LatinoLA.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

4. "Racial Bias Charged On Spanish-language Tv". tribunedigital-sunsentinel.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

5. Suzanna Danuta Walters, Material Girls, page 44, University of California Press, 1995, ISBN 9780520089785

6. Myra Marx Ferree, Judith Lorber and Beth B. Hess, Revisioning Gender, page 226, Rowman Altamira, 1999, ISBN 9780761906179

7. Ed Sikov, Film Studies: An Introduction, page 134, Columbia University Press, 2009, ISBN 9780231142939

8. Stephanie Ann Smith, Household Words, page 76, University of Minnesota Press, 2006, ISBN 9780816645534

9. Sherrow, Victoria (2006). Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-313-33145-9.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

10. Jordan, Jessica Hope (2009). The Sex Goddess In American Film 1930-1965: Jean Harlow, Mae West, Lana Turner and Jayne Mansfield. Cambria Press. p. 213. ISBN 978-1-60497-663-2.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

11. Sikov, Ed (2009). Film Studies: An Introduction. Columbia University Press. p. 134. ISBN 978-0-231-14293-9.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

12. "Despite the Dumb Jokes, Stereotypes May Reflect Some Smart Choices"

13. The Observer (29 July 2001), "The new blonde bombshell", The Guardian, London<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

14. "Decade by Decade 1940s: Ten Years of Popular Hits", ISBN 0-7390-5176-8, p. 32

15. Thomas, Jeannie B. (1997). "Dumb Blondes, Dan Quayle, and Hillary Clinton: Gender, Sexuality, and Stupidity in Jokes". The Journal of American Folklore. 110 (437): 277-313. doi:10.2307/541162.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

16. Thomas, Jeannie B. (1997). "Dumb Blondes, Dan Quayle, and Hillary Clinton: Gender, Sexuality, and Stupidity in Jokes". The Journal of American Folklore. 110 (437): 277-313. doi:10.2307/541162.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

17. Karen Ross, The Handbook of Gender, Sex and Media, chapter 6, John Wiley & Sons, 2011, ISBN 9781118114223

18. Giselinde Kuipers, Good Humor, Bad Taste: A Sociology of the Joke, page 24, Walter de Gruyter, 2006, ISBN 9783110186154

19. Blundy, Anna (2007-08-25). "'Blonde' jokes aren't funny - No other minority would stand for this cruel stereotyping". Spectator, the (Romford): 18-19. ISSN 0038-6952.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>

20. Cummings, Tucker (November 16, 2011) "Blondes vs. Brunettes: TV Shows with Betty and Veronica-Style Love Triangles." Yahoo.com Retrieved May 6, 2012. [2]

21. Goulart, Ronald (1986) Ron Goulart's Great History of Comic Books: The Definitive Illustrated History from the 1890s to the 1980s. Chicago: Contemporary Books. Pages 248-249

22. Simpson, Jeffry A. and Douglas T. Kenrick (1997) Evolutionary Social Psychology. Oxford, U.K.: Taylor and Francis, pages 109-140

23. Feinman, S., & Gill, G. W. (1978). "Sex differences in physical attractiveness preferences". Journal of Social Psychology, 105, 43-52.

24. Lynn, Michael, Ph.D., (2009) "Determinants and Consequences of Female Attractiveness and Sexiness: Realistic Tests with Restaurant Waitresses". Ithaca, New York: Cornell University, School of Hotel Administration.

25. "The Comics", by Coulton Waugh, M. Thomas Inge, 1991, ISBN 0-87805-499-5

ru:Анекдоты о блондинках fi:Blondivitsi

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Blonde stereotypes are stereotypes of blond haired people, especially women, and its sub-types of blonde bombshell and dumb blonde. Blondes are differently stereotyped from brunettes as more desirable and less intelligent. There are many blonde jokes made on those premises.

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Both these films follow blonde valley-girls involved in the law, and they prove how female-centric films don't get the recognition they deserve.

Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) was always underestimated. After being dumped by her college boyfriend Warner (Matthew Davis) for not being "serious" enough, the peppy sorority blonde follows him to Harvard Law School ("Like it's hard?" she asks him) initially to win him back, and later to prove him wrong. Legally Blonde mines its comedy from juxtaposing Elle's bright-pink bubbly attitude against the prestigious and intellectual atmosphere of Harvard. But it creates tension too.

Based upon the book of Amanda Brown's real-life experiences facing opposition in Stanford Law School, Legally Blonde has Elle be belittled and mocked for her femininity. Elle is not dumb (she got into Harvard after all), but others rarely see past her "blonde hair and big boobs", assuming that because she enjoys shopping she must be shallow. Elle ultimately proves them wrong not by conforming to their expectations, but by demonstrating her worth while remaining true to herself.

RELATED: Shows Guaranteed to Quench Any Thirst

Legally Blonde shares many similarities with another coming-of-age comedy about a self-empowered blonde girl: Amy Heckerling's 1995 classic Clueless. Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone) also initially seems like a vapid valley-girl, other seeing her as some "ditz with a credit card", but Clueless shows there is nothing wrong with what Cher likes. Clueless is more subtle and complex than Legally Blonde, as Cher does have some flaws, such as being short-sighted as to who Tai (Brittany Murphy) should date. And the film is not built around proving others wrong. Rather, Cher does so with a subtle intelligence of being aware how the world works without sacrificing her personality. Like Elle Woods, Cher has a detailed knowledge of fashion, unabashedly enjoys makeovers, and carries a pen with a poofy-pink end. She even helps her father with his upcoming trial-casework. Cher shows that her girly-ness is not something to be overcome, but something that can be embraced.

Legally Blonde and Clueless are comedies, but they are ultimately loving parodies that side with their blonde protagonists. These films address the stereotype of "dumb blondes", and the presumption that women who are overtly feminine must be simplistic bimbos. Early iterations of feminism thought that becoming a 'strong woman' meant shedding standards of femininity. Basically, to be more masculine. But the true freedom of feminism is that women can be whatever they like, that caring about clothes or hairdos does not invalidate them. These films defend the autonomy and intelligence of these woman, while emphasizing the importance of female friendship, without their leading ladies having to change their ways.

Another film that fits into this pro-blonde sub-genre is Steven Soderberg's 2000 movie Erin Brockovich. Erin ( Julia Roberts) is only strawberry blonde, but she impresses everyone through her handling of the legal case against PG&E for its groundwater contamination. Like Elle Woods, Erin is underestimated for her apparent nonconformity with the legal world. She is initially fired while out researching the case, her boss Ed (Albert Finney) sheepishly admits, because she "look[s] like someone who has a lot of fun". Erin is older and cruder and brassier than Elle or Cher, but she is also unapologetic for the way she dresses or how she acts, and her self-confidence proves her offbeat worth throughout the film.

This "dumb blonde" stereotype was culturally solidified by Marilyn Monroe. In Legally Blonde, Warner even comments about needing to marry a "Jackie not a Marilyn". Yet Monroe herself utilized these assumptions thrown against her, even when playing into them. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes has Marilyn play showgirl Lorelei Lee with her best friend Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell), and although she is glamorous and breathy, Monroe spends the film self-aware of the 'airhead' men expect her to be and arguing why she should marry someone rich in turn. "Can't you see that a man being rich is like a girl being pretty", Monroe argues, "you might not marry a girl just because she's pretty. But my goodness doesn't it help".

Sexism within the film industry is obviously very widespread. But it also effects the films we deem worthwhile. The top 20 movies on IMDb are all 'male' focused, with number 1 Shawshank Redemption having zero female roles. Romantic comedies are largely dismissed with cult horror films are lauded. And even then, female-focused ones like Jennifer's Body were undervalued when they came out, and have only be reappraised fairly recently. This isn't that male films are bad, but that our criteria should be expanded. Such teen-comedies and musicals are fun and silly, but they aren't merely frivolous. Like the blonde women within them, they contain more rich complexity than initial impressions suggest. They can be unrepentantly feminine without sacrificing their intelligence, since the two were never mutually exclusive in the first place.
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Bruno Savill de Jong (23 Articles Published)

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Legally Blonde, Clueless and Pro-Blonde Movies

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Both these films follow blonde valley-girls involved in the law, and they prove how female-centric films don't get the recognition they deserve. Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) was always underestimated. After being dumped by her college boyfriend Warner (Matthew Davis) for not being "serious" enough, the peppy sorority blonde follows him to Harvard Law School ("Like it's hard?"

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Ursula von der Leyen, née Ursula Albrecht, (born October 8, 1958, Brussels, Belgium), Belgian-born German politician who was the first woman to serve as Germany's minister of defense (2013-19). In July 2019 she became the first woman to be elected president of the European Commission.

Early life and education

Ursula was the daughter of German politician Ernst Albrecht, who had served as chief of cabinet at the Commission of the European Economic Community. She studied economics (1977-80) at the Universities of Göttingen and Münster as well as at the London School of Economics but never graduated. Instead, she went into medicine and graduated (1987) from Hanover (Germany) Medical School (MHH). She worked as an assistant physician (1988-92) at the MHH's gynecological clinic and in 1991 was awarded a doctorate in medicine. She lived (1992-96) in the United States while her husband, Heiko von der Leyen, was on the faculty at Stanford University. After her return to Germany, she served as a faculty member (1998-2002) at the MHH's department of epidemiology, social medicine, and health systems research. In addition, she earned a master's degree (2001) in public health.

Ursula von der Leyen, who had joined the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in 1990, became involved in 1996 in the politics of Lower Saxony-the federal state her father had governed (1976-90). She held a series of local and state offices prior to her election in 2004 as a member of the CDU's leadership committee. After the CDU won the federal elections in 2005, she was appointed minister of family affairs, senior citizens, women, and youth in Chancellor Angela Merkel's first cabinet. Among von der Leyen's measures to address Germany's low birth rate were the implementation of paid parental leave from work following the birth of a child and a massive expansion of child care facilities. In 2009 she was elected a member of the Bundestag (parliament) and became minister of labour and social affairs. While she held that post, the ongoing financial crisis compelled her to make cuts to welfare spending. In late 2010 von der Leyen was elected deputy chairman of the CDU.

Tenure as defense minister

In December 2013 von der Leyen-seen by some as a possible successor to Merkel-became the first woman to hold the defense portfolio. In that post she endeavoured to reform the Bundeswehr (federal armed forces) while dealing with a number of challenges. In March 2014 Crimea, which was part of Ukraine, was annexed by Russia. The crisis sparked new concerns about NATO's capabilities, especially after an independent review of Germany's defense ministry, released in October 2014, uncovered scores of "problems and risks" in its procurement process. Doubts that the country could fulfill its military commitment to NATO, owing to a lack of battle-ready equipment, led some allies to pressure Germany to increase its military spending.

Von der Leyen publicly called for her country to assume a greater role in Europe's defense, and she later helped secure funds for military equipment. Another crisis developed in 2015 as a wave of refugees arrived in Europe, with many seeking asylum in Germany. The situation strained resources and led to anti-immigration efforts. Von der Leyen urged restraint, arguing that it was a mistake to equate refugees with terrorists. Her position, however, drew increasing pushback following terrorist attacks in Paris (2015) and Brussels (2016).

In February 2018 a survey of German military equipment found that only a fraction of key weapons systems were combat ready. Fewer than one-third of Germany's combat aircraft, fewer than half of its tanks, and just three of its heavy transport aircraft were available for deployment. Von der Leyen reacted to the findings by saying that it would take time to make up for decades of spending shortfalls, and Merkel's government committed to a significant increase in its defense budget. The defense spending target of 1.5 percent of GDP by 2024 remained short of the 2.0 percent agreed upon by NATO leaders in 2014, however, and the Bundeswehr struggled to reach expanded manpower goals. Von der Leyen proposed extending recruiting efforts to foreign European Union (EU) nationals who had been long-term residents of Germany, but other EU leaders expressed concerns about how such efforts might affect their own military readiness.

Road to the European Commission presidency

In October 2018, after a poor showing by the CDU in regional elections, Merkel announced that she would not seek another term as party leader. Von der Leyen declined to campaign for the position, which was eventually filled by Merkel protégé Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. That von der Leyen, who had once been regarded as Merkel's heir apparent, did not even present herself as a candidate was seen by some as evidence that the defense portfolio continued to be a poisoned chalice. With her domestic political career apparently stalled and parliament probing irregularities and possible nepotism within the defense department procurement process, von der Leyen's deliverance would come from an unexpected source.

The term of European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker was scheduled to end in November 2019, and his replacement was to be selected by the European Council-the heads of government of the 28 member countries of the EU. Final approval would rest with the European Parliament, but that process was complicated by the results of elections in May 2019, which saw the centrist ruling coalition lose its long-held majority. When closed-door negotiations began in June 2019, EU leaders struggled to find a compromise candidate who would be acceptable to the centre-right and centre-left blocs while garnering support from enough Green, liberal, and Euroskeptic members of the European Parliament to win confirmation.

After a fruitless summit resulted in little more than the elimination of the three leading candidates, European Council Pres. Donald Tusk shepherded a package deal that filled the EU's top roles with a quartet of western Europeans. Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel was nominated to succeed Tusk, Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell was tapped to inherit the foreign policy portfolio from Federica Mogherini, and International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde was selected to follow Mario Draghi at the head of the European Central Bank. Most surprising, however, was the nomination of von der Leyen to succeed Juncker as president of the European Commission. Although she was the daughter of an esteemed European Community official, von der Leyen herself was seen as something of an outsider to the Brussels establishment, and, despite the fact that she had received the endorsement of the centrist and liberal parliamentary blocs, there remained doubts about the likelihood of her confirmation.

On July 16, 2019, von der Leyen was narrowly confirmed, receiving 383 of 747 votes (with 374 needed). The following day she resigned as Germany's defense minister and was succeeded by Kramp-Karrenbauer. Von der Leyen was due to replace Juncker on November 1, but disagreements over the makeup of her cabinet delayed the transfer of power by one month. On December 1 she became the first woman to serve as president of the European Commission.
Nicki Peter Petrikowski The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

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Ursula von der Leyen | Facts & Biography

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Ursula von der Leyen, Belgian-born German politician who was the first woman to serve as Germany's minister of defense (2013-19). She was initially seen as a possible successor to German chancellor Angela Merkel. In July 2019 she became the first woman to be elected president of the European Commission.

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Blonde Highlights Best 4K Blonde Dumb Blonde Movies 2019 Blonde Golden Blonde 2020 HD Baby Blonde Laguna Blonde Dumb Blonde TV Beautiful Curly Beautiful Dark Blonde Hair Girls with Blonde Hair Small 4 Blondes CD Deep Four Non Blondes Band Seka Bobbed Blonde Blonde Bombshell 2020 Small Stunning Brunette Hair

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The Dumb blonde character is really famous and one of the most stereotyped characters in Hollywood films. Herein are the top 4 Hollywood actresses who played the Dumb Blonde characters with perfection in their movies:-
1) Marilyn Monroe
Yes, she was actually the first Blonde Bombshell of the 1950s Hollywood era. Her beauty and persona led her to get International fame and movies like 'Gentlemen prefer Blondes', 'Bus Stop' and 'The Seven year Itch' led to her gaining a fan following that still exists. Her characters were the ones who resorted to gain favors via looks rather than intelligence. Her looks, her act everything just elevated the Dumb Blonde persona to a level that no one could stand up to. Her comic blonde persona was really the trigger for the character typecast.
2) Goldie Hawn
Her act in the comedy 'Good Morning, World' in 1967, paved her way into the Hollywood stardom and her act of a dumb blonde was deeply appreciated and loved. She continued it in her next show 'Rowan & Martin's Laugh-in'. Well, her dumb blonde characterization was all about stumbling lines, giggling, being the dumbest and what not- which eventually led her to grab an Emmy nomination.
3) Anna Farris
She played the role of the Dumb blonde like never before done in the 'Scary movie' series. Her role as Cindy Campbell was well appreciated and she was nominated for MTV Movie award for Breakthrough Female Performance. What followed with the series were movies like 'The Hot chick' and 'What's your number?' She did not try to move away from the dumb blonde characters but her acts have been fun, sensuous and yes, blondish too.
4) Amanda Seyfried
Well, typically most of her characters have not been about Dumb blondes but Amanda Seyfried began her career with the 2004 movie 'Mean girls' playing the dumbest of a typical High school girls gang. She did the same character in other movies like 'Nine lives' and 'Alpha dog' too. Hence, she is one of the few who have played the Dumb blonde character to perfection.

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4 Hollywood actresses who played Dumb Blonde characters in movies - Topcount

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The Dumb blonde character is really famous and one of the most stereotyped characters in Hollywood films. Herein are the top 4 Hollywood actresses who played the Dumb Blonde characters with perfection in their movies:- 1) Marilyn Monroe Yes, she was actually the first Blonde Bombshell of the 1950s Hollywood era.

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In a world where judgment can come in any form, the story of 'legally blonde' explores the bias a person can face due to the stereotype attached to the person's appearance. The owner of the blonde hair in the movie (The protagonist- Elle Woods) personifies the 'blonde identity' in American society. In the west, especially in the USA, being a blonde woman is equated to a beautiful person with no academic intellect and no serious ambition in life and is a double-edged stereotype as it compliments a person on external beauty but bludgeon the intellectual caliber. The article is in III parts. Part I deals with a brief introduction of the movie for readers who are not familiar with the plot. Part II entails the attribution theory in social psychology and its relationship with fictional and non-fictional events. Part-III is the conclusion.

Introduction to fictional world

At the beginning of the movie, the protagonist is presented as the antithesis of intellectual pursuits. In contrast, in the world of the protagonist and the world of people who pursue law, Her own father describes law school as a place for people who are "Boring, ugly and serious". The movie then takes on to dismiss the above-mentioned stereotypes when Elle Woods enrolls in Harvard Law School to become a lawyer and prove everyone wrong, especially her ex-romance who rejected her on the grounds that a bright future can never be realized with a blonde woman such as herself because she is not a serious person in the conventional sense.

However, attribution theory and stereotypes play a very important role with respect to the decisions the characters around Elle land on. It is discussed later in the article but a brief introduction of attribution would be- " In social psychology, attribution is the process of inferring the causes of events or behaviors". Now, this is extremely circular, because, one would assume intelligence level because of stereotype and then attribute a particular instance to that stereotype and reinforce the original position on intelligence correlation and thus creating an echo chamber where pre-conceived notions are stored and sustained.

Coming back to the movie, while analyzing the characteristics of the protagonist we find that she possesses the conventional smart person traits, i.e. excellent memory, thinking skills, and dedication but she applies these skills in a different field like beauty, fashion, and lifestyle choices. However, when she arrives at law school, she starts applying the same raw skills in the legal discipline and exhibits her own flashes of brilliance. Despite all of these aforementioned skills, there is one fundamental trait of the protagonist which stands out and that is her goodness of heart, optimism, and politeness when required which in turn can make her immediately well-liked.

At last, she was able to win the case of her client in this movie using all her abilities but most importantly disagreeing with a very fundamental notion that is prevalent in the legal community which makes most lawyers think that winning is the ultimate goal and not the pursuit of truth. Woods implores everyone around her to believe in the innocence of her client but other lawyers in the firm refuse to do so, yet, she firmly stands behind her client and fights for her case with a passion which proves to be an effective means to her victory as it drives her evidence collection, cross-examination, and analysis of the factual matrix of the case.

Her entire approach can be summed up beautifully in her Harvard Law School graduation speech where she says that she begs to differ with Aristotle on the adage that "The law is reason free from passion" and proposes that passion and commitment can help an individual both practice law and live life in a better way. In a way, this thinking can be fruitful because to say the reasoning is without passion imputes an objective element on the 'truth' and rejects the idea that different people can have their own version of 'truth', in simpler terms, this is the subjectivity which forms the basis of the law as it is not black and white but comes in many colors and the protagonist picks her own color in the movie and stands by it.

Attribution theory and real life analysis

However, another interesting perspective that comes out of the movie is when you observe how the practical world really works. The immediate response of any sane individual would be that this movie is just Hollywood entertaining the 'feel good' genre and has nothing to do with how the real world operates. Think about it, is anyone among us immune to making judgment calls? We live in a society where claiming that you don't judge someone on appearance fetches reward points, the premise here is that not judging someone is praiseworthy because that is not something you expect people to do. Again, it would be a gross generalization if I state that everybody behaves this way but my observation has been that due to social conditioning you will have to resist the need to not judge someone rather than it being a 'normal' reaction.

Attribution theory in social psychology would tell us that there are two types of attributions, situational and personality. The former impute the conduct of a person to a particular situation and then draw conclusions. For example, one would say that one's friend is cranky because of working late nights for exam preparations and would understand that it would go away. These types of judgments are short-lived because they are situational. The latter comes into the picture when you judge someone and attribute a personality trait to them.

For example, if a friend is cranky and at the same time the said friend is short-tempered, which may or may not be a correct observation but would lead an individual to attribute this short-temper to the current state of behavior and this type of judgment is more concrete because this would stay even when that friend does not exhibit this type of behavior because the aforementioned incident has reinforced the judgment about said friend's personality traits.

Coming back to the movie once again, we need to understand how judgment based on appearance works with situational and personality attributions. Generally, we take the stereotype based on appearance as the bedrock for our judgment formation and then use both situational and personality attributions to supplement this position. The stereotypical blonde image is something which the protagonist carried with her everywhere but this in itself is not at all a problem because who among us would not like to carry what we really are.

For example, in her video essay for Harvard, she was able to convey her motivation and qualification for law school without altering her core personality and successfully presented herself as a qualified candidate. Now, it is up to serious debate whether an identical approach would work in real life but it is the principle behind this element which is of importance. However, the movie is not immune to criticism as Elle's motive for entering law school was to win back her love and one can question that if it were not for the desire to get back together with the boyfriend who broke up with her, would she have ended up at a law school? It also goes against the principles of self-love, self-respect, and other aspects that the movie so dearly portrays.

The problem highlighted by the movie is when negative stereotypes impede the lead character's ambitions as she has to overcome these obstacles in order to achieve her dream. This should never be normal for any person. Personality attributions go hand in hand with any stereotype and in this case, it is the dumb, quirky, and not-serious traits which characters around her attribute to her.

Now, let us discuss the aggravated case of situational attribution in judgments based on stereotype; It is what one would call a reinforcing attribution as in this case because people use it to reinforce their judgment rather than using it as a temporary form of attribution in which the person under judgment is usually given leeway because of the situation and the judgment perishes when the situation is over.

In one of the scenes in the movie, the character is under pressure because she believes in the innocence of her client while other people in the firm want her to look at things more pragmatically, it is apparent that they were only able to comprehend the situation as lead character displaying naiveness and nothing more and on some level attribute it to the stereotype they hold.

An analysis of the movie from a feminist lens would greatly affirm the idea that this movie has all empowering trends associated with feminism. A woman is able to overcome the stereotype attached to her appearance coupled with her gender because a blonde man would not have faced the same problems which Elle faced in legally blonde. However, the premise of the movie can easily be confused with the perpetuation of beauty and fashion being branded as essentially feminine characteristics but there more to it than meets the eye.

The fundamental idea as explained earlier in this article is to not change one's attributes because of preconceived notions about them but rather use them to your advantage; A solution to avoiding stereotypes is to destroy them and this is exactly what Elle achieves by the end of the movie. However, one should not misunderstand this by believing that inflicting stereotype-based judgment is alright if the opposing party is nonchalant about it and not doing anything. An easier way to understand would be to segregate stereotypes into two kinds; Physical attribute-based and social-based. It can be based on either how you look or your so-called position in the social structure, anything else is more or less transient or forms part of situational attribution. All these stereotypes or judgments will exist for as long as one is part of a functioning society because that is how human beings have developed themselves to adapt to diversity among ourselves. But, it is our duty to not succumb to them.

Amidst all this chaos, it is important to not let the negative opinion of anyone else hamper one's goals and objectives because it is not a personal duty to discredit someone's opinion but it becomes an obligation when it is in way of one's success. A Feminist understanding would allow an individual to understand that in place of Elle if a man with an interest in sports cars and baseball would have entered law school, perhaps, he would not have been subjected to the same discriminatory treatment. This is because the so-called feminine traits even in the year 2020 are seen as weak and anti-intellectual by a disturbing number of people. Likes, dislikes, preferences, and attributes differ greatly between individuals rather than different groups such as blondes and brunettes, white and black, etc. These differences between individuals and not groups would allow us to disconnect the link between traits like intelligence, honesty, compassion with physical and social stereotypes.

At last, it should be a sincere effort to resist our urge to judge others on their appearance, situation, societal position, and personality and I use the word 'effort' because of my strong belief that formation of judgment is only natural given the social conditioning each and every one of us go through. However, with respect to personality, there should be exceptions. For Example, if somebody has been consistently displaying negative traits, you might choose to avoid them but personality attributions must not be done on the basis of appearance and stereotype alone. Finally, there is always an option to persevere and destroy the opinion of others if it is running adversely to your own hopes and desires and carve out a way where such negative perceptions can't thrive. As they say for judgment, it's sweet till the moment you are on the receiving side.

What do you think? .

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Legally Blonde: A Classic Case of "Never Judge A Book By Its Cover"

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In a world where judgment can come in any form, the story of 'legally blonde' explores the bias a person can face due to the stereotype attached to the person's appearance. The owner of the blonde hair in the movie (The protagonist- Elle Woods) personifies the 'blonde identity' in American society.

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Remember when Dolly Parton fully subverted the 'dumb blonde' cliché with her '80s excess styling? | CNN

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In the '80s, Dolly Parton lit a rocket under her cowgirl look, multiplying the sequins and turning the bimbo cliché into a weapon.

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