The sorority stereotype

 

With fall rush in the rearview mirror, the amount of girls on campus sporting their sorority’s letters has greatly increased. One thing I have noticed is everyone has an opinion on Greek Life, especially on sororities.

Occasionally you will hear something nice about a girl in a sorority, but more typically, you hear the negative comments about them. As a result of this, we have ended up with the sorority stereotype.

With this column, I aim to tear down this stereotype, to dispel each piece of it as a myth.

This stereotype, I believe, originates from a lack of knowledge on exactly what sororities are.

Being in a sorority is basically like paying for friends.

I would like to start with this one, because I hate it when people say this. Yes, they pay dues for being in a sorority, but only a small portion pays for membership. About 90 percent of dues go to pay for functions. For example, suppose you’re a member of a club that’s having a winter formal, and they’re charging $75 at the door for anyone who wants to attend. Sorority dues are the same thing; the difference is that everything is paid for beforehand, so you don’t have to worry about paying for events when they are held.

Sororities are just clubs for the mean girls from high school

This is simply another way for people to say that they know mean girls who joined sororities. Anyone who knows sorority girls will know that there are plenty of nice girls in sororities. Some of my best friends are in sororities and they’re some of the most wonderful girls I know. Yes, there are probably mean girls in sororities, but there are mean girls in every club, on every sports team and in every dorm. It’s just a fact of life.

The only girls that join sororities are Barbies .

By this assumption, all girls in sororities have to look perfect all the time: skinny, perfect hair, make-up, and the latest clothes. This is the easiest myth to dismiss. Just look around you. I see sorority girls who wear flip-flops, athletic shorts and t-shirts every day. To me, that sounds like ideal clothing. Of course, they dress up occasionally, but who doesn’t? I dress up to go out to dinner with friends. We can’t look perfect all the time, but we can sometimes. Sorority girls are the same way. They’re still human; they still want to be comfortable.

Sororities are only for party girls: girls who get drunk and sleep around.

To be completely honest, we all know that the majority of college students party, not just sorority girls or fraternity guys. Think about the people you know. I bet some of them get drunk and some of them sleep around and some do both or neither. It’s the same in a sorority. The point I’m trying to make is, sorority girls are no different from other college girls merely because they’re sorority girls

Girls in sororities have poor grades, because they only focus on their sorority.

There are two things I want to say about this. First, just because a girl is in a sorority doesn’t mean she makes it her life. When you join a sorority, you can be as involved or as uninvolved as you want. True, there are some mandatory events, but there are optional ones as well. Plus, you could go out with girls in the sorority on weekends, or you can hang out with your other friends. Sororities do not own your soul. You are allowed to have a life if you’re in one and N.C . State Pan-Hellenic encourages members to participate in other clubs as well.

Second, many sorority girls do focus on their grades. In fact, they have to have a certain GPA to remain a member of their sorority. Many sorority girls end up on the Dean’s List: Tri-Delta had 29 girls on the Dean’s List this spring, eight of whom had perfect GPAs . I would call that caring about grades.

Sororities are not for everyone. Some people may enjoy being in a sorority; some may not. For those of you who aren’t in Greek Life, think about the way you react to sorority girls. Forget the sorority stereotype.  Remember,  it’s merely a myth.