Interview: Growing Up

Hannah and I talked with her younger sister about growing up in a society that is dominated by images of perfection and promiscuity in the media. She told us about the pressures of keeping up with fashion, trends, and social networking websites at such a young age.

Visitor: What is your name?
Rebekah: Rebekah Richardson

What is your sex?
Female

What is your age?
15

Do you feel pressure from the media to act a certain way as an adolescent female?
Yes. I feel pressure to wear certain things. I don't feel necessarily the pressure to act a certain way, but I know other girls who do. I really like Twilight and TMZ and they definitely put out an image for girls my age to copy.

How do you feel pressured to dress?
I think I feel most pressured to dress like musicians. I also see a lot of things in the fashion magazines me and my friends read.

Do you feel pressure to have a boyfriend?
No, not really...I used to though. I didn't feel that I had to have one, but I wanted one. Because it's just kind of everywhere on TV and movies and songs.

How do you think a girl who gets all the boys would look and act?
Well at school...the "perfect girl" has like...bleach blonde hair and wears low-cut shirts. She's really outgoing and talks about people a lot. She wears nice clothes and has money.

Are you comfortable with being single?
Yes, because I don't like anyone right now.

Are you comfortable with your body image?
Hmmm....I'm alright with it. Yeah.

Do you know girls who aren't comfortable?
Yes. I hear girls and friends talk about it. Like this girls I was at the mall with yesterday was talking abut her weight. I actually know a lot of people who complain about their weight.

Why do you think that is?
Because they see other girls who are skinnier than them...who may possibly get more attention.

Do you think attention is something your generation really cares about?
Yes. Because there are so many people who "try". They do things they normally wouldn't do to get attention and be popular. Personally, i don't seek attention, but it is nice to have. It's a thin line.

Do you think websites like Facebook and Twitter worsen that?
Um, like I know a lot of people who just request to be friends with people they don't even know on Facebook, just so they can have friends. People try to take "cute" default pictures and get comments telling them how cute they are. Some people just post stuff constantly and take pictures of themselves every day and just wait for someone to affirm them.

Do you feel like girls at your age are faced with more pressure than Hannah was was when she was your age?
Yeah. Like, when my sisters went to see my middle school graduation, they were shocked by how girls my age were dressing. They said they never felt the need to dress that way. Hannah also worked at Justice (which is like Limited Too) and she couldn't believe the way girls were acting and dressing.

What do you want to be when you grow up?
I have no idea haha. Something in the art industry, possibly? But I don't have any specific idea yet.

Have you ever been made fun of for how you dress or look?
Yes. Lots of times. I got made fun of for my hair a lot, because I wear it differently from a lot of girls. I used to get made fun of for the circles under my eyes in 5th grade and that used to make me feel really insecure. That was the first reason I wanted to start wearing makeup.

Have you ever been made fun of or pitied for being single?
I don't know, I've never had a boyfriend before. But people usually think I'm joking or lying when I say that. It's hard for them to believe that someone my age hasn't had a boyfriend before.

Have you ever been hit on inappropriately?
Yes. One time in front of my mom and dad too, and that was not cool. I hate it when guys stare at me in the hallways, especially when I don't know them. One time I even heard a senior guy talking about me in the hallway. he said if I didn't have braces that I would be hot...and then he said he was going to probably date me, assuming that I would say yes. I was pretty offended.

How do you feel about highschool dances?
I don't like them. There is no dancing...it's more like...grinding trains. I didn't participate.

Is there any advice you would to girls your age?
Be yourself.