Fifth entry for Fast Girls

So, it's awkward that by reading this ten chapter book, I have learned more about high school than the 3.5 years I have actually been in it. White did an incredible job creating a book that describes the slut without having a biased opinion that distracts, or sways the reader. Before reading this book, I never had the connection between physical abuse or a bad home life with girls, specifically, being sluts. I just always assumed that the reason a girl was getting with a lot of guys was their own business and just because they were easy or doing favors for them. But before I did read this book I always hated how, let's say, after meeting a girl for the first time, other girls will say, "Oh, you shouldn't be friends with her that girl's a slut." Well, my opinion is, if they're not bothering you, why does it matter? Why should someone's sex life interfere with their friends, especially friends who are girls? When this was addressed I was pleased to read the reason why the girls care. Sheer cruelty. Like I wrote in a previous blogpost, the boys spread the rumors to up their reputation, while the girls spread them to be rude. I wish that life was so black and white like White had made it seem in her book. The way she boiled down the definition of a rumor and the reason why people tell rumors was just genius. The only thing is, I wish she had gone further into how to FIX these problems, not just addressing them. But I guess her goal wasn't to fix them, it was to dissect them- which she did.

I like how White, more or less, ends the book by talking about how girls have coped (post high school) with being called a slut all their adolescent years. She talks about girls who still have terrible memories from school and cannot even go into the building that was meant only for education and kindness. White wrote about Janice Joplin and women who found inspiration and an outlet for their baggage like writing stories, poetry, and photography. The whole book is pretty negative, not because White ever says, "Being a slut is bad, and this is what those girls had to go through is like". No. She never wrote anything remotely close to that. She just shed a lot of light on why the slut rumor comes about in the first place and how it affects everyone in the picture. The negativity of these circumstances was completely wiped away for me when she mentions the girls who have gained confidence and have changed their ways from these experiences. I like to know there is hope in the world even when someone can feel like they have hit rock bottom due to how others treat them. I feel like if I were to add onto this book I would add some more testimonies from the actual rumor-spreaders, to see what they were thinking when they made the claims they did. I want to hear more from the "popular" crowd, who White mentions fit into a large pyramid that involves the whole student body in respective tiers. I wish she had included pictures of these girls who were named sluts, but at the same time I'm glad I didn't see them. At first, I wanted to know what they looked like to know if they deserved the name they got, but then I thought that it was crazy to assume how many guys a girl has been with or anything of that nature just from looks. There is not one face of a slut, and not even one word for it actually. As I mentioned, the word "slut" has a different meaning and synonym with every class and race. Sure, they overlap, but there are different definitions for everyone based on their personal experiences.

I have definitely benefited from reading this book because I learned a lot about human nature and why a bad past could lead to a bad reputation which could lead to thoughts about suicide or things like paranoia. The saddest part about it all is that I would be reading this book in school, and be hearing the word "slut" from a conversation going on across the room and I wouldn't know how to react. Say, "Hey, do you know what that word is doing to people? Mind your own business and don't label people for what they have done or haven't done." But I guess White didn't intend for people to do that, she just wanted to prove a point. That the slut rumor is rubbish. Don't believe everything you hear. That is  a lesson I learned and will take with me wherever I go. I knew that lesson was important, but I never understood the full impact of it until reading this book and hearing from real experiences. I recommend this book to girls (because there is not much about masculinity in it. sorry guys!). The beginning and end were slow, but the middle was fascinating.