I am going to charitably assume here that no reader requires a citation to the many instances in which “fratboy” is offered as a dismissive pejorative for certain kinds of mindset and behavior. I was reading one today, in which Newt Gingrich’s viewpoint was speculated to appeal to “fratboys,” and… not for the first time… I wondered why this is.
Now, disclosure up front: I was never a member of a fraternity in college. I actually was offered a pledge bid by Theta Chi ( ΘΧ, in the original ) but declined it for a number of reasons, mostly financial. And further disclosure: I am now a member of a charitable fraternal order, the Knights of Columbus, but in light of the fact that we have never once used a beer bong at our meetings, I think it’s safe to to say this is not relevant).
However, if I had not been dirt poor in college, I would have probably joined ΘΧ. I didn’t see them as particular symbols of evil or stupidity. And while there’s certainly a well-deserved reputation for partying excess in the Greek system, it’s far from confined to fraternities; I suspect a survey of any college dorm will find instances of people drinking with just as much dedication as the ones on Fraternity Row are – perhaps more.
So what, exactly, inspires the hatred from the masses when fraternities are mentioned? Is it deserved? I can’t see that it is, but I’m open to hearing arguments to the contrary.
I think it’s the connotation of arrogant, rich white douchebags who drive expensive penis substitutes and generally coast through life on their trust funds and father’s reputations.
I grew up near Washington State University, and there, at least in the 80s and 90s, the fratboy reputation was absolutely deserved. Consistently, the worst excesses were perpetrated on Frat Row. The dorms had much higher population concentrations but far fewer incidents that made it into the local paper. As a young female pedestrian, I quickly learned to plan routes past the dorms and NOT the frats, as harassment is not my idea of a fun time.
There wasn’t any connotation of wealth or privilege associated with frats there then, though. Just obnoxiousness, cluelessness, and drunkenness.
Undoubtedly that’s a strong reason. But given the numerous counter-examples counterexamplesof thestereotype both “white” and otherwise, I’m questioning how valid it is.
It’s difficult to link to cites showing a lack of arrogance or douchebagginess, of course. But my personal experience with fraternities didn’t bear that out – that’s not to say they were a collection of saints, mind you, merely that incidence of douchebagginess didn’t seem out of line with that of the general population.
This is something I’ve pondered occasionally, but don’t have a strong answer. Like most Us vs Them issues, it’s more a feeling than a reason.
The people I regarded as frat boys always seemed obvious. They rarely said anything I found original or, erm, profound. And when you combined the obviousness with a heavy dose of self-satisfaction, it’s very off-putting. (Are frat boys more self satisfied than most? I think so, but don’t have a cite…)
Of course, there’s the politics of exclusion. Everyone practices it in some way, but the notion of formalizing it is creepy.
Fraternities are part of the establishment. I like the establishment okay and sure wouldn’t want to try and live without it, but don’t want to burrow into it’s belly for warmth and comfort. And while the fraternities are ensconced there in the belly, many of the members act like wild-and-crazy guys… it bothers me.
When I was an undergrad in the early 80’s, fratboys were noted for an entirely unjustified sense of superiority, not infrequent episodes of gang rape, not infrequent episodes of group physical assault (especially on minorities), and generalized douchebagginess. Any criticism was met with a smug “You just don’t have what it takes to be part of the Greek system.” Why would you not consider being likened to such people an insult?
Oh, so you’re a [sneer] “coll-ege boy”. I’ve heard this a hundred times from non-college-goers, meaning someone who is privileged somehow and thinks they are smarter than everyone else just because their dad could afford to send them to college. “Frat-boy” is the equivalent for those of us who went to college but don’t get all the privileges of being in a frat. And I don’t mean the parties and beer but the connections and influence. Yes, I could have gotten into a frat if I wanted to, I tell myself, but in reality I couldn’t have gotten into one that had the kind of privileges I want. So I’ll just drag all “Frat-boys” down. Hey you, Frat-boy, did your daddy pay for that new car?
I roomed with a fratboy in my freshman year. He spent most of his first year pledging.
Brought a different girl into the room every week (we rearranged the room so we had decent privacy on each side), hid beer in our fridge, had a fake ID, came to the room late at night completely and utterly hammered, had friends over when all I wanted was peace and quiet…I’ll grant none of that is specific and unique to fratboys, but it sure didn’t help my impression of them any. It just reinforced my image of them as shallow, irresponsible assholes. And then of course there’s that whole “do evil unto others an’ ye call it initiation” thing.
Privileges of being in a frat?" That’s a good one. I would have sooner lived in a cardboard box than live in a frat.
“Fratboy” connotes immaturity, drunkeness, arrogance, sexism, elitism, “hazing” and date rape. It’s very much the college version of “jocks.”
In my college experience, there was a huge disconnect between the way the rest of the campus viewed them and the way they THOUGHT the rest of the campus viewed them. They thought everybody saw them as the cool kids. Nothing could have been further from the truth.
It wasn’t envy either. It wasn’t hard to get into a frat. They actually had trouble recruiting at my school. Pretty much anyone who wanted into one could get in. Most people just didn’t want anything o do with them.
ETA it occurs to me that part of what defines them is that they always need to do everything in groups. They can’t be individuals. They always have to rove around in gangs. Everything is about impressing their bros. Even sex. They can’t stand to be alone. A lot of them are obvious closet cases.
It’s a cultural stereotype that just happens to seem particularly well-defined because it is linked to a brightline act: joining a fraternity. But, you might find that it isn’t actually linked to fraternity membership at all. Where I come from, the members of the engineering frat are not considered Fratboys. Instead, Fratboy describes a certain kind of frat member who behaves boorishly in the way that nerd describes a certain kind of smart person who is socially inept and stoner describes a certain kind of marijuana user who is lazy or disengaged. In that respect, like “nerd” or “stoner,” “fratboy” is a perfectly serviceable stereotypical category that does generally describe some group of people who share undesirable qualities.
On the most basic level “frat-boy” connotes someone with a sense of upper middle class social entitlement that forms a large part of the way they view the world, and there is the general sense that other people exist to serve them in one way or another.
The general image of the “frat-boy” is a young Republican full of brio, arrogance and a profound certitude about their opinions regardless of how poorly informed they may be. George W. Bush was for many people the archetypal grown up frat boy and he performed pretty closely to this specification in the way he governed and conducted himself.
Who pays for networking? The good thing about networking is it’s free. Don’t these people have any social skills at all? Oh wait, see number 1 which would explain 2 and 3.
Fraternities are not synonymous with stupid behavior but there is a correlation. Frats concentrate three factors that promote stupid behavior: young men, a crowd, and a sense of privilege.
) but declined it for a number of reasons, mostly financial. And further disclosure: I am now a member of a charitable fraternal order, the Knights of Columbus, but in light of the fact that we have never once used a beer bong at our meetings, I think it’s safe to to say this is not relevant).