[Moderating]
cmore, while the joke itself might be relevant to this thread, the fact that the comedian is a “cute girl next door type chick” is not. This sort of casual judgement of women based on their appearance is something that we’ve been trying to get away from, both on this board, and in society as a whole. Each individual instance of it might not seem like much, but it adds up.
The most typical image I’ve seen associated with the “Karen” meme is one of Kate Gosselin (of “John and Kate Plus 8” –> “Kate Plus 8” fame), who was born in 1975 making her solidly Gen X.
ok. although in my mind I was being complimentary to her, I can see where that didn’t add much of value to the conversation and how it’s one of the building blocks of a larger issue. I’ll make every effort to be mindful of that going forward.
I forgot to mention, I have a coworker named Carin but it is pronounced just like the usual “Karen” pronunciation in the US.
She also does not fit the stereotype here; she is helpful and patient (she helps support our computer network).
I get mostly Care-in or Care-en, but some Car-in.
Long ago (1970s?) someone wrote a semi-smartass book on what (or what not) to name your baby, noting stereotypes.
The line that stuck with me was “Kim is a three-year-old who bites.”
/ˈkɛɹən/ only in my Inland North dialect. West of the Alleghenies you get the marry/Mary/merry merger.
I’ve only heard the car-in pronunciation with different spellings, like Kaaren and Karin.
You know that 1969 film, Frosty The Snowman, and that smug, judgmental, whiny, nosey little girl? That’s where Karen started.
Whatever happened to “Miss Ann”? Did she retire or something and Karen was recruited to take up the slack?
Is this the Karen who has two German Shepherds?
Karen is just a meme, or image that can be related to a certain type of woman.
If you have ever been in the military you know who Jody is. He may have been a friend or neighbor once. But while you are away he is home fucking your wife or girlfriend. Jody invokes an immediate image of who we are talking about.
And unfortunately for all the Karens out there, her name now invokes and image of a certain kind of woman.
There is also the reddit concept of a Kevin:
I don’t think it’s entirely a coincidence that “Kevin” and “Karen” share a lot of the same phonemes.
Another Gen Xer here. We had both multiple Karens and Jennifers. But all the Karens went by Karen, while the Jennifers went by Jennifer, Jenny, Jenn and even Nifer.
Of course, the most common name for girls was Heather.
I like the theory about Karen Walker. And the only Kevin I know fits the stereotype.
Jennifer is an extremely common Boomer name, too.
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Karenimplies she’s somewhat upper middle class, white, and has a short hair cut. She always wants to talk to the manager. The male form is either Chad or Kevin, depending on your intent.
The original Kevin story is very funny. I like the crayons, koolaid and gum in his hair details:
https://old.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/219w2o/whos_the_dumbest_person_youve_ever_met/cgbhkwp/
Bump.
I just came across an article at Raw Story, reprinted from The Conversation, in which socio-linguist Robin Queen traces the history of this usage. She (I’m guessing she’s a she) traces it back to two separate threads that converged: The use of alliterative names around 2018 to shame entitled women (e.g., #bbqbecky, #permitpatty, #golfcartgail), and some parodies on Reddit going back to 2005 in which “Karen” is the name given to “that friend nobody likes”, which eventually sprouted legs and got some traction.
How ‘Karen’ went from a popular baby name to a stand-in for white entitlement, Robin Queen, The Conversation (as reprinted at Raw Story), June 13, 2020.
And yes, that’s part of it too.
Hmm, to me Jody is a girl’s name.