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Ira Glass raised this question recently; or, perhaps, not so much raised it as lamented the way in which people retroactively confer “nerd” status upon themselves. As in, “I was such a big nerd in high school.” His basic argument was: no you weren’t, or: prove it.
He surmised that most people filter their actual popularity, if not their seeded positions on Homecoming Court, through a sentimental lens of nerddom. “Nerds” experience pain, certainly, but just because one experienced pain in adolescence, does this make one a nerd?
I do seem to hear this self diagnosis a lot from people I know, but then again, maybe that’s because these are the friends of someone who does feel she was a nerd (grades 7-9: unequivocally; thereafter: equivocally). Perhaps it’s just safer now to admit–or appropriate–one’s nerdy past now that we’re in the post-Napoleon Dynamite, Colin Meloy, Weezer, Adam Brody, Fancy Nancy, all McSweeney’s endeavors, et al. era. Not to mention Judd Apatow and his latest manifesto, Superbad (eclipsing poor old Ben Greenman). I mean, Jon Cryer has Emmy nominations, John Hodgman is a superstar, and Jonathan Ames is dating Fiona Apple. Are people claiming to have been nerds so that we can infer they’re destined for greatness, or because it’s closure on a difficult and nebulous youth, or what?
Comments (43)
Comment
I guess you have to define nerd. The two definitions I see are:
1. a stupid, irritating, ineffectual, or unattractive person.
2. an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit: a computer nerd.
I’m guessing few of us would want to admit to being definition 1, while many would fit into definition 2. I think “admitting” to the second definition has gained momentum due to the outrageous success of nerds like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Those nerds make some really great products that everyone knows or uses.
posted by Scott on 8-20-2007 at 12:27 pm
In my high school, you were deemed a nerd if you showed passion for any of the following: Band, Choir, Drama, Newspaper, Yearbook, Academic Decathlon, basically any kind of study-ish type of extracurricular, computers, comic books, anime - you get the picture. Also, pretty much anyone who had glasses that magnified their eyes or anyone who was clumsy and knocked into things on a regular basis was classified as a nerd. I’ll admit that I don’t want to pushed into Scott’s 1st definition, but I will admit to being annoying/irritating to those older than me in high school. I’ve always claimed I was a nerd, even before it was “trendy” - my parents told me that people were really paying me a compliment when they called me a nerd and that I should always be proud to be one.
posted by Lindsay D on 8-20-2007 at 12:36 pm
I think it all boils down to this: if you got picked on in school, you were a nerd. if you did the picking, you weren’t. we all fall into one of those categories.
In adult life it’s a little more complicated. But basically it reverses. Those who did the picking in school are generally the “losers” while those who were picked on are now making the cover of Wired mag.
So once a nerd, not always a nerd seems to be in play. Great post R!
posted by David on 8-20-2007 at 12:56 pm
I think it’s very easy for people who weren’t exactly nerds (but may have been weirdos) to take on the nerd mantle after the fact, because for one, “nerd” does have some adult”street cred,” and the stereotypical “nerd” is easier for people to visualize, so the lack of popularity/dissatisfaction with one’s teen years (which we’re told are supposed to be the among best of our lives) takes less explaining.
I for one was not popular, but I don’t think I was a nerd. More of a crabby, artsy, hippie-goth-punk-jock-fashionista with a strong book fixation and an obsession with bad comedy and even worse horror films. Doesn’t quite roll off the tounge like “nerd” does.
posted by leiarenee on 8-20-2007 at 12:58 pm
I always differentiated between nerd and geek. To me a geek was defnition 2; smart but lacked social graces. Where as a nerd was a person who was socially inept and awkward. My brother was a geek but not a nerd although the geek and nerd group hung out together. I wasn’t etiher one but I wasn’t part of the popular crowd. Although, if I had to make a choice between the poplular crowd or the geek group, I’d pick geek any day; they have more fun.
posted by Sally on 8-20-2007 at 1:13 pm
What about those of us who went the other way? I was one of the popular kids in high school - starting Center for the football team, Homecoming court nearly every year, Senior Prom court, always voted onto the Student Council, etc. It was after high school, however, that I finally came out of the computer geek closet and began studying computer networking in my early college days. Now I make maps for a living - is there anything geekier than that?
posted by SpaceMonkeyX on 8-20-2007 at 1:30 pm
spacemonkey -interesting point.
I have a very easy time identifying exactly why I never played any sports and thus today I have the coordination of a newborn- I was a nerd in school. Although, I think this association, for me, had less to do with my athletic ability and more to do with the fact that I only had two friends. I even told my boss this very thing recently in order to gain some adult street cred.
Looking back, however, I don’t think anyone I went to school with would have called me a nerd. Just smart and unsociable… wait…
Either way, bring on the nerdy boys, they have always rocked my world!
posted by ac on 8-20-2007 at 1:57 pm
Actually, the nerdy boys have only begun to rock my world recently… Damn nerdiness being popular. I don’t want to be popular!
posted by ac on 8-20-2007 at 1:58 pm
When I was in High School the only way to gain entry into Nerd-dom was to be a member of the A-V Club and you had to have a key chain with at least 30 keys on it attached to your belt so it made an obnoxious noise when you walked. This would call attention to your nerdy importance in life.
posted by JaneM on 8-20-2007 at 2:32 pm
“Damn nerdiness being popular.”
I agree. If I hear another perfectly manicured, every-hair-in-place cheerleader bemoaning her “nerd” status in her cellphone as she drags a dozen shopping bags through the local mall, I may have to hurt someone.
posted by Giovanni on 8-20-2007 at 2:33 pm
To me Nerds and Dorks are totally seperate. Nerds have some sort of value, while Dorks have no redeeming academic worth, such as reciting the plot to Superman volume 8 issue 15.
posted by FRO Majors on 8-20-2007 at 2:39 pm
If you’re reading this there’s a strong possibility that you are a true nerd … as opposed to those psuedo-nerd posers out there. Another sure indicator … who thinks marching bands rock? I know I do.
posted by DW on 8-20-2007 at 2:53 pm
Was this the theme of a recent “This American Life” episode? I looked over the titles for both the radio and TV shows for 2007 and I didn’t see anything that was nerd themed. Sounds like it would be a great show. I sure do love his story telling.
If anyone had the cred to talk about being nerd, it is Ira Glass. The guy looks like the cliche definition of a nerd.
posted by n2y2 on 8-20-2007 at 3:18 pm
I don’t really know what I was, but I will say that the term “nerd” has become sort of an umbrella encompassing nerds, geeks, losers, dorks, and generally anyone who didn’t have highlights, a position on a sports team, or access to alcohol before the age of 18.
I was a sort of floater…a stick in the mud and an overachiever as well. I hung out with the nerds and the computer geeks, and even helped a dorky girl get herself primped for prom. I was in the drama club, but i was also captain of a sports team–but I never went to a single party nor was I invited out by the “cool” kids. Somehow, I still won homecoming queen.
go figure.
posted by kay on 8-20-2007 at 3:21 pm
Ira Glass is incredibly sexy.
But I might have been a nerd, so what do I know?
I think I was a nerd, and I know I was certainly “picked on”. But I cared so little about those who picked on me, I’m not sure if “nerd” was my exact label. I don’t think they could even find a label. I certainly was different. But to a bunch of crowd-following sheep that went to my high school, “different” and “nerd” were probably interchangeable.
A note on “geek” - I was always under the impression that “geeks” were people who possessed a more than usual amount of knowledge on a subject (ie Computer Geek, Star Wars Geek, History Geek, etc. )Am I mistaken?
posted by Allison on 8-20-2007 at 3:28 pm
The reason why people retroactively confer hte title upon themselves is because it means “Hi, I was once genius and the world ostracized me for it during my adolescence! SOB!”
It’s a way of appearing modest and self-effacing but actually being pretentious and self-promotional.
posted by Sabrina on 8-20-2007 at 4:11 pm
no one wants to admit that they were one of the shallow people who would only wear outfits preapproved by teen magazines and mall store windows who actually teased other people for having the courage create their own style. i mean, after all, those types of people are always the teen movie villains who end up getting shat on in the end. so of course, after all is said and done, they’re going to claim they were actually the highschool underdog, the nerd, the “hero,” the molly ringwald.
(the Pretty in Pink molly ringwald, of course; not so much the Breakfast Club molly ringwald.)
posted by erin on 8-20-2007 at 5:47 pm
I have to sort of second Sally here. Nerd = socially inept and not very bright. Geek = unusually intelligent but socially awkward. Dweeb = socially dysfunctional and loving it, like Weird Al.
posted by Jack on 8-20-2007 at 6:09 pm
While I consider myself a nerd, I always thought the nerd/geek distinction was that a geek knows a lot about one thing, e.g. computers, Star Wars, comics), but a nerd know a lot about lots of things. Hence, geeks run companies and industry and nerds win on Jeopardy!
posted by Kevin Latham on 8-20-2007 at 8:26 pm
Well, I find this kind of interesting, and whenever people talk about High School I always think about that episode of CSI where Gill Grisham (excuse my spelling) finally admits he was a ghost… now, he fits those ‘nerd’ definitions (the guy is obsessed with bugs!)
So anyway, looking at his answer, that’s what I would say I was. A nobody or a ghost. I played sports and stuff, didn’t have any real nerd tendencies, but I was also socially awkward and didn’t have any friends. I came into a new high school my junior year and was picked on for a bit, but I didn’t react so they left me alone.
I ended up graduating with an engineering degree, so I suppose in some right I am a nerd, but I don’t think anyone looks at me or treats me like that.
posted by Dan on 8-21-2007 at 6:13 am
It’s sort of like everyone claiming to have grown up poor.
To really know if you are a nerd, you have to pass the nerd quiz.
posted by Jon on 8-21-2007 at 8:20 am
DW!! As a member of marching bands for 8 straight years, I TOO am a fan of marching bands!! They’re just so exciting!! They’re usually the best part of any parade. DCI (that’s Drum Corps International for those of you who don’t love MBs) totally rocks my socks off!! I always tune in whenever they have competitions! Phantom Regiment forever!!
posted by Lindsay D on 8-21-2007 at 9:43 am
For much of high school, I played Magic: The Gathering with my friends in the band room. I don’t think it gets any nerdier than that.
posted by Mary on 8-21-2007 at 10:05 am
n2y2, it was on the 08/13/2007 This American Life podcast, titled “The Spokesman”. The beginning of the podcast discusses nerds.
posted by tpal on 8-21-2007 at 11:23 am
My school was so small (graduating class of 23) that we all had to assume more than one stereotype. Multitasking, as it were.
posted by Miss Cellania on 8-21-2007 at 11:26 am
you want to know how awesome nerds can be? go here>>
www.brotherhood2.com
posted by bekah on 8-21-2007 at 1:34 pm
In my school nerdosity was defined exclusively by the popular kids: academically focused–wrong color; don’t dress like the other popu-drones; into hobbies that didn’t include cheerleading, drinking, sports (but only certain ones) or shopping…well then, nerd you were.
What galls me is that those same “keepers of the cool” are now claiming their inner nerd as some kind of special merit badge.
If they want to claim “nerd” now that it seems to have some cache, that’s fine: They’re sure to find another insult to replact it with.
Count on it.
posted by Lalita on 8-21-2007 at 1:34 pm
Has not High School Musical taught us anything?
Nerd, Geek, Jock, Skater and Drama Queen are meaningless labels.
Now let’s sing!
posted by Janix on 8-21-2007 at 2:44 pm
Well, I had always assumed that I had solid Nerd credentials, but now I am not sure.
I spent lunches in the computer lab programming BASIC on the TRS80. After 2 weeks, I knew more about Auto-CAD than my teacher. My parents’ family vehicle was van-sized retired school-bus; I drove the short-bus to school. I played trumpet in the marching band. My mom always bought clothes too small for me, so my pants were consistently at least and inch above my ankle. I didn’t discover combs until I was 16. Plus, my dad was a teacher at the school. Though I am reasonably sociable now (even house-trained!), I still hate visiting that town.
On the other side of the coin, I was an athlete. My sports were Cross-Country and long-distance track. Not glamor sports, but I was very good at them. Since I was bringing a little glory to the school, the teasing wasn’t so bad.
So was I a nerd, or am I mistaken?
posted by n2y2 on 8-21-2007 at 4:05 pm
I went to the Nerd School. Not all of us were socially inept. Most of us weren’t. We just all were pretty smart. Our school pushed us harder than the other schools in the area. So, were we really nerds? Perhaps not. But I don’t see nerd as a bad thing. Dork or whatever you wish to call it could be perceived as negative, but to me, Nerd just means you’re smart, and aren’t ashamed of it. Geek, I would say, is more of a nerd with a specialty. I was a choir and debate geek.
posted by Anne on 8-21-2007 at 10:29 pm
I ran the star trek club and the computer club. I’m a nerd, damn it.
posted by karen on 8-22-2007 at 6:33 am
Kevin Latham said “geeks run companies and industry and nerds win on Jeopardy!”
Exactly. Nerds were the one who irritatingly had the answer, no matter what class they were in. (I was one of these). Geeks were the ones who could rattle off obscure (insert geeky obsession) facts. (I never have been one of these)
n2y2 - Nerds and cross-country have a lot of crossover in my experience, much more so than other sports. I don’t think being in any sport necessarily precluded one from nerddom. It all depended on what characteristics your classmates chose to define you: social awkwardness or athleticism.
posted by sparge on 8-22-2007 at 7:24 am
I was the girl with no sense of fashion who entered the school system in eighth grade and spent the next four years hiding from everyone except a couple friends in band. I was smart enough to get a 4.0 but had emotional problems that held me back until senior year. Five years after graduating, I’m no longer anti-social, just an introvert. I also embarrass myself playing Trivial Pursuit because I beat the pants off everyone else. So yes, I am a nerd - but at least I’m a cute nerd.
posted by Joanna on 8-22-2007 at 7:25 am
The term nerd is simply another pointless label we need to free ourselves from.
It’s no proper badge of honour and I question the maturity of anyone that would use it as an insult.
posted by SM on 8-22-2007 at 10:42 am
i’ve always thought nerds had to be smart. that’s their defining characteristic. they can be cheerleaders or rock stars, but they have to have enjoyed some russian literature on the sly. i’ve always had my most powerful crushes on the biggest nerd in the room. so these people calling themselves nerds are flattering themselves, to my mind.
when i clicked the link, i was worried there would be a test for nerds and i would fail. but at least i’d heard of all your exemplars except fancy nancy.
posted by jami on 8-22-2007 at 10:58 am
Nerds and cross-country have a lot of crossover in my experience
Is this because of their experience running away from by bullies? :)
posted by Jon C on 8-22-2007 at 12:05 pm
Your so nerdy. I mean purdy! *nerdistic laughter*
posted by Simon on 8-22-2007 at 12:15 pm
I was voted most likely to drock. If you don’t remember, drock was an imaginary verb sometimes used in standardized tests in questions involving verb declentions. Beat that!
posted by drocker on 8-22-2007 at 12:45 pm
To me, nerds, geeks, dorks, losers and all that are all completely different things. Geek always seemed to be the “socially awkward” term, in the sense that the person didn’t really understand or get along with other people very well. Nerds are those who apply themselves to something in an almost ridiculous extent, while dorks are those who enjoy being quirky and/or slightly nerdy. Losers are those who are so socially inept or have such bad attitudes that no one (or very few) want(s) to be around them.
I was thinking about this the other day when someone mentioned that dorks were fun, while nerds were elitist, and I came to roughly the same conclusion. I was a band/music nerd in high school, and I do kind of have an ego about that (heck yes marching drum corps), but I also really enjoy being a dork, such as being obsessed with Indiana Jones or pirates (or costuming–my friend got me hooked on that one).
posted by DB on 8-22-2007 at 12:58 pm
Spacemonkeyx-
cartographers FTW!
posted by cc on 8-22-2007 at 1:00 pm
Look, my best friend in high school was a redheaded guy they called “ScannerMan” because he always wore a police scanner clipped to his belt. Was I a nerd? You be the judge.
posted by thebrokedown on 8-22-2007 at 2:25 pm
I’m in an accelerated high school program (yes, currently), so the line has been a bit blurry for me. Some of us are certainly more nerdy than others within the program, but by the standards of the other students “on the outside”, we’re all nerds.
I’m pretty sure that I’m considered one of the more nerdy students of my program, but I don’t think I’m an actual “nerd”, per se. Case in point, my best friend is a “punk rocker” known by everyone in school for having a photo of himself being tackled and arrested by the police on the front cover of the daily paper, being rushed into an ambulance in front of the whole school for a caffeine overdose, and dressing up in bondage gear for Valentine’s Day. Typical company of a nerd? I don’t think so.
But then again, wouldn’t any reader of mental_floss be considered a nerd?
posted by Kris on 8-23-2007 at 1:48 am
I hope not. Which probably means “nerd” is the correct description for me, and sadly, my high school and college yearbooks will prove it always was.
I’m with the HSM kids. Screw labels; we’re all in this together.
posted by Natalie Davis on 8-29-2007 at 5:35 pm