Many teenagers feel it is important to belong to a certain group or have a certain "look" or stereotype to fit in. For example everyone in the high school in "Mean Girls" fits into a set category, such as "The plastics", Preps, J.V jocks, Asian nerds, Burn outs, Cool Asians, Girls who eat their feelings, Girls who don't eat anything, sexually active band geeks, and the art freaks. This is similar to most youths, as many feel it is a necessity to fit into a group of some kind. Some typical groups in today's society are; chavs, grungers, emo's or goths, and most youths belong to one of these groups.
If teenagers do not belong to a group, some may feel like misfits, such as Cady in "Mean Girls". When Cady first arrives she is very different to all the other students at the school. She wears unusual clothes, which are not seen as "cool", has a different attitude and does not know any of the rules, such as where to sit in class. In many ways for Cady this is a brand new way of life, things she did not have to do in Africa, such as to ask for a lavatory pass, are obvious things to do in America.
There are many reasons why teenagers may want to infiltrate a group, such as peer pressure, pressure to fit in with society or simply because they have shared interests and hobbies as other people in the group. In "Mean Girls" ,originally, her so-called friends push Cady into joining the "Plastics" as they tell her it will be "fun" to find out about what they talk about behind closed doors. Cady suffers from peer pressure from Damien and Janice, as at first she does not want to fit in with the plastics and is against the idea, but they pursuade her into thinking it is a good plan. However after the leader of the plastics steals the boy Cady had her eye on, Cady quickly decides to take revenge on her by wedging her way closer into the group. Cadys then realises after a while that she enjoys being in the plastics, everyone knows her name and everyone wants to copy her style.
To fit in with their chosen groups, many people have to change be it their appearance, personality or likes and dislikes. Teenagers may feel pressure to change what they look like to fit in with the others around them, as they think if they are different or unique they will not be acceptable. For example in "Mean Girls" when Cady first arrives she is a misfit and is forced to eat her lunch in a toilet cubicle, as she does not fit in with any of the groups.
When Cady begins to join the plastics she changes her whole image; her hair styles, her clothes, her make-up and her whole attitude to life. She almost becomes a clone of the other three plastics. To fit in with others many people find they have to sacrifice their individuality, they feel under pressure to look, talk and behave like the other members. If people are pressured to fit in with others around them, everyone ends up fitting into an exact category, and no one is individual and unique.
There are many messages incorporated into this film, one of the most important is that you should always stay true to yourself and shouldn't have to change for anyone. This is shown throughout the film in many ways, such as Cady being miserable in the plastics and at the end, when she is back to her normal self, she has more friends and is happy, as she feels comfortable as she is. It is once said in the film that " she knew it was better to be in the plastics hating life, than to not be in the plastics at all." This is a perfect example of the pressure teens feel to fit in, they will even be miserable just so they can be liked.
Some other messages in this film are; that infact it doesn't matter what you look like, people like you for the way you are; making fun of someone is pointless, it doesn't make you or them feel better; and that nobody is perfect no matter what clothes they wear or how many friends they have.
In conclusion, there are many ways, in which society forces teenagers to feel the need to fit in with others, but youths should feel confident in them selves and not have to turn into clone-like stereotypes. Everyone should have the right to feel confident in his or her individuality.
