Everybody’s John Doe
Picture an average high school student, what do you see? Is it you? Your friend? Talking to those around Rocky, people are hesitant to call themselves average, but everybody has their own perception of what the average high school student looks like. When asked about the stereotype, nobody wanted to say it was them, but everybody had a friend who fit the bill.
So let’s break it down, the stereotype. Cameron Orr sees the high schooler stereotype as just a “normal dude.” Khakis, skate shoes, with gelled hair. Self-centered, but not to the point of vanity, just to the extent of daily drama seeming life altering. The stereotypical high school social life is free and fruitful, with no shortage of friends or parties.
This contrasts to the view of junior Max Hand. Hand refers to the “John Doe” of high schooler’s as someone who doesn’t party much, but prefers to hang with a small group of friends. He or she might play a sport, might not, but manages their schoolwork, not a 4.0, but proficient.
So which is it? The perception differs in everybody’s eyes. As a khaki wearing student-athlete, I’d say I fit both pretty well, but I’d never consider myself the average.
In two senses one may hesitate to recognize themselves as the stereotypical high schooler. Fear of being inadequate stops us from volunteering us as the baseline, and crushes the little piece of hope that highlights our individualities.
On some level, everybody is insecure. No matter how vocally or obviously jealous I am, there’s a piece of me that wishes I had certain characteristics or qualities of someone else. Would I dare to claim I’m normal when in fact there’s someone I envy?
On the other hand, no two people are alike, and there’s a piece of all of us that hopes we’re made from the perfect mold: that we’re so unique and special that we could never be normal, that we’re popular, or smart, or talented, or all the above.
Seeing how people struggled to call themselves average, or even describe average, was eye-opening. Everybody I talked to would answer yes to the question, “Can you picture the average highschool student?” but not one person could describe it to me without struggling for words.
In all likelihood, we’re all average, we’re all subpar, and we’re all extraordinary. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so they say, I guess normal is too.
Harry is a junior here at Rocky Mountain who plays varsity soccer. He is an honor roll student and a DECA state finalist. He spends most of his free time...
