Social standing of Readers of Tolkien. Geeks, Outgoing People, or all types of people

[gandalfthegreat]

Hello I am a high school student, and it has become apparent to me that many readers of Tolkien are stereotyped as nerds, geeks, or freaks. But most people are wrong, Tolkien is read by all sorts of people...What does everyone else think. If you could please add some input, such as your occupation, what you believe you social standing is...and why you personally have found interest in Tolkien. I see myself as a fairly popular guy who just enjoys reading good literature.

-Gandalf-

[Link]

To be completely honest with you, I REALLY couldn't be stereotyped.

I'm alone.

I'm in High School, junior year, and to be completely honest, and have no good friends. I have people that I'll sit with at lunch, and talk to in the library, but I don't consider them my friends, and I don't hang out with them. I am not part of any group of friends, and I am alone. I'm in no way a loser, I've never smoked pot or drank more than one bottle of beer. I'm not unpopular at all, and lots of people find me to be cool, but I don't consider myself popular, or any part of the "popular group".I don't really care what other people think about me, unless it's a person that matters to me. I am my own person, and really, I wouldn't have it any other way.

I like Tolkien b/c I like Tolkien. Is there some kind of "geek" connotation that is supposed to go along with that?
I wish people would stop be ignorant, and accept something b/c they like it, not if they're friends like it.

If you want to lable me a geek, go aheads. Sticks and stones, and all you're doing is showing your own insecurities. There's no need to make fun of anyone, cuase for every finger you point at someone, there are three pointing back at you.......

Edit: Sorry, I didn't mean to sound so defensive, i really don't even care, i think this post just comes off as defensive....

[Aragorn12345]

Link, U R right I'm only in elementary school and I don't like sterotypes either, the truth is people really don't care in my school and I am kinda labled as some brainiac freak by the "Popular" kids. The poular kids should 'nt be saying anything b/c they have brains the size of Peas and the attention span of a rodent. Sometimes Kids can be really cruel.

[Carantalath]

I hate stereotypes but they happen all of the time. I'm definitely a geek but I don't mind. I'm in the tenth grade and that's high school. I like Tolkien because I love reading and I think his books are the best that I've ever read (and I've read alot).

By the way, my cousin is in junior high and he said that they had a Lord of the Rings club and that many people, popular and not, were signing up. Just thought that might be something else to input.

[morello13]

i am similar to link, i have maybe two rot three good friends in shcool but i dont hang out with any group

[Fimbrethil]

Hmm, I dunno that I ever fitted anywhere, but right now I fill the purpose of a student of philosophy :) I value my friends and family, have an interest in alternative music, heavy rock, rap, soul, prog, eclectica and so on that extends into singing live myself.

I wouldn't say I was 'popular', but I have a good group of friends that I know value me as much as I value them. We go out clubbing regularly, and I enjoy a nice coffee every now and then with 'aquiantences'.

But then I spend hours and hours fiddling around with html, css, xml and databases. I talk for hours on chat, I admin a large gaming website, aswell as follow my own art based and writing pursuits.


And I'm massively in debt to my government because they loan me my living costs. debt currently at £5000 and counting. ;)

In high school I was a bit of a loner, but I had friend here and there. They were never a coheasive group, being scattered through out the various social circles of high school. Best way really.

[HobbitGirl]

I, personally, detest sterotypical "social groups". I feel that classifying someone as a "geek" or "popular" is putting a label on someone without looking at who the individual is. It doesn't matter what other people classify you as. A book is a book is a book, and Tolkien was a briliant author whose works everyone can enjoy. :)

[33Peregrin]

I'm only a Freshman, and I'm in a program called IB which is basically just taking all honors classess. I don't know how this compares to everyone else, but almost everyone I know likes LOTR. Almost every day it is mentioned in our English class. The people I would have to classify as popular sometimes like it and sometimes don't. It just depends on what they like. Even last year in my regular middle school, most people liked it, except there were some people who were "too cool for it". This year, I hear about a lot of people who have read it. I get a lot of good attention just by having a Pippin action figure on my desk. A lot of people are caught in class reading it under their desk. In my classes, it doesn't really matter what you wear and stuff, just how cool you are. I mean awesome cool. I hope I'm not making it sound like this is ideal or anything, it's not! In fact, most of the time I don't really like it. I guess I'm just surrounded by nerds!!! I'm not really popular because I'm pretty quiet. I don't care what people think , really, it's just that at school my voice gets all quiet. I seriously don't care what they think! In fact, I think they're all pretty stupid. I'm certianly not afraid to show how much I like LOTR!! I can get really mad when people say they like LOTR and are not worthy of it. Like all of those obnoxious "popular" people.


I think brilliant geeks are the coolest people!!! But I don't care what people are labeled. It just depends to me who they turn out to be when I talk to them. I'd definetly classify myself as a geek, and that's cool. No one I know really gets into Tolkien even half as much as I do, which is a pity!!!! I also find that out of all my friends, the ones who really know how I like LOTR are my best friends. My best friend is really the only person who knows how obsessed I am. I don't know which way it goes!!!Friend- Lotr, or LOTR-Friend.

[Mindy_O_Lluin]

I guess I am worse than a geek. I am a colorless (i.e., white) middle to left-of-the-road, middle-class, middle-aged, working, single, childless, female, who carried a C+ avg in school and is wishy-washy with her opinions and is easily pleased by both PJ's adaptation of LOTRs and by Tolkien's original version.
Even geeks aren't that bland.
:rolleyes:

[Kailita]

Ahh...interesting thread. Well, let me start off by saying that I am a freshman girl, which is the first year of highschool where I am (9th grade), and I am anti-social (is that supposed to be hyphenated?) and proud of it. I didn't have to be if I didn't want to. My mom is always encouraging me to join cheerleading and get more involved in school (I am not, by the way, in any way saying that all cheerleaders are popular - but at my school, being a cheerleader is considered a standard of popularity)..."You could be the most popular girl in school by senior year," she always tells me. What she doesn't understand is that I have no wish to be popular. I am perfectly happy where I am. In being anti-social and sometimes classified as "strange" or a "geek" by the people following the herd, I can be who I am without worrying what anyone else is thinking. I have a group of great, zany friends who are always there for me, and that seems to be better than having a bunch of prissy cutthroats dubbed "friends" who are just waiting to cut you down so they can rise up.

As far as this relates to Tolkien...well...in my experience, yes, a lot of Tolkien readers at my school would be classified by most normal people as "geeks" (there is actually no such thing as "normal"...but that's a TOTALLY different subject... ;) ). That is to say they are bookworms, smart, and loners in a sense. But there are also a bunch of popular, outgoing people reading his books, as well as punks, jocks, cheerleaders, and etc. Basically, what I'm trying to say, is that you don't have to be any certain way to read good literature. If you are interested in it and enjoy it, that should be all the criteria there is. You have to judge people by individuals, not groups. Not all cheerleaders are ditzy. Not all jocks are stupid. And not all Tolkien-readers are "geeks".

~Kailita (a freak and proud of it!)

[reem]

ok people. here is the truth (as i see it) and the answer to the origional question. are all Tolkien-fans geeks?
well of course not!! my brother in law is concidered by the narrow minded and ignorant extremely cool, funny and popular...and is also a big Tolkien fan! he's the one who told me to read it in the first place!(and i'm no geek i can assure you)...actually, come to think of it...he MADE me read it!
the thing is i never was that interested in pure fantasy. but he kept badgering about this book that i've never heard of and he seemed to be in real earnest so i went ahead and read it. thus you see me before you, a fellow devoted fanatic.
anyway, what i'm saying is that people from many age gruops, countries, and social groups (what you call popular people and geeks...a very ignorant way to classify people indeed!!), cultures, blah blah blah...etc read it and go crazy over it!
those who aren't bookish watch the movies and fall in love with it. those who are bookish read it and fall in love withit. fullstop.
of course, ocasionally you get a person or two who aren't big on imagination and art, so they don't join the Tolkien fan club.
i can see how it can be a problem though if you're living in a society where people can be so shallow...but don't take it to heart. it's not worth it.
if you want my advice, just enjoy what's good. the rest can go polish their nails and moose their hair for all the world cares!!
reem

[Elfhelm25]

I dont think so .
I am a nerd in a sense but not the way some people consider it
I am a nerd in that everything in life fascinates me and I love learning and studying and reading
I have good grades but not great
I have great friends . I stay away form a group and the image of being a "part " of a group before being known as nyself , I love my friends and my school
I am almost 18 , live on good ol' PEI , and I have a lot of animals
I think ppl from any age read Tolkein , from every type of personality youll find some ppl who you can share a love for tolkein and pride at being obsessed and not caing
like the many fine obsessed and fascinating ppl on this website who have so many different views and can add something to everyones point of view

:p

[Inderjit S]

You can't sterotype peopel because of their choices in intrests. No one's every bothered me becuase I like LoTR or Tolkien. My friend occasionally jokes about it, but that's it. I'm far form a nerd. I cause trouble at school (Well I used to) and I'm too lazy to do a lot of work. I go out sometimes, and I'm generally the one in the class who cracks the stupid, unfunny jokes (Only Moron's find me funny. We have a lot of moron's in our school. Me included. ) and behaves like a dirty teenage boy, which I am.

[DurinLongBeard]

I am not a nerd. But I would not want to be called "cool". I doubt that any of my friends(save the ones on my bus) know or care that I happen to enjoy or readLord of the Rings. I have girlfriends, play guitar, basketball, lacrosse, and read LotR. At my school no one minds what the other is in too. Different to what I have been hearing, at my school ( St. Joes soon to be at St. Johns for HS) it is good to be smart, but if you aren't nobody cares. In fact, we have a accelerated algebra class that I and over 1/3 of the grade are in, and are proud of it. Just like inderjit s, i am a dirty teenage boy, always wanting a good laugh!

[Frodorocks]

I don't like stereotypes, so I'm the kid who hangs out with everybody and tries to break all of the stereotypes. I'm a little of everything, I'm pretty smart (honours classes and all) but I don't care and just try to have fun. My school used to be really into stereotypes and used to alienate me and call me a freak, because here I was, a girl that didn't care about how she looked or what guys thought of her, just out for a good time. But now, I have lots of friends, and stereotypes don't have such a powerful hold on everyone. I love it!:D The other day one of my friends ( who used to be a really somber, strict christian type person) told me that she liked a guy who is a punkish skater boy type person. Then she thanked me and told me that without me she never would have done something like that. It made my day.:) I was attracted to Tolkien like I am to other books, I'm always on the lookout for a good read.

[Kailita]

That's really cool, Frodorocks! Defy the labeling process! Break the chain of stereotyping! Be yourself! Have fun! :D And if anybody calls you a freak for it, yay! Be proud!

Just one problem:

The other day one of my friends ( who used to be a really somber, strict christian type person)...

Don't steriotype Christians either! Soooo many times Christians are portrayed as stiff, stick-in-the-mud people who have no fun...and that is soooo not true! REAL Christians are the funnest, most joyful people you can ever meet! If you're set on fire with the love of Christ, you're definitely not going to be somber! So don't fall into the trap of thinking that Christians don't have fun. :)

[Frodorocks]

Thanks!:D Don't worry, I know that Christians know how to have fun, because I'm a Christian too.:) It's just that her parents never let her do anything. They once didn't let her go over to a friends house because the friend's sister had a baby. It's not like she was really young or anything either, she was in her twenties! and married! :rolleyes: I feel so sorry for her.

[Kailita]

Yay! Okay, I'm glad we're on the same page, Frodorocks. :D

Aiieee...I hate it when Christians get legalistic. That's what gives them a bad name sometimes. Ugh. I know some people like that, too. A gung-ho Christian guy who was staying at our house once told me that I was going to go to hell because I had "pictures of men" on the walls of my room. They were pictures of Legolas and Spider-Man, for Heaven's sake! Give me a break. Anyway, yeah, I know what you're saying.

[Frodorocks]

:rolleyes: :D That guy's a silly person.:p I don't know where in the 10 commandments it says to not have pictures of men on the walls of you're room.:rolleyes: :D

[e.Blackstar]

Once you're as far down in the ranks of the middle school hierarchy as me and my friends are, you can do/say pretty much whatever you want. I mean, you can only go further up. "Once you've reached rock bottom, the only place to go is up."-Somebody, Atlanis

However, once you're at the top, you'd better stay there and keep your rep. Ugh!
I was/am teased horribly because of my "smarts"(hah!),I read a lot, and I am bound by none of society's rules(i.e.how to dress, how much one should swear, what music to listen to, etc.)

[tookish-girl]

Well, I'm in College now, I'm 20 years old and I'd like to give a message to all the geeks/nerds/freaks of the forum.

Don't ever change!

You're only called that by other people because they're don't have the courage to be individualistic like you are. They have to do whatever their particular group does and are terrified of being shown to be different. That is what many high school friendships depend on, acceptance into the 'right' crowd.

That's rubbish, I had a group of around 10 friends at High School, we were consdidered the geeks. Just ask legoman, he was one too. Why? Becuase we were smart, we did our homework, (well, some of us!) We did art, we did music. We weren't interested in trying to be cool. We just were ourselves and we had a great time when we were together.

By the time you're out of high school, you'll realise that it won't matter at all whether or not you were in the cheerleading squad or the football team or that word 'popular'. Just have fun being yourself. If you were born to cheerlead, do it, if not, read Lord of the Rings. If you want to cheerlead and read Lord of the Rings, that's cool too!

[Kailita]

Originally posted by tookish-girl
Well, I'm in College now, I'm 20 years old and I'd like to give a message to all the geeks/nerds/freaks of the forum.

Don't ever change!

You're only called that by other people because they're don't have the courage to be individualistic like you are. They have to do whatever their particular group does and are terrified of being shown to be different. That is what many high school friendships depend on, acceptance into the 'right' crowd.

That's rubbish, I had a group of around 10 friends at High School, we were consdidered the geeks. Just ask legoman, he was one too. Why? Becuase we were smart, we did our homework, (well, some of us!) We did art, we did music. We weren't interested in trying to be cool. We just were ourselves and we had a great time when we were together.

By the time you're out of high school, you'll realise that it won't matter at all whether or not you were in the cheerleading squad or the football team or that word 'popular'. Just have fun being yourself. If you were born to cheerlead, do it, if not, read Lord of the Rings. If you want to cheerlead and read Lord of the Rings, that's cool too!

Very well said. Yay for geeks, freaks, and nerds! :D

[Lossengondiel]

nah, I read all sorts of stuff and I am only considered a "geek" because I can be pretty dang shy and quiet sometimes. You just gotta show them that they're wrong about you

[FrankSinatra]

People who read Tolkien need to have a certain level of intellect and imagination.

Thus making us a minority group.

And anyone 'different'/'better than most' is treated so.

[Lossengondiel]

Just be proud of who you are. No one can take that away from you

[Annushka]

Stereotypes are the most common thing ever. Even people who are against that, do that all the time. The thing is to realise that and try to clear your head from it.

I`m almost 22. In my country girls of my age are usually married. I`m not. And don`t have that in mind. I really wanna do something special in my life, I`m interested in many things, I wanna see the world and take all the chances in life. In a few years I`ll be stereotyped as a unmarried girl whose life is all wrong. But I don`t care.

Originally posted by Tookish girl
/Don't ever change!

You're only called that by other people because they're don't have the courage to be individualistic like you are. They have to do whatever their particular group does and are terrified of being shown to be different. That is what many high school friendships depend on, acceptance into the 'right' crowd./

You`re absolutely right. As long as you have the courage to be different in any way (listen to other music, don`t care about popularity, be smart, make your own decisions about your life), to withstand the masses, you`ll be happy. We don`t need others to make us happy. We can find everything we need inside us and in very few people who really care about us.

[Arda]

Dude I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. Most High School kids think that way, but by the time you get to college more and more people you meet will enjoy reading, especially Tolkien books. Another thing is High School girls are more likely to read rather than guys so it's a good thing to bring up when ur chillin with girls. But anyways, I was "popular" if you want to call it that. I wasn't a jock or a football player or anything but I knew everyone in my grade and most of the grades above and below and everyone knew who I was and liked me, and I read. No one looked at me differently or really cared if I read or not. Do what you like, even if people do think reading is for geeks I don't think they would feel that way about someone reading LOTR after they've seen the movies.

[Elbereth]

I agree.

Also, I have found that now that I am out of high school and college...when I mention to someone that I read...and read Tolkien, they look at me with greater respect.
Normally, as you get older...the more "geeky" pursuits like reading are celebrated. So if you are teased because you like Tolkien or for reading...I wouldn't get too upset about it...because those who are doing the teasing are going to be the first ones who will be teased in the future for being closed minded, ignorant and uneducated.

[Arthur_Vandelay]

I think we should be wary of generalising too much about the type of person who reads Tolkien—though if I had to, I would suggest at the very least that his readership has possibly broadened since the films were released. I first read LOTR in high school (a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away), and I don’t remember there being too much antipathy towards readers of Tolkien back then—probably because most of my fellow students hadn’t heard of him. Someone saw “Minas Morgul” written on my homework diary, and asked if it was the name of a heavy metal band.

But to those of you who have encountered flak from the social butterflies because of your preference for obscure pursuits such as “reading” and “thinking” over whatever it is popular people like to do in their spare time, please remember this. 99.99% of the simian jocks who laugh at you today will never, ever enjoy a career in the NBA, NFL, NHL, etc. So don’t forget to say “hi” to them 10 years from now, when you’ll most likely find them setting pins in the local bowling alley. :)

[Ireth Telrúnya]

I think this geek, nerd etc labels and stereotypes are mainly created by TV and movies. Do we really let them to define our lives? I'm totally against all that.
I was "a major geek" when I was still at school and I guess I still am, though I have more friends now. And in the end I'm found out that I'm basically a person who doesn't like to be around people that much. I can easily spend time reading Tolkien etc.
I think reading is generally considered more "nerdish" in America than in my country, where libraries can be full of kids sometimes and they are not necessarily considered "nerds". And book loaning frequency is much higher here, I think, than in many other countries. I remember seeing some statistics about that..

[Eledhwen]

Where do I fit into this stereotype?

I am a 48 year old mother of five. I am an Englishwoman , and if Oxford is Hobbiton, then I live just about on the borders of the South and West Farthings, somewhat south of Michael Delving. Tolkien is the only author outside of the Bible who writes to my heart.

I also help run a LotR Warhammer club at my kids' school.

[Snaga]

That's gotta make you a geek's mum!:o Can you deal with the shame? Hehe just kidding!:D

I like to tell people I'm a geek, for fun. Often they look appalled that I would say that about myself, and assure me that I'm not. But I know its true, and they just don't know me well enough!:)

Actually, the real thing is not let yourself feel pressured to be any different to how you want to be. Which isn't the same thing as 'don't change'. People do change, and that is your right. But it would certainly be bad to give up good things like reading so you can conform to a useless concept of what is normal.

By the way don't kid yourself that this is just a teenage thing. I used to work somewhere where there was a very strong idea of what you should do, like, wear etc. I hated it, and the best thing I ever did was to leave. Its just a part of life, I'm afraid.

[Eledhwen]

I like to tell people I'm a geek, for fun. Often they look appalled that I would say that about myself, and assure me that I'm not. But I know its true, and they just don't know me well enough!:).When approached for conversation when he didn't feel like it, my ex-husband used to tell people he was a seal clubber. It was often met with an agonised silence while the other party tried to work out whether he was jesting, and if not, what to say next.

It seems to me that being a geek is being interested in something that other people not only don't understand, but don't understand why it's interesting.