Nerd girl

The nerd girl is a stock character of late-20th and 21st-century non-fiction.Fact|date=January 2008 She is not simply a female nerd but has distinctive characteristics of her own.

imilarities to male nerds

The nerd girl has the following similarities to the stock character of the male nerd:

*often wears eyeglasses, which typically have large lenses and thick frames - in comics, particularly, this is an easy shorthand way of indicating that a character is a Nerd Girl.
*dresses unfashionably, not as a statement but because she doesn't care about fashion. Typically her clothes will be loose and comfortable (but see Subtypes below); they may be somewhat "young" for her. This should not be confused with dressing in alternative or eclectic fashions such as indie, goth, or bohemian, although in recent years, some nerd girls (especially self-styled), have begun doing so in an attempt to generate a more interesting outward image.
*wears her hair in unfashionable styles (such as a ponytail or pigtails; while male nerds have messy hair or flattops, sometimes with hair gel)
*is obviously intelligent
*has expertise or knowledge in a specialised area, and/or a wide general knowledge
*is fascinated by some area of knowledge, usually cultural, liberal arts and humanities as opposed to science and tech-related fields of the male nerds.
*is not popular
*is not considered conventionally attractive (exception: male nerds)
*is shy and may be somewhat socially inept in groups
*uninterested in and unskilled at sports (distinguishing her from the tomboy)
*may be slightly overweight (usually not much) or notably thin, also normal/average weight

In popular culture, the nerd-girl is often proposed as the ideal romantic match for the male nerd. This is just as often not the case as there are typically just as many differences as there are similarities, even if they share the same basic interests. Also, many male nerds admit to fantasies of polar-opposite females experiencing attraction toward them. This is due to the general perception that such women are mostly inaccessible to nerds due to the "like attracts like" principle. Possibly, the most famous example of this is the relationship between fictional characters Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson.

Additional distinctive characteristics

In part because of her female status, in part because of her later appearance as a stock character, the nerd girl may have the following characteristics which are not normally part of the male nerd's stereotype:
*kind and good-hearted
*passionate about causes such as politics, social justice or the environment (actually, many real-life male nerds share these concerns, but this reality has developed since the origin of the male nerd stereotype and is not often included in it, although environmentalism may be an exception due to its relationship to biological sciences.)
*may be feminist or postfeminist
*good one-on-one interpersonal skills
*aware of her own emotional states
*often small in stature

Likely events

A nerd girl is likely to have one or more of the following events occur to her:
*Rejected by more "popular" peers
*Attracted to someone who can't see past her nerdishness at first
*Has "makeover" which renders her conventionally attractive
*Comes up with the piece of knowledge which enables the plot to be resolved
*Rants at clueless male character(s)
*Makes the male characters talk and listen to each other/her
*Neat freak
*Obsessive Compulsive (loose hairs and touching towels)
*Sadistic

ubtypes

The following are some subtypes of the nerd girl (for examples, see below):
*the whiz kid or know-it-all - a young nerd girl who may associate with people older than herself because she is academically advanced (or unusually mature) for her age. Often has freckles or, in some cases, zits.
*the librarian or school marm - not necessarily a literal librarian/schoolteacher, but has the large glasses, dresses in a conservative, somewhat uptight way and wears her hair either up in a tight bun or in a frizzy poof. This conventionally conceals the fact that she is beautiful.Nerds are normally rejected, but really nice people.

Examples

The following table gives examples of the nerd girl from popular culture:

References