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Nice Jewish Girl No More
By Meredith Druss
It’s a good time to be a Jewish girl.
It’s been six years since Urban Outfitters launched their “Everyone Loves a Jewish Girl” t-shirt (you know, the one with the $$ signs that they quickly took off the shelves and replaced with hearts instead), but its words are still ringing true. It seems that references to Jewish girls are everywhere these days — TV, Twitter, music, movies, and in the pages of my dentist’s magazines. Jewish girls are IN.
While I’m not qualified to track the real data as to the potential cause of this new phenomenon, I can say with a certain degree of confidence that TV seems to have had a major impact. As a TV lover, and as someone who likes to take fictional situations and see if they apply to my own life, I often seek out and feed off of any Jew(ish) reference I can relate to. In my younger years, there were a limited number of Jewish female characters – Grace Adler from Will & Grace, a vocal, neurotic Jewish character; Monica Gellar from Friends; and Fran Fine from The Nanny.
But we’ve entered the 10s, and with the arrival of a new decade came a new kind of Jew. Jewish girls have matured. We are no longer known as the the “girl next door,” now we are the “other woman.” Take FOX’s Glee - Rachel Berry, played by Lea Michele is TV’s new female Jewish character. Sexy, seductive, and maybe a little bit easy, Rachel portrays Jewesses in a new light. Fast on her heels are characters like smart & dorky Annie Edison (Alison Brie) on Community, sexy & competitive Christina Yang (Sandra Oh) from Grey’s Anatomy, and dirty, dirty comedian Sarah Silverman. These ladies are more than just bangable, they are vocal about their sexual frustrations and needs. Oh yeah, and they’re hot.
Which brings me new characters to be compared with. TV and the media are starting to show the other side of the Jewish girl (ambitious, vocal, smart, funny, hot…). In December, Christopher Nixon pronounced Jewish girls the “ethnic fetish du jour” in Details Magazine. In January, Italian Pauly D. from MTV’s reality show Jersey Shore got the hots for an Israeli named Danielle. In February, Troy, the jock on Community, was convinced of his attraction to Annie after being told “…And she’s Jewish!” With all that, there’s renewed attention being paid to the Jewesses, and it’s translating to real-life.
These days, I’m loud and proud about my Jewish identity – my trump card is to say I’m Jewish. With that one sentence, I get a renewed flicker in the eye, a subtle lean-in, and the words “Wait, did you say that you were Jewish?” It’s also quickly revealed when I mention that I work for a Jewish non-profit organization, as when people see my Tiffany’s Star-of-David necklace. These guys, Jew and non-Jew alike, are definitely more interested once they find out. My friends are noticing the difference for themselves as well.
I recognize that this fetish also leads to some disturbing situations. The sexualization of Jewish girls on TV has planted itself into the minds of the men I’m meeting. See, where it used to be that the Catholic schoolgirls were the sexually-repressed and thus easy-to-lay American feminine stereotype, Jewish girls are stereotypically less taboo about sex. Now, when I meet a new guy, and he finds out that I’m Jewish, I’m confronted with a dilemma. I have to determine whether or not he’s interested in me because I am: (a) one of those desperate or easy girls on TV, (b) totally hot AND would make your Jewish mother proud, or (c) smart, sexy, funny, outgoing, and potential girlfriend material.
But I am relieved and thankful for one thing. The attention has made it cool to be a nice Jewish girl. No longer is it something that I feel like I have to hide or deny. The public attention has also let boys in on the fact that there are many, many ways to be a nice Jewish girl. While I can still compare myself to the Monicas and Graces, I can also throw in some sexy & motivated Rachel, some smart & innocent Annie, and some loud & foul-mouthed Sarah. We’ve broken the old “nice Jewish girl” stigma, which is all of a sudden making me just a little more interesting and mysterious.
Photo by adpk, licensed under Creative Commons.
Tags: Nice Jewish Girls, sex, TV
9 Responses to “Nice Jewish Girl No More”
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How important is it for these Jewish characters to be played by Jewish actors? And do these characters ever do anything Jewish, aside from acknowledge it? I think Grace Adler did, but I would hate to see Judaism reduced to a name or an occasional “Mazal Tov!”
These are things I think about a lot too, Ari. I get nervous that non-Jewish actors playing Jewish characters might play to stereotypes and reinforce ideas that we don’t want accentuated.
Personally, I am ok with non-Jewish actors playing Jewish parts, as long as they are accurate and educated about Judaism. Jews are so diverse in look, behavior, and attitude anyway that for me it’s not important that characters “do something Jewish” on their shows, but that they acknowledge a Jewish identity. We’re seeing shows incorporate Jewish holidays, religious rituals, and of course, Jewish identity questions, in their storylines through these characters, and I’m a huge fan of that. Of course, bonus points if a Jewish actor is playing the part.
What were your thoughts?
Interesting piece. I’d date you.
While I am a fan of the TV perception change of Jewesses, is there a similar trend for Jewish guys? And do you think it’s time that the actors/actresses started taking on issues that are pertinenet- or even better boundary pushing – to the Jewish community? The only example I can think of is “Mama’s Boys,” (yes I watch a fair amount of TV) and I came away from that show with a kind of nervousness that the takeaway for non-Jews would be that Jews are closed minded and pushovers…thoughts?
Great article.
I know not everyone reading this article knows the author personally, but I do. And actually, Meredith, I think your identity adds another dimension to this discussion. How does your being half Asian complicate responses when you assert your Jewish identity? Is it different when a girl with dark curly hair who looks “stereotypically Jewish” wears a Jewish star or mentions that she works for a Jewish non-profit? I would assume her proclamation of Jewishness isn’t met with the “really?!” reaction you must experience. Being a blond, blue-eyed Jew I get the “really?!” response too, but I assume you hear it even more often. So are guys intrigued by the simple fact that you are Jewish, or by the fact that they would never have guessed you are Jewish? Something to think about…
JC, I’d say we’re seeing some of the trend for Jewish guys too. It’s hard with “Mama’s Boys” because the reality tv genre really exaggerates or hyper-sexualizes it’s characters in general. I mean, I can think of an example in “Glee” as the male character who is supposed to be the “bad boy” is Jewish in the show. (They do an episode where he has dream that he interprets as G-d wanting him to have sex with Jewish girls). My roommate also told me that in “The Deep End” (some show about lawyers) they have an episode with a plotline involving a hot Jewish guy, a bris and kippot.
…I’m again feeling like they involve these Jewish characters in sex-related plots a lot actually! And yes, even the men!
Finally it’s okay for me to be the hypersexualized Jewish Badass I always had inside…
Jokes aside, point taken on Mama’s Boys and on the positive sexualization of Jewish characters, but what about tackling issues that the Jewish community itself is facing such as intermarriage, observance levels, etc? (I guess the assumption is that these ARE issues that the community is facing). I think there is a lot TV could do for an explanation and/or positive spin on the aforementioned subjects…
Oh how I wish they would bring Mama’s Boys back for another season. Great article. Like the discussion!
I have to say, it is amazing to me how many men I know are in relationships with Asian women. I’ll confess that I do find some Asian women to be very pretty, but what do you think the attraction is really about? Why do some white guys only go out with Asian women…can somebody explain the attraction to me?
That was intriguing. This one had me laughing for awhile: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3j7uSbccSc
loved this post!