Re: On nerds and dreamers

On the list of interesting facts that haven't come to light yet,
"nerd" is a Greek word meaning "enlightened" (or so I've been told by
a Greek person who used to role-play on my MUD), and a "geek"
originally was a carnival entertainer who would bite the heads off of
chickens.

Literally, "nerd" and "geek" are insulting labels.  If there's any
confusion about their distinction and meaning it is because of a
common psycho-sociological pattern whereby people who have been
victimized gather under the label they've all been cast beneath and
develop a group pride, even arrogance, and definitely elitism.  "self
proclaimed nerds" tend to shun geeks as they were shunned, and "self
proclaimed geeks" tend to shun their nerd brethren.

Frankly, the social barriers are illusory.  All that makes a "nerd" or
a "geek" is shyness in youth.  Young and shy males in at least in
American social avenues tend to fall behind in the break-neck,
competitive environment they're hurled into as children.  Young and
shy girls tend to support each other earlier on, I think.  If nerds
are less interested in sports, there is little correlation to physical
attributes, but rather that they weren't accepted in sport venues when
they were young because _they were shy_.  This presents the familiar,
analogous dichotomy of "nerds" vs. "jocks".  Alternatively, kids that
are just plain smart when they're young might shun or be shunned by
their cohorts, leading to the same disparity.

Of course, this leads to a lot of walking around, playing in the sand
box, watching Star Trek, and pondering beneath trees.  So, the people
who are rejected ultimately find time for diverse interests and
imagination games rather than sports and "ring around the rosy".
Perhaps this is where our "dreamers" come from.

As far as names go, people tend to pick the label they ascribe to
based on what sounds right.  "Computer geek" and "band geek" are
common idioms.  If you haven't heard either of them, you might chose
"nerd".  I did.  I've never heard of a proudly self proclaimed "dweeb"
or "dork".  For me, "dweeb" conjures images from "The Farside
Gallery".

My personal experience is a combination of circumstances.  In school,
I wasn't very interested in sports.  I was shy, but ambitious.  I was
nonconformist.  From watching TNG, I had adopted a daunting vocabulary
and appreciation for higher ethics than "take from others when they
take form you", which led to being less assertive.  So, I took to
imagination games and drawing.  Later, in the void of social activity,
I started playing with computers.  I took an interest in phonetics and
alphabets which blossomed later on when I started learning languages
like German and Quenya.  Again, in the wake of social activity I ended
up in band and Boy Scouts where the ethical waters seemed safer.  Then
I became a self-proclaimed "nerd" at about 14 years old.  So, now I'm
studying Computer Science with a bunch of other "nerds" and "computer
geeks".  I suspect that many of my fellows had similar experiences and
age gave us all an opportunity to accrete here.

In summary, "nerd", "geek", "dweeb", "dork", and "jock" are all names
of mutually exclusive social groups stemming from fierce competition,
a social expectation of assertiveness and success in common sport
games, intolerance, and a social pattern of victim
dignification/anti-defamation.  Petty distinctions among these victim
groups depend on the definitions assigned within them.

Replies