I am currently reading an interesting book named "Teen Angst? Naaah..." by Ned Vizzini. This book is actually an autobiography about Ned Vizzini and his times at Stuyvesant High school. This book doesn't really have a plot, it just follows a timeline of events in Ned Vizzinis life. however, i still somehow managed to pick up a few themes in Ned Vizzini's life. In it he basically talks about the average american teenagers life. He talks about the weeks leading up to the SHSAT, the excitement he felt when he got in, and his time there. His life is kind of basically what you would expect: worrying about getting good grades, worrying about college, getting a girlfriend, being popular, (etc.).
While i was reading this book, i kind of started thinking of stereotypes. this is because Ned Vizzini's life seemed almost stereotypical, just an average life. Specifically, i was thinking about who came up with the american life stereotype. I mean, someone had to come up with what the average life is supposed to be like, right? In my mind, an average Hollywood stereotype of the american life is a suburban neighborhood, tall, usually white teens wearing hoodies listening to ipods. Is this really how the public views us? so what is the definition of "Normal", or "average"?
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