As our Facebook news feeds have become flooded with countless statuses imbued with overstated love for mysterious "bigs" and house letters forced into corny puns, we know that pledge term is well underway. Of course, there is no reason that pledges shouldn't be excited about their newfound affiliation. Yet the atmosphere surrounding pledge term can often be, to put it bluntly, obnoxious. While the eruption of Facebook activity and rampant flair can get old, it is still harmless and mostly funny. The real problem with pledge terms runs much deeper than this superficial frivolity. With both fraternity and sorority pledge terms, the real problem manifests itself in condescending and sexist complexes adopted by pledges who get swept up in something they perceive to be much bigger than themselves.
The other day, two guy friends of mine asked me how pledge term was going. I told them that it was good, but it was more time-consuming than I had expected. They turned to each other and laughed, "Yeah, baking all day must be really hard."
This, of course, annoyed me. The notion that, because I'm in a sorority, I naturally spend all my time baking is obviously a sexist jab. And while their retort was meant to be a joke, there was a tone of superiority in my friends' voices, as if my life as a sorority pledge could never be as intensive as theirs as fraternity pledges. I proceeded to ask them how their pledge term was going. They looked at each other with knowing smiles, turned to me and said, "Oh, you don't want to know." Interestingly enough, this response from male pledges is not uncommon. This patronizing attitude marks the presence of an elitist masculinity complex that is, to my dismay, taking hold of many of my peers.
While I can't claim to have an extensive knowledge of what it's like to pledge a fraternity, I do know that hazing still exists. One of the most interesting aspects of hazing is that while many of the pledges I know admit that they've been asked to do things that they find uncomfortable, they still do it and manage to put a positive spin on it. One of my friends called pledge term "the most fun I never want to have again." Why would they glorify something that seems so unpleasant?
As was evident in the discussion I recounted earlier, submission to hazing is often a means of garnering bragging rights. The slightly insecure freshman of last year finally finds status in a group of men united by having braved the "immense" difficulties of pledge term. In trying to be perceived as hard core and unshakable, he demonstrates essentially what the Dartmouth Greek system brands as desirable masculinity. And he assures himself of that masculinity as he downplays the experiences of those in sororities and those who are unaffiliated.
But I'm not impressed by this masculinity and implied superiority. Hardships are suffered during fraternity pledge terms only because pledges choose to endure them. While I appreciate that there is pressure to fit in, I only reserve reverence for those who actually respect their limits and understand that they don't have to prove anything. And this doesn't just apply to men pledging fraternities; it applies to everyone, whether they are in the Greek system or not.
Women in sororities may not be subjected to some of the horrific types of hazing that we hear about at fraternities, but they also should never feel as if they have to live up to some sort of standard set by their house. Similarly, students joining clubs that exercise some sort of initiation process should never feel like they need to perform everything that is asked of them. This empowerment is only possible when we remain confident in ourselves and realize that things like pledge term and even the Greek system in general shouldn't be taken too seriously. It's time to abandon our superiority complexes and embrace the real benefit of pledging having the opportunity to get to know a group of fun and inspiring people.
