In the last couple of months, several people have posed this question to me : "Why Plain Jane?" I've offered several answers ranging from vague stories to fob them off, to something closer to the real reason. I've spent many an hour thinking about it myself, for I find myself increasingly comfortable with this current nickname of mine, not to mention that I'm loath to change it.
It started off as a cheeky attempt to subvert an old nickname - the tags of Plain Jane and Goody-Two-Shoes were my constant companions in school - and has ended up being so much more. In some ways, it's a jibe at those who dubbed me Plain Jane and refused to see what lay below the surface - but more than that, it's an acceptance of one facet of my personality and a certain contentment with myself. There was a time the nickname pinched and I wanted nothing more than to shake free of it and to prove myself anything but Plain Jane. No longer. I'm quite comfortable wearing this mantle. If what you perceive of me is merely Plain Jane, it's more your loss, than mine. Those who took the trouble to scratch the surface know there's more to me than meets the eye - and for those who don't, allow me to introduce you to Plain Jane. This one won't settle for Bingley ;-)
My Words:-
Duh - Remember Moose from Archies comics?
Sublime - Aesthetic, Divine, Radiant, Ethereal, Celestial, Intellectual, Exalted
Ick - My Personal Expression for Distaste, Ennui, Disgust, Frustration et al ;-)
Epouvantable - Horrible (French)
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26 comments:
Epouvantable ... very impressive to anyone that doesn't know what that means. Good choice of words :-) Your blog is anything but Epouvantable
i don't know if this is related but still, i have noticed in india that few ppl have enough confidence and smarts to be stylish and sexy...its changing now greatly though. these ppl still cling to the old fashioned ideas of one kind of beauty only. i find it musty and silly to say the least. besides other ppl's opinions are just fleeting, variable thoughts, never make up your mind about yourself from what others think.
A superior mind and an interesting personality and a good character is hugely attractive, i think.
i like 'your' words! ;)
god! this gulnaz here needs to do some rethinking (or should i say thinking)...some of the most stylish and sexy people in the world happen to be indians. arundhati roy, jawaharlal nehru, aparna sen, deepti naval, vikram seth...i cud go on.
and bad taste is a general human attribute...thats why we aesthetes revel in our superiority over the bougeoisie!
and now for my favorite words (one MUST excuse the spellings ...i have little regard for spellings, btw):
1. ridiculous
2. bourgeois
3. prosaic
4. fidelity
5. amorphous
kunal.
hmmm...this could become a whole new meme in itself, albeit one only for the lit snobs- I mean the list of favourite words. perhaps I shall start it.
On a different note: I say, she speaks French, whot. How perfectly horrendous!!!! How deliciously distastefull!!! By jove, I think she ought to be dismembered :))
boy your no plain jane.and i even more convinced about it ever since i started reading your blog.
I always wondered but never asked.Good you told me other wise you would have been forced to to fob me off with some vague story very soon.
Let's see my words -
vicarious
intellectually itenerant
wistful
this is for anon whom i have somehow annoyed: dear anon, i realised on reading my comment that i might have come across more harshly than i intended to.
i am indian and love my land and its ppl but it does not blind me to its faults and having faults is no big sin either.
what i had meant was most ppl in india, have a narrow idea of beauty and style which can leave out many as not so stylish and not so pretty. anway, the comment was for geetanjali and i think she must have got my point. gee, if u too didnt get my point then i'll elaborate again but i somehow think u do follow what i am trying to say here.
don't want to hog more space than i have already done, so...sorry if i hurt your feelings, anon. chill. ;)
Parth - Thanks. I, by no means, meant to imply that my blog is epouvantable;-) These are just words I used often!
Gulnaz - First let me respond to your 2nd comment - Anon aka Kunal, probably didn't take as much offense to your statement, as he decided to seize the op to condescend! LOL what I mean was that he just sezied the op to enlighten others on his opinions on the topic.
I'm not sure of the relevance of your comment here - but I did get what you were trying to say...
Kunu - Happy? :-)
Kaashyapeya - Cheeky! Terribly so!But do start a word meme!
Anon - I still don't know who you are. Anyways as I said those who don't bother scratching the surface perceive only Plain Jane. Guess you scratched :-)
Akshay - Aha so you were one of "those" ;-) Frnd asked me to put up my fav.most used words saying it would be interesting to see other's words - and it is!
arre anon was me aparna dont know why my comments are being posted as anon.
Your writing does not come across as Plain Jane. I find it quite colourful.
:-)
These old nicknames, you hate them first and then you warm up to them over time ...
This is another altogether anonymous reader. Love your writing...
Completely off topic: If beauty is skin deep, how about someone's writings?
Point being: So by knowing you through your writing, the surface has been scratched! You are no plain Jane. A 'plat Jeanne' maybe! :-)
August - Thanks! You're right, I've actually warmed up to several nicknames I hated when I first heard them...some of them were truly epouvantable! ;-)
Darcy (not) - :-) Thanks for that compliment. Btw my curiosity has been piqued.
so do la fa mi do re :-)
wow
i have surfed through a lot of peoples blog
but none as interesting as you have
few things i noticed about you
1. you have a big friend circle and its wow
2. you do write a lot of things with creativity
i will surely make sure to drop by this blog more often
cheers
Darcy (not) - So do la ti do re do :-)
Rakesh - Merci beaucoup. Nice of you to give me such a great ego massage;-) and do drop by again!
So have I. And they too were truly epouvantable! ;-)
Plain Jane? Come come. You have changed a lot since those days evidently.
My words:
'k: Can 'ok' get any shorter? Yes it can!!
Bloody: My favorite adjective.
Oesophagus: Just like the way it's spelt vs pronounced. US spelling - Esophagus (without the frills of an 'O')
sure geetanjali
you keep writing i will keep dropping by
and you too sometimes do drop by mine
my blog doesnot have a fan following like yours nor is as creative as yours
yet i am small man trying to make a difference in this world
word meme coming up tomorrow.
am usually the last to comment but in any case here goes...this might be a cliche but it is still very true 'beauty is only skin deep'...of course most men will say this for saying sake to ease their conscience and when the time comes still choose a perfectly dumb but sexy woman in place of an intelligent but as you put it plain jane..but then what to do men will be men...
j'ai vu vos photos et je voudrais dire vous n'etes pas 'plain jane'...j'aime vos yeux et vos levres...vos yeux sont intelligents et vos levres sont tres belles...enfin, j'espere que tu n'est pas pecher....je sais..je sais...je suis un homme comme les autres!
Manjusha - Oesophagus? :-)
Rakesh - I don't think it's a "fan following" as you put it...more of being part of the Blogger fraternity... :-)
Anil - Aha - I think I must clarify, when I said I was called "Plain Jane" it wasn't meant for the looks, as much as my general demeanor. :-) Neanmoins merci pour les compliments - quoique je sois un peu embarasse , c'est charmant de ton part de dire ces choses!
Oh btw, if you've read P&P, Jane was actually considered prettier than Liz by the junta - just considered less fiesty and outgoing...that's the diff I was trying to draw. (this bit is for everyone!!!)
thanx for your prompt reply
Enough of Plain Jane. Suffering from Bloggers Block????????
I ran over hear to add an another word to my list epicurean.
Vous dissez, "Epouvantable," mais je pense que mon Francais est le plus epouvantable.
J'edude la Francaise en ecole secondaire. Ma mere est mon pere parles francais. Ils me rire toujours. Mais mon professor dit que j'ai une accente bon. Il me donnes "A" sur mon card reporte.
Abientot.
wuchreriria bancroftii people!
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