diaries

Shaped A Generation Of Adolescents

The year was 2015, and I had just received my first ever Dork Diaries book; vibrant red cover and titular character fondling a charm necklace welcoming me with open arms- Dork Diaries 6: Tales From A Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker. Immediately, the pencil-drawn stick figures with black text written formulaically on black lined paper would become a space of solace to which I would regularly return. In fact, I would rotate through a neatly-kept stack of books, immersed in the writing of a fourteen-year-old girl named Nikki. Whether it was her romantic plights with sweet love interest Brandon, or the catty backand-forths with her arch-nemesis MacKenzie, reading about a dorky American teenager girl so authentically herself was everything to mea growing adolescent prone to angst - and so many others. Yet, my ramblings on the series cannot go without mention of their contributions to the growth of cultural discord within me that were a result of the Western texts I mainly read. This article will discuss the overall lore of Dork Diaries and the implications of the seemingly trivial texts on my own cultural identity.

Written by Rachel Renée Russell, Dork Diaries garnered major success,

with more than 45 million copies sold worldwide. The series is written in the form of a diary belonging to fourteenyear-old Nikki Maxwell, who lives with her wacky parents and younger sister Brianna. At school, Nikki is friends with two girls - the sweet Chloe and Zoe - and develops feelings for a guy called Brandon, whose affection she clashes with MacKenzie for. There are many ways in which this dynamic appeals to the adolescent and teen demographic, much of which has to do with its overall charm, the characters and the content.

I would suggest that the personalization of the series creates a layer of trust with the reader, which is developed over each book as we look into her fictitious, yet unfiltered, experiences and emotions that feel as though they are written directly to and for us. Additionally, the graphic elements of the text are detailed and create visual markers for readers to truly immerse themselves into her life. The witty authorial voice spanning each diary along with the traits of secondary characters are reinforced with each event she pens- allowing readers to rely on the stable dynamics of the characters according to Nikki’s narrative of them. Through these dynamics, Nikki becomes a character we can relate to, which may also be a result of Russell taking inspiration from her own daughter’s life. The antagonization of MacKenzie as she continues to mistreat Nikki and her friends creates an evil vs. good imbalance, wherein we root for Nikki as the underdog and hope for retribution on her behalf. We see Nikki weave through challenges of high school, such as a taunting mean girl she refers to as a heartless ice queen and “a pitbull in glittery eyeshadow and Jimmy Choos”. Nikki’s depiction as the “nice girl” allows readers to relate to her, opens up the possibility of even being her! We want to see her struggles in order to validate our own, to see ourselves represented in a mainstream character who remains herself despite external pressures, or in other words, to let our “inner DORK[s] shine through”. Finally, Dork Diaries allowed me to revel in my femininity (though there is something to be said about the series’ subtle criticism of the “girly girl”) at a time when my own internalized misogyny manifested in a judgement of books directed at a female demographic. I was able to bask in these stories without feeling critical of my femininity.

When I say “subtle criticism of the ‘girly girl’”, I’m mainly referring to the villainization of MacKenzie. I am aware of the irony, especially considering how I just mentioned that the series itself embraces femininity and as a result, allowed me to embrace my own; nevertheless, this train of thought still deserves consideration. The series implicates hyper-feminine traits as antagonistic through the adjacent antagonization of Mackenzie. Given her status as the sole force-against-evil-main-character who readers are meant to root for, Nikki’s dorkiness and her position as being unlike the popular girl is celebrated. As previously mentioned, this can allow readers to feel confident in themselves and live authentically, but also creates something similar to a grading criterion for girls to adhere to (a binary of what they should and shouldn’t be). This can undermine the work the series does in preaching the message of letting our “inner DORK shine through”. Another aspect of the series I find myself disagreeing with is the competition between MacKenzie and Nikki for Brandon. I recognize that the squabbles over Brandon are part of the drama and one of the series’ main appeals, however, this is centered heavily on gaining validation from Brandon as they yearn for him to reciprocate their respective feelings. This perpetuates the idea that romance and attention from boys (who may or may not be bland and lacking substance) should be lauded and prioritized above all else.

In order to assess whether or not I was alone in my overall opinions on the series, I interviewed peers from different age groups to grasp the influence that it has served over these 13 years of publication. In response to my question “why did you read Dork Diaries?”, one peer I spoke to noted the romanticized aspects of high school, or, in his words, “what you do want in your life”, as opposed to the other mainstream middle grade series he brought up: Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which was “what you didn’t want”. He remarked on this romanticization of school in relation to the progression of Nikki’s life from “average to fantasy”; how a seemingly average high school student was rewarded despite being “boring”. Another peer noted that although reading hyperbolized tales and “scandals” of a teenager be- fore becoming a teenager herself was highly fascinating, the series did contribute to unrealistic expectations of how their own teen experience would be. This was further supported by another student who claimed that the series “drastically changed the way they interpreted the events of their every day life” as they “chased” the series’ ideals. They mentioned projecting the character archetypes present in the books to people in their life and wanting to become the “quirky main character”, which they refer to now as a “cringey phase”. I can see how this may be beneficial for some as it allows for individuals to choose a narrative for themselves and establish ideals, but it can ultimately be harmful in it’s distortion of reality and real-life interactions.

I then proceeded to take this question to a group of year five students to gain the perspective of people either currently in or having recently been in the midst of a Dork Diaries phase. They responded to the same question of ”why did you read Dork Diaries?” with “because it’s a story with a boy”, “the pictures look good”, and “it’s fun to read”. After specifying the question to “how do you think Dork Diaries has affected the way you view secondary and high school?”, another Y5 student promptly responded with how the series makes them “excited to grow up and go to secondary”. Here, we can see the active implications of the series as it romanticizes the high school narrative and leads to warped views. In comparison to the responses from those in year twelve, their answers lack the hindsight provided as a result of having experienced secondary school.

When the idea to write this article first came up, I knew that I wanted to reread what I remember as my favorite book: Dork Diaries: Tales From a Not so Graceful Ice Princess. Upon re-entering the universe, I realized how comforted I felt. Each line scribbled with smiley face counterparts peppered throughout were a warm embrace; the hyperbolized descriptions of a crusty eye-boogered monster re- minded me of winter and, strangely, of this one Commercial Press that was replaced by a dim sum restaurant. But despite this overwhelming feeling of nostalgia, I also became privy to new sensations and emotions only accessible by my growing up. To me, now nearing the ripe age of seventeen, reading Nikki’s exaggerated speculations on what others thought of her became exhausting, and her continuous lamenting felt uncalled for and over-the-top (granted, she is fourteen and I am no longer the target audience). Here, Dork Diaries becomes a divisive series: you either despise her antics and catastrophization, or you can’t help but relate to her ver- bose, deluded tendency to overthink. Regardless, having read this book at both eleven and sixteen, I remain as self-conscious and self-critical, so I can see myself returning to it for years to come.

Now that there’s been some explanation as to why Dork Diaries is beloved by many, this part of the article will indulge in the conversation of the growth of unease within my cultural identity as influenced by the reading of the series. Growing up and going to an International School where the language of instruction was mainly English, it’s no surprise how Dork Diaries - a series set in an American high school- had the power to exacerbate the westernization I was undergoing. Books set in and about people in the West populated my bookshelves, costing me an unmarred linkage with my roots and identity. To this day, I notice that the majority of the books I read are all written by American or British authors. Though these texts are not necessarily centered on teenagers and their drama-infused experiences like they were before, I realize that my use and construction of language and writing, and my ingrained methods of thinking and analysis, have all been dictated by the West. Then came the ingrained notion that America was in simple terms, “not like other countries” and far superior to the city I was living in. Simply put, this came from the setting of the series being the US and the way Russell would integrate America-specific places into the story lines. This distorted view of the West manifested in my neglect of the Cantonese and Mandarin language, a desire to be American, and a distaste for myself and my family. It fills me with sadness and shame whenever I think back to past versions of myself who would dismiss the cultural significance of Hong Kong. The shame is present in the way I question myself before speaking to a fluent Cantonese speaker- what if I use the wrong inflections or place emphasis on the wrong parts? Will they hear the American twinge in my voice?

Will they think I’m a terrible person who has forlorn her Cantonese identity in conquest of a Western one? I feel it when I try to watch TV and get confused because they’re speaking too fast; where I find myself turning to my mother, sheepishly seeking a translation; she’ll answer patiently, unjudgemental of I, who since birth, has never been able to properly communicate with her in her native tongue. Again, I went to other students to ask for their opinions in hopes of finding shared experience. In response to the question “has the series had any impacts on your cultural identity”, one peer was able to articulate their “deep-rooted desires of becoming an All-American girl”, and attaining that “cheesy high school experience”. I view this as a vital part of my own reading experience and another reason as to why the series was so appealing to me. Similarly, I remember wanting to live in the US and settle in the suburbia of Dork Diaries with my quirky family and friends, untethered to the apparent constraints of my Hong Kong roots.

Ultimately, the question of whether this series’ contributions to my development did more good or harm remains unanswered. I can laud the series’ for its entertainment value whilst simultaneously questioning the impact it had on my cultural identity. Regardless, the series continues to hold a special place in my heart, as I’m sure it does for many others.