Watch the 1983 movie with Nicolas Cage innit. Everything's so tubular! I'm liking all the shirt!
there was just a girl...
Valley Girl (or Val) is a term referring to affluent upper-middle class girls living in the bedroom community neighborhoods of San Fernando Valley.
A Valley Girl can be described as materialistic, self-conscious, dodgy, self-centered, hedonistic, physically attractive and sometimes sexually promiscuous. Valspeak is also a form of this trait, based on an exaggerated version of California English.
During the 1980s and the 1990s, the term metamorphosed into a caricature and stereotype of such women: a "ditzy" or "airhead" personality, and unapologetically "spoiled" behavior that showed more interest in shopping, personal appearance and social status than in intellectual development or personal accomplishment.[2]
After the release of the Frank Zappa song "Valley Girl" in 1981 and the movie based on it in 1983, girls from all over the English-speaking world imitated the style.
The Valley Girl stereotype has declined in the 2000s for various reasons, one being an evolution into other stereotypes.
Anatomy of a Valley Girl
A certain sociolect associated with Valley Girls, referred to as “Valspeak,” became common across the United States during the 1980s and 1990s, and much entered teenage slang throughout the country.
Qualifiers such as “like”, “way”, "as if!", “totally” and “duh” were interjected in the middle of phrases and sentences as emphasizers. Narrative sentences were often spoken as though they were questions using a high rising terminal.
Examples:
- As if – lit. "yeah, right" or "as if" except it does not use a subject; expresses disbelief.
- Bitchin' - adj. slang for excellent; first-rate. Though a derivative of "bitch", bitchin' is not considered profane.
- Whatever! - short for "whatever you say"; sarcastic comeback.
- Barf me out! - "So disgusting it makes me want to vomit."
- Fer shur – lit. "For sure"
- Betch – lit. "Bitch"
- Totally – "I agree" or "completely."
- Grody to the max! – "As gross as he/she/it can be"
- Like, oh my God – can be used many ways; expresses shock (OMG for short).
- I’m suuure! or I'm so sure – "I'm absolutely positive," but usually used sarcastically.
- Tre - A synonym for "very" (derived from French "très")
- Trippendicular! - It can mean either "awesome" or a drug high.
- Betty - An attractive woman
- So - Very; used too often and said with too much emphasis.
- Baldwin - An attractive man.
- Seriously - Frequent interjection of approval.
- Gag me with a spoon! - expression of disgust.
- Gnarly - Good.
- Joanie - An unhip girl
- I'm outtie - "I'm out of here".
- Tubular - Very cool.
- UV's - Sunshine
Main character, Cher Horowitz (Clueless) perpetuates Valspeak by using the words "like," "as if," "whatever" and "duh" an exorbitant amount throughout the film. When referring to attractive men and women, Cher uses the terms "Betty" and "Baldwin." Considering the film's release in 1995 and the resurgence of such terms in southern California youth in the years following, it could be credited with bridging the gap between the 80's Valspeak and today's.
Check out their evolution!
from wiki
Numero Tokyo
Fer sher, you wish you were one! I'm SO keeping my blonde hair. Totally!
I'm so gonna channel the look! :)
I lovet!
And I'll be walking in hallways more often!
photos from fashionising.com
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