Serena - Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl

Serena-

Serena van der Woodsen is one of the main characters on the tv programme Gossip Girl. She is portrayed as the 'it girl' around the town as she is really popular and everyone knows her. She dresses and looks very stylish like it comes natural to her and doesn't have to put in any effort to be fashionable. She has an energetic personality but is also known as the 'bad' girl for her wild side. She seems to always get what she wants because of her good looks and  comes across as a threat to the other girls in town and at her school because she is beautiful and mysterious especially Blair, her best friend.

The director shows this in the the scene from the pilot episode when Serena arrives back from boarding school and everyone is surprised that shes back, the news quickly gets round as people tell everyone. This shows how popular she is because as soon as she walked into the airport people are already texting each other and telling them. The director dresses her in a brown coat, striped top and skinny jeans which shows her casual but stylish fashion sense. After being back in town she conflicts with Nate as he still has feelings for her from the past but she doesn't. Nate: But you're back now. Serena: I didn't come back for you. Look, Blair's my best friend and you're her boyfriend and she loves you. That's the way things are supposed to be. This shows that Serena wants to start her life fresh and forget about the past by becoming a better person and not hurting Blair.

Teenage girls in the media are represented as being popular and having the perfect life, this is how Serena is portrayed as everyone in the town knows who she is and wants to be friends with her, she has a good fashion sense, is pretty and has an energetic personality. This makes the audience want to watch the character because it is what every teenage girl wants; to be perfect.

Intelligence and talent are two traits about a girl that are not acknowlaged as much as they should be in Gossip Girl. This is because being smart isn't acknowlaged as being an important trait in the media, it says that the most important thing is to be pretty and sexy.

Serena doesn't reflect a typical teenager in the world today because not everyone's perfect. Serena has the perfect life; she comes from a rich family, has good looks, is popular and gets anything she wants. Even though she has been a 'bad' girl in the past and made some mistakes she is still well respected by her peers. Serena is a girl that other girls around the world want to be like, they are influenced by her tall figure and good looks and want to be the same as her. Some of them even go to drastic measures to look better, for example not eating or getting plastic surgery.

This sends a message to teenage girls in the world today that they don't need an education and dont need to get a good job. They feel like it isn't important to be smart so they will give up on school. It also gives them the message that they will never be pretty enough because of all the pictures of women in the media that is unrealistic.