Geek

A geek is an individual who is fascinated, perhaps obsessively, by obscure or very specific areas of knowledge and imagination, usually electronic or virtual in nature. Geek may not always have the same meaning as the term nerd. The Merriam-Webster definitions are "1: a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the head off a live chicken or snake 2: a person often of an intellectual bent who is disliked 3: an enthusiast or expert especially in a technological field or activity."

Etymology

It is commonly believed that the word "geek" originates with side-show "circus geeks" — performers at carnivals who swallow various live animals, live insects, and so forth. Sometimes this would extend to biting the heads off of chickens or other small livestock.

Many lexicographers source geek to an Americanism of Shakespeare's 16th century word, geck, originally of Middle Low German origin; meaning "fool" or "an object of scorn; a dupe".

"Malvolio:…Why have you suffer'd me to be imprison'd, Kept in a dark house, visited by the priest, And made the most notorious geck and gull That e'er invention play'd on? tell me why.", Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Act IV, Scene III, (in the time of 1599–1601).

"Sicilius Leonatus: Why did you suffer Iachimo, Slight thing of Italy, To taint his nobler heart and brain With needless jealousy; And to become the geck and scorn O’ the other’s villany?", Shakespeare's Cymbeline Act V, Scene IV, (around 1609).

A possible turning point in the American usage of the word geek was the slogan "pencil-neck geek" coined by the wrestler Freddie Blassie in 1953 and popularized by him thereafter. Blassie also turned it into a song in 1976 [1]. The song is a bridge between the old and new meanings of the word "geek". It defines a geek as a circus freak, but then portrays a geek as someone who deserves to be harassed and assaulted, by implication a social outcast. Blassie plausibly popularized current usage.

Definitions

The definition of geek has changed considerably over time, and there is no definite meaning. The social and rather derogatory connotations of the word make it particularly difficult to define. The difference between the terms "geek" and "nerd" is widely disputed, as the latter might be identified as someone who is unusually intelligent, and the former as someone who has an eccentric interest towards a certain category or topic. Below are some definitions of the word; all are still in use to varying degrees.

• The definition most common among geeks themselves is: "one who is primarily motivated by passion", indicating somebody whose reasoning and decision making is always first and foremost based on his personal passions rather than things like financial reward or social acceptance. Geeks do not see the typical "geeky" interests as interesting, but as passionate devotions. The idea that the pursuit of personal passions should be the fundamental driving force to all decisions could be considered the most basic shared tenet among geeks of all varieties. Geeks consider such pursuits to be their own defining characteristic.
• A person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media. Comparable with the classic definition of hacker. (Late 20th century and early 21st century.) The most competent person within a group or enterprise is sometimes called an alpha geek (see: alpha male).
• A person who has chosen concentration rather than conformity; one who pursues skill (especially technical skill) and imagination, not mainstream social acceptance. Geeks usually have a strong case of neophilia (a love of novelty and new things). Most geeks are adept with computers and treat hacker as a term of respect, but not all are hackers themselves — and some who are in fact hackers normally call themselves geeks anyway, because they regard "hacker" as a label that should be bestowed by others rather than self-assumed.
• A person with a devotion to something in a way that places him or her outside the mainstream. This could be due to the intensity, depth, or subject of their interest. This definition is very broad, and allows for mathematics geeks, aviation geeks, band geeks, computer geeks, science geeks (including, among others, physics, chemistry, and biology geeks, as well as social science include but not limited to economics, psychology and sociology), music geeks (audiophile), movie and film geeks (cinephile), comics geeks, theatre geeks, history geeks, gamer geeks, Latin geeks, linguistics geeks, SCA geeks (SCAdians), public transit geeks (metrophiles),Doctor Who geeks, literature geeks, anime and manga geeks (otaku), Star Wars geeks, Star Trek geeks (Trekkies and Trekkers, the distinction between the two being hotly debated among themselves), Tolkien or fantasy geeks. (Late 20th century and early 21st century.)
• G.E.E.K., as an acronym, reputedly came from the United States Military; it stands for General Electrical Engineering Knowledge. It is unclear if this was the origin of the current meaning for geek, or if the acronym was used as a humorous reference toward the pre-established meaning for geek (that is to say, a backronym).
• A derogatory term for one with low social skills, regardless of intelligence. (Late 20th century.)
• A performer at a carnival who swallows various live animals and bugs. See etymology above.
• A person who rejects society, yet is involved in it — unlike and in contrast to a hermit. (This is generally used to also mean someone with high intelligence.)
• Julie Smith of New Orleans Beat defines geek as: "a bright young man turned inward, poorly socialized, who felt so little kinship with his own planet that he routinely traveled to the ones invented by his favorite authors, who thought of that secret, dreamy place his computer took him to as cyberspace -- somewhere exciting, a place more real than his own life, a land he could conquer, not a drab teenager's room in his parents' house."
• Words such as nerd and dork are similar to the word "geek", but carry very different connotations.

Reclaiming and self-identification

Geek has always had negative connotations within society at large, where being described as a geek tends to be an insult. The term has recently become less condescending, or even a badge of honor, within particular fields and subcultures; this is particularly evident in the technical disciplines, where the term is now more of a compliment denoting extraordinary skill. There is an increasing number of people who self-identify with the term, even when they are nontechnical or do not fit the classic geek archetype.

Nontechnical

Because geek is no longer purely pejorative there are many self-labeled geeks who disagree over the use of the label. Similarly many older geeks in whatever field of devotion become upset when their field becomes popular and wish to set up standards that exclude late adopters or whole subjects of interest as not being truly "geeky." While in the past the dispute would not have been over use of the term "geek," this is not a new phenomenon by any means. There were loud disagreements in the 1960s and 1970s among science fiction fans over the use of sci-fi or science fiction, with some science fiction geeks trying to get sci-fi to be only used for what they defined as bad science fiction. Later there were fierce debates among geeks over the use of hacker and cracker and the adoption of "leet" speak by less technically adroit computer users.

Today geeks devoted to technical pursuits want to distinguish themselves from people they see as falsely holding themselves out to be intellectuals, in particular people who are most interested in the arts or entertainment as they can be approached more casually as opposed to techie subjects which require vast amounts of serious study and commitment, thus appearing more like work than a hobby to outside observers. Indeed, a trait of genuine "geekhood" is workaholism, but only if the work to be done falls within the geek's areas of interest; most geeks tend to be bored and frustrated by work outside of their chosen fields. For the most part the general public and even most geeks are unaware of the distinction between the computer geek and the genre fandom geek, and would be likely to see them as being more similar than dissimilar.

Many teenage and college students adopt the stereotypical outward traits of geeks in order to fit in with the so-called geek subculture. It has been observed that many of the classic eccentricities associated with geeks has been due to their social awkwardness and were thus naturally occurring instead of contrived behavior. However, in the recent decade, many geeks have cultivated for themselves a number of behavioral traits that one sports as an indication of being "in the know" and "out of the mainstream". These range from geek humor and obscure references to T-shirts sporting references to geek culture or interests ('All Your Base Are Belong To Us' being one example). Also, many adults (both male and female) cultivate personality quirks and eccentricities in an effort to appear more interesting or generate mystique. While this practice was classically associated with artistic types, it is becoming increasingly common with college professors and other intellectuals who wish to avoid the widespread stereotypes of being shy, reserved, dry, or straightlaced.

While technical geeks are grudgingly acknowledged for being absorbed in a craft that at least has real life career potential, it is often argued that while not impossible, genre geeks who aspire to a profession in that genre (for example comic book artists and writers) are more likely to face the scenario where many are called but few are chosen. Nonetheless, the derogatory definition of geeks remains popularized as that of a person engrossed in his area of interest at the cost of social skills, personal hygiene, and the general responsibilities of adulthood such as having a steady job and one's own place to live. One of the widely perceived criticisms among geeks, whether their geekiness stems from career choice or extracirricular activities, is the widespread notion that they need to get a life.

Elements of the slacker culture have merged with the geek culture particularly because of the wider availablility of consumer-based pop culture and entertainment in contrast to previous decades. The characters Jay and Silent Bob of Kevin Smith's Jersey movies are examples of self-styled geeks who are adept at absorbing genre trivia but not particularly intelligent, educated, or otherwise productive.

TV shows

Geeks have gained a cult status, and some TV programs have cashed in on this image.

• In 2005 and 2006, the WB Television Network ran a reality game show called Beauty and the Geek, where "geeks" try to share their knowledge with "beauties" while trying to learn a modern style from them. This show will be returning in January of 2007.
• Comedy Central ran a similar game show named Beat the Geeks from 2001 to 2002.
• The IT Crowd, produced by Channel 4, focuses on the shenanigans of a three-person IT support team located in a dingy, untidy and unkempt basement. Moss and Roy, the two technicians, are portrayed as socially inept geeks, while Jen, the newest member of the team, is hopelessly non-technical.

Geek Magazine

Geek Monthly is a recently launched mens magazine, to be published six times a year in the United States of America. The magazine is positioned in the marketplace as a more "fanboy" version of established magazines such as the Dennis titles Maxim and Stuff as well as the discontinued Gear. The first issue featured Rainn Wilson on the cover in a James Bond pose, whilst features included that of Sci-Fi, Lifestyle and Woody Allen.

See also

• Anorak
• Beat the Geeks
• BoardGameGeek
• Boffin
• Dork
• Freaks and Geeks
• Geek Code
• Geek chic
• Geek Squad
• Geek canon
• Geekcorps
• Gling Gling
• J!nx
• KlearGear
• Leet
• Nerd
• Social anxiety
• ThinkGeek

Geek subtypes/qualities

• Hacker
• Gamer
• Otaku
• Cyberpunk
• Scientist
• Cracker
• Programmer
• Hacktivist
• Blogger

External links

• Geek Culture: The Third Counter-Culture An article discussing geek culture as a new kind of counter-culture