Being called ‘basic’ may not be as bad as you think

By Ryan, October 1, 2015

By Amelia St. James, Staff Writer//

I see it all the time: a young woman walking down High Point’s brick sidewalks in her black yoga pants carrying a fresh cup of Starbucks coffee. Suddenly, a member of my group remarks, “so basic.” It’s a term I hadn’t let bother me since it has become so commonly used, until I started to think about what the actual term means. By calling someone basic, you are calling them common, maybe even predictable. Calling someone basic may not quite count as an insult, but it certainly felt that way when I myself was called basic – from my own boyfriend no less.
The incident was sparked when he, being from New Jersey, asked if I preferred Dunkin Donuts over Starbucks. I’m from South Carolina, and down here Dunkin Donuts is as common as snow. It didn’t take me more than a second to reply that I am an avid Starbucks consumer. He scoffed at me and then he said it, the dreaded words, “You’re basic.” Oh no he didn’t! I immediately made my argument that I am not basic and consider myself to be quite the catch. However, the more I thought about my interests, the more I had to ask myself if I really was basic. So what if I take selfies with friends when we happen to not look like crap, and who cares if I count down the days until pumpkin spice lattes are available at Starbucks? I love fro­yo, watching the Bachelor, shop at Forever 21, and know every single word of Mean Girls. Yup, I’m basic.
But what’s so wrong with being basic?
Recently I watched Legally Blonde with my roommates and I enjoyed every second of it. Being basic means sharing common interests with a similar group of girls in today’s pop culture. It is completely overlooked that guys can be basic as well. Almost every guy I know has posters on their walls of either scantily clad females or alcohol, only orders chicken parmesan at Italian restaurants, lives in khakis and a button down, owns Sperry’s, has played a sport, and religiously follows a sports team. So just about everyone is basic in their own way. Next time you want to call someone basic, ask yourself if you are basic too.