Preppy

Preppy, preppie, or prep (all abbreviations of the word preparatory) refers to a modern, widespread United States clique, often considered a subculture. Preppy is both an American adjective and an American noun, while prep is only an American noun, traditionally used in relation to Northeastern private university-preparatory schools and denotes a person seen as characteristic of an attendee of these schools. Although considered slang, the noun prep has become a colloquialism in the United States and has largely replaced the noun preppy. Characteristics of preps include a particular subcultural speech, vocabulary, accent, dress, mannerisms, and etiquette reflecting Northeastern, upper-class families in the United States.

Definition

The term preppy derives from the expensive pre-college preparatory or prep schools that upper-middle-class children on the United States's Northeastern states sometimes attend. Lisa Birnbach's 1980 book Official Preppy Handbook, which was written to poke fun at the rich lives of privileged East Coast college students but ended up glamorizing the culture, portrays the preppy social group as well-educated, well-connected, and although exclusive, courteous to other social groups without fostering serious relationships with them. Being well-educated and well-connected reflects their Northeastern upper-class values, which encourage higher education and professional success.

The term preppy is particularly well-known amongst American teenagers, but high school preps differ from traditional, East Coast collegiate preps. The usage of preppy in American high schools is quite often used to refer to a particular subculture present within high schools. To teenagers, "preppy" usually denotes a fashion choice, rather than a lifestyle. Although upper-class, East Coast preppy students are considered preps at the high school level, the term is used throughout American high schools to refer to those who dress preppy and come from middle to upper-class families. Hollywood films of the 1980s, such as John Hughes' Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, and The Breakfast Club, characterized high school preps of the 1980s, who are depicted as a shallow and transparent group primarily concerned with extrinsic things. The three most explicit of these extrinsic desires are often popularity within their own high school, physical appearance, and material possessions.

Fashion

Preppy fashion started in the 1950's as the Ivy League style of dress. J. Press represents the quintessential preppy clothing brand, stemming from the collegiate traditions which shaped the preppy subculture. J. Press and Brooks Brothers, another clothing line highly associated with preppy fashion, had stores on Ivy League school campuses, such as Harvard and Yale, during the mid-twentieth century. Ralph Lauren, Vineyard Vines, and Elizabeth McKay are also frequently perceived as having preppy styles. New York City maintains itself as the headquarters for most preppy clothing lines, such as J. Press, Brooks Brothers, and Ralph Lauren, reflecting the impact of East Coast culture on preppy lifestyle. Examples of preppy attire include argyle sweaters, chinos, madras, Nantucket Reds, button down Oxford cloth shirts, and boat shoes. Although preppy styles have their roots in Ivy League fashion, various preppy styles take cues from New England and Tri-State Area nautical attire from the twentieth century, such as the century-old dress code of the New York Yacht Club.

Preppy fashions boomed in the 1980s following the publication of Lisa Birnbach's tongue-in-cheek book The Official Preppy Handbook, a guide to what she termed prepdom. Birnbach, with Chip Kidd, have authored True Prep, a followup to the 1980 handbook, published September 2010 by Knopf. Preppy fashion was popular in the 1980s and enjoyed a revival in the 2000s, as did the related style of "Ivy League" or "Trad" clothing. Preps who model the classical preppy style frequently wear professional attire, resonating the professional and successful lifestyle of preps.

Lifestyle

Among the more common sports played by preps are sailing, rowing (crew), cricket, lacrosse, fencing, shooting, croquet, squash, polo, and rugby according to The Official Preppy Handbook. Preps are generally characterized by an attachment to traditional values reflecting educational pursuits and a desire to become successful, reflecting their well-educated and affluent families.

External links

• NY Times article: Pink Shirts Welcome
• "Preppy" at dictionary.com