This second episode of Gilmore Girls was an important one in the sense that it was Rory’s first day at her new school. This was a big change for her and it was interesting to see how she compared to other students throughout her new school. At first it could be seen that she was more on the shy side of things as she was considered the new girl, however, towards the end of the episode she seemed to step out of her shell a little bit.

Feminine Traits: 

  • Shy
  • Not susceptible to flattery – there was a boy at school who was trying to woo her over on the first day, however, Rory was not all that into it.
  • Sympathetic – this is a large one as this was a major part of the end of the episode. Rory broke one of her classmates projects that was due the next class period. She was so upset and distraught about it.
    • She was eager to help out her classmate as well as she offered to help fix the project and even wrote her a note about it.

Masculine Traits: 

  • Ambitious – Rory had to meet with the Head Master on her first day and was sure to tell him all about how she wants to double major at Harvard one day. Along with that she told him about how she wanted to use those degrees.
  • Taking Risks – Rory took a very large risk by going to a new school after the school year had already started. This is something large for any student as they have to meet all new people.
  • Competitive – this is another large part of the end of the episode as this is not something that viewers had seen from Rory in the past. Once the student did not accept Rory’s help she felt as though it was her time to step out of her shell.
    • Rory spoke out in class and answered questions from the teacher over the star student on her first day of school.

Other things Noticed: 

  • Throughout this episode it was clear to see that Rory and her mother indulge in lots of junk food for most meals. I feel this is important as in media it is shown that women are slender and try to promote healthy eating. This is quite the opposite as Rory and her mother are seen doing this often. This may not be something seen as feminine in general media.

Overall, throughout this episode I feel that Rory was more on the masculine side of the spectrum. While Rory may have been seen being sympathetic and shy on her first day, she also stepped out of her shell. She was shown being independent on her first day and did some things that may be more characterized as masculine in the general media.

Shared by: Hannah Bues
Image Credit: https://www.netflix.com/watch/80014131?trackId=14170289&tctx=10141558b7-83f2-497a-92dd-aa58b26bcb66-121737271616a37-ac5a-49e5-a159-0a74e9cdbed6_127539196X3XX159961845248571616a37-ac5a-49e5-a159-0a74e9cdbed6_ROOT