When I was in high school, I won two superlatives. One of them was called “Most likely to be President”, and the other was called “Senior of the Year.” My husband, who graduated from LRHS in 2004 also won a superlative… “Biggest Gossip.” These are memories we’ve loved sharing with each other, (even if Nick is not so proud of his title, haha) and reminiscing about the “good ole’ days” with our high school friends over the years has been a lot of fun.
However, earlier this week I overheard two students discussing their votes for senior superlatives this year at LRHS. One of them said, “I am voting for ________ as best legs.” My initial reaction was, “best legs is a superlative category?!??!” I was shocked. That sounded, for lack of a better word, disgusting to me. Since when do superlatives aim to highlight a person’s physical features? Upon further investigation, I discovered that “best eyes”, “best smile”, “best hair”, and worst of all, “best looking” are all categories that seniors think about, discuss with their peers, and then vote on.
Loonies, I simply want to ask if this is something you feel is appropriate? Or kind? Or necessary? We live in a world where people should aim to be remembered/judged based on the content of their character… not what their hair or legs or eyes look like. In fact, some of the categories that highlight negative personality traits are probably excessive as well. Tardy King/Queen? What is the point? I am not suggesting that we get rid of Senior Superlatives… they are amusing and full of tradition. I am simply asking whether or not the 20+ categories are completely necessary? If you really stop to think about it, objectifying each other by voting on physical features is not something we should be proud to print, whether it is in our yearbook or our newspaper.
A concerned teacher,
Mrs. Sarah Cade, Social Studies
