Was Wedge the Original Mean Girl?

I grew up in a small town. My high school had all of 1,800 students, not many for most of you, but quite a few for our little burg. When I started my freshman year, my history teacher went over the usual, "Be nice to everyone" speech. As a gullible 14-year-old, I took it to heart.

I took his advice and was polite to everyone, even Mandy Wedgeworth (or as she is better known to my circle of friends, "Wedge"). Most of the other kids agreed that Wedge was less than pleasant. She was always trying to one-up everyone, even the teachers. When the teacher called on someone to answer a question and their answer was wrong, Wedge was the first to say, "That's wrong, and this is why." Wedge was a know-it-all. She never missed an opportunity to correct someone.

Once, in English class, we were discussing The Scarlet Letter. When we got to the part where Hester Prynne is forced to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her chest, Wedge interrupted the teacher. "It was a sin to have her wear an 'A'," she said. "It was Puritan New England, and they didn't like people breaking the rules."

The teacher nodded and continued with the lesson.

"No, but seriously," Wedge persisted. "It's against their religion."

The teacher tried to move on, but Wedge wouldn't let it go.

"I'm just saying," she said. "It's not right."

The teacher finally gave up and said, "Okay, Wedge. We'll move on."

Wedge seemed satisfied and finally shut up.

That is one example of Mandy Wedgeworth. She thought she was better than everyone else. Her high opinion of herself put everyone off.

Fast forward to a couple of years later when Mean Girls came out. Suddenly, everyone was talking about "the Plastics" and how they were just like Mandy Wedgeworth. Suddenly, everyone hated Wedge even more. If she already had no friends, now she had enemies.

I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for Wedge. She was just trying to fit in, albeit in a very annoying way. I'm sure she didn't mean to be so condescending.

I'm not saying that Wedge was a good person. You don't make many friends by constantly putting others down. But I do think she was a product of her environment. She grew up in a small town where everyone knew everyone else's business. She was probably just trying to protect herself from being the one who was picked on.

I lost track of Mandy Wedgeworth after high school. I hope she found her way in the world. She wasn't the best person, but I do think she had a good heart. Sometimes, people just need a little more time to figure things out.