- 1) brief literature review of the concept(s) chosen with proper referencing

2) description of the segment(s)/material(s) that relate to the concept(s)

3) analysis and discussion how this segment informs the concept(s) and helps us
understand the concept(s).
- Format: essay, font Times New Roman, size 14, 1.5 spacing, printed on two sides, stapled,
no cover or binding required. (Save the environment). Your names, class, title of the project
all in half of the first page.

1. Review of the concepts

Intolerance – Stereotype
2. Description of the movie “Legally Blonde”
- Plot
- Aim: challenge the ‘Dump Blonde Stereotype’
3. Analysis
- People around Elle’s reactions to her going to Harvard? What makes them behave that
ways? => They hold stereotype towards “Elle’
- How people see Elle: always wear pink, fashion,… => a typical blonde girl
 Beliefs: She’s supposed to be weak, dependent, stupid (origin of this
belief/stereotype?)
 Actions: Warner: laugh
 Consequences of stereotype
“when people are able to focus on it, they can use their emotional energy to override their
stereotypes and to individuate or personalize the other – to see the person as in individual,
rather than a group member”
4. Further discussions

1. Opening:
Since their emergence, movies or films have not served the sole purpose of entertainment, yet
they have handsomely contributed to the formation or reinforcement of thoughts and beliefs of
their audience who may not be fully aware of that. Movies reflect the current social norms and
beliefs of the creators; hence there are many embedded notions that are worth exploring. With
that in mind, in this essay I am going to explore the underlying beliefs of the characters in the
famous American comedy “Legally Blonde” (2001) so as to thoroughly understand why the
characters behave their ways from the central aspect of intolerance, specifically stereotype. In
the subsequent paragraphs, brief reviews of the concepts ‘intolerance’ and ‘stereotype’ will be
put forward first, followed by some descriptions of the movie and a critical analysis of the
character’s behaviours which are influenced by stereotype.
2. Review of the concepts:
Intolerance is of grave concern in intercultural communication since it may cause
misconception or mistreatment amongst people if the issue is not addressed properly.
Intolerance “refers to any thought, behaviour, policy, or social structures that treat people
unequally based on group terms” (Baldwin, 2013, p.116). There are various forms under which
intolerance exists, yet “stereotype’ will serve as the main focus of discussion in this essay.
According to Herbst (1997, p.212), stereotype denotes “a generalization about what people are
like, an exaggerated image of their characteristics, without regard to individual attributes”. To
put it differently, when we stereotype people, we categorize people into group and decide the
characteristics of all group’s members. Consequently, the individual features of each member
are not taken into serious considerations when people interpret others. There are myriad
categories used to frame stereotypes, including regions, countries, cities, cultures, age, class,
etc., yet the chosen category of analysis in this essay is based on appearance and gender: the
‘dump blonde’ stereotype.
The images of the blonde have been presented in numerous movies. One of the movies that
centre on that stereotype is “Legally Blonde”, which aims at challenging the prevailing
stereotypical notion of the ‘dumb blonde’. The movie stars Elle Woods, a typical blonde girl
who is deemed irrational and foolish by people around her. When her boyfriend, Warner
Huntington III, breaks up with her and pursues his academic career at Law School of Harvard,
Elle decides to enrol in the same institution and wins Warner’s heart again. However, Elle has
to face up to numerous challenges and as a blonde, she is looked down on by people at the
university, except for Emmett, an associate at Harvard, who can look beyond the blonde
stereotype and see Elle as an individual. In the end, Elle proves people that she is not as foolish
as people often think about the ‘blonde’. Emmett starts his own firm and dates Elle.
From the beginning of the film, Elle appears to be blonde, attractive and desirable, proved by
the scene that every boys look at her when she passes by. She loves wearing pink and she
becomes emotional and vulnerable when Warner breaks up with her to pursue his academic
career. Elle has always wanted to marry Warner and considered him as her everything.
Historically, blonde-hair women have been associated with attractiveness in appearance rather
than their intellectual ability, especially in American culture. As blonde girls are beautiful and
desirable, they are less likely to rely on their looks rather than intelligence. Therefore, the
stereotypical perception of blonde-hair girls is that they are not serious-minded and even
‘dumb’. The stereotypical blonde image of Elle is also reinforced by her close friends, who are
also good-looking, irrational and dumb. From the presented image of Elle, it can be said that
she possesses all the characteristics of the ‘dump blonde’ category. Therefore, anyone who
hold the stereotypical perception of the dump blonde will look down on Elle. Throughout the
movie, there are various scenes in which the other characters display that beliefs via their
words, actions and attitudes toward Elle.
The first plot twist of the movie is Warner’s breaking up with Elle because if he is a senator,
he needs to ‘marry a Jackie, not a Marilyn’. It is worth mentioning that Marilyn Monroe played
the brainless blonde protagonist in the film adaptation of the “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”
novel and Marilyn herself owns a beautiful blonde hair. By referring to Marilyn in that way,
Warner illustrates the point that as a smart and strong man, it would be ridiculous if he married
to a ‘brainless blonde’. Despite not explicitly saying that Elle is too stupid to deserve him,
Warner implies it through his choice of words and facial expressions. Even when Elle makes
it to the Harvard, Warner shows his astonishment in his face since he cannot accept the fact
that such a blonde girl can go to the Law schools, which he think only smart people work and
study. From these two particular scenes, it can be seen that Warner, despite knowing Elle for
quite a long time, fails to consider her as an individual but categorize her into the group of
unintelligent people with blonde hair and have assertions about that group.
Another significant character, Vivian Kensington, Warner’s new girlfriend, shows her hostile
attitudes towards Elle on these first days of college. The most outstanding scene from which
disrespect and discrimination due to stereotype is clearly seen is when Elle asks some students
to join their study group. Vivian refuses in an unfriendly manner: “Our group is full” and her
friend also adds: “It’s the smart people things”, indicating that they do not want Elle to join
them because they are a group of ‘smart people’ whereas Ell is ‘blonde’. This way of grouping
and categorizing is the evidence proving that those students hold stereotype towards blonde-
hair women, specifically Elle. Vivian believes that as a dumb blonde, Elle are not suitable for
the ‘smart things’, but ‘maybe there’s, like, a sorority you could join’.