Although she always attempts to write pieces which make good dinner party stories about real people, sometimes these two criteria do not align perfectly, so her descriptions of her subjects become single-faceted in order to be more relatable. Her details can gratify readers’ excitement without portraying her subject fairly. For example, she includes many remarks about the Maui surfer girls’ perfection in their youth (Maui 49). This language mimics the problematic societal belief of young girls as virginal paragons of their gender. Additionally, Orlean relies too heavily on the physical attributes of the surfer girls to relate them to her audience. Her readers are provided details of the surfer girls’ hair, their clothing, and their bodies as evidence that the reader should relate to them (Maui 37, 42, 46). The space devoted the girls’ personality and skill is dwarfed by physical descriptions. Orlean even goes so far as to describe the under-age girls as “sexy” (Maui 42). While this terminology may allow readers to relate to these girls in a way deemed normal by society, it does not help her reader understand them as real human
Although she always attempts to write pieces which make good dinner party stories about real people, sometimes these two criteria do not align perfectly, so her descriptions of her subjects become single-faceted in order to be more relatable. Her details can gratify readers’ excitement without portraying her subject fairly. For example, she includes many remarks about the Maui surfer girls’ perfection in their youth (Maui 49). This language mimics the problematic societal belief of young girls as virginal paragons of their gender. Additionally, Orlean relies too heavily on the physical attributes of the surfer girls to relate them to her audience. Her readers are provided details of the surfer girls’ hair, their clothing, and their bodies as evidence that the reader should relate to them (Maui 37, 42, 46). The space devoted the girls’ personality and skill is dwarfed by physical descriptions. Orlean even goes so far as to describe the under-age girls as “sexy” (Maui 42). While this terminology may allow readers to relate to these girls in a way deemed normal by society, it does not help her reader understand them as real human