October 14th marks the release of Cameron Crowe's Elizabethtown and it's theory that each name has it's own characteristic. Characters Claire Colburn and Drew Berry, played by Kristen Dunst and Orlando Bloom have their own theories on the Phil's and Ellen's of the world. The film may not have been the first to coined the idea, but people have since contributed to the theory by making their own characteristics for names. The staff at Buzzfeed does a hilarious job of classifying certain names into categories such as "hottest names" and "red flag names."
Based on our own encounters with certain names, we all have our own theories for who someone is based on spelling or nicknames. Emily is the mothers of the friend group who are looking out for everyone's best interest. Kate and Katies are spunky and always looking for an adventure. Brandon can spend hours talking about sports. Megan, Meagan, Meghan have their own personalities even by the slight differences in personalities. A Brandon can spend hours talking about sports while a Chris focuses their conversations about global events.
Someone's characterization for a should be taken lightly since it's only one theory based on the many perceptions of your name. In one Buzzfeed video, Marissa is said to be "so reckless." I consider this humorous because I suppose I am often reckless with some of the choices I make. It's interesting to hear other people's backstories to why they claim the theory, which is what Elizabethtown does so well.
Of course, we're stereotyping people by doing this, but each person has their own opinion about a name. Think of all the songs that use Caroline to describe a girl they know. Outkast says "She's the reason for the word bitch." Neil Diamond calls her sweet. There's no exact expectation to one particular name, which is why the theory fails at being taken seriously. We can all be amused by the storytelling and jokes, which comes with our own characteristics for a name. Son of a Mitch being one we won't forget.
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