Twisted sisters

In her new book, Alexandra Robbins goes undercover as a sorority sister at an anonymous university. What she found was very little sisterhood -- but a lot of hardcore hazing, public humiliation, binge drinking and extreme peer pressure.

By Suzy Hansen

Apr 14, 2004 | The cartoonish UCLA sidekicks of the "Legally Blonde" movies' heroine Elle Woods (played by Reese Witherspoon) embodied every stereotype we have of sorority sisters -- yet, somehow, they seemed like a force for good. Sure, they were superficial, vain and blindingly blonde, but they also supported Elle while she prepared for the LSATs and immediately came to her rescue when she got in a jam. Plus, they'd cultivated their beauty obsessions into lifesaving wisdom. A round of snaps for those cheery Delta Nus.

Alexandra Robbins, author of "Pledged: The Secret Life of Sororities," can't express the same enthusiasm for most real-life sororities. While Robbins insists the book isn't "anti-sorority," after practically living with sisters for an academic year, she told Salon she wouldn't want "a future daughter" to join one of these groups.

Robbins doesn't rail against sororities in this undercover account of the lives of four sorority sisters at an unnamed (and well-disguised) university. In fact, when she easily might have ridiculed or chastised the girls for their childish, catty or dangerous behavior, Robbins bites her tongue. Still, most people will come away from "Pledged" feeling the same way Robbins does: Who would want their daughter to be constantly reminded she has to be skinny, rich and man-crazy? Without even going into the hazing stories, sororities seem like any mother's worst nightmare.

Or not. Throughout the South, Robbins explains, moms still push their girls hard to get into the right sororities. They even shell out the dough for "rush consultants," something akin to pageant consultants, who guide the girls through the rush process, telling them what to wear and how to behave. As Robbins points out, in the South, what sorority you belong to has lasting implications for not only your social life, but for your professional life as well. In states like Alabama and Texas, Robbins said, "Your sorority affiliation is more important than your major."

We've all heard the sordid tales coming out of the Greek scene -- the heavy drinking, the startlingly old-fashioned values, the exclusivity and racism, the date rapes, the hazing deaths. Robbins folds all of these weightier issues into her narrative, while also offering an often humorous snapshot of today's college youth, from their highly personal and expressive Instant Messaging "away messages" ("When's it my turn to be the priority? Could ya throw me a frickin' bone please?") to their alcohol-fueled attempts at seductive, girl-on-girl dancing (the "booty train" comes to mind). "Pledged" is also a look at that moment in young people's lives when they're deciding what sort of person they want to be, away from home and on their own. College, after all, should be about a new kind of freedom. Do sororities quash these girls' identities before they get a chance to explore them?

Robbins -- a graduate of Yale who did not join a sorority -- is also the author of "Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, the Ivy League, and the Hidden Paths of Power," "Quarterlife Crisis: The Unique Challenges of Life in Your Twenties" and the forthcoming "Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis: Advice From Twentysomethings Who Have Been There and Survived," out in October. She spoke to Salon over coffee in New York.

How did you get inside the sororities? How did you go undercover?

I have to be careful. I can't really talk much about what I had to do to get the material for this book because I can't risk identifying the four main girls I followed. They'll get kicked out of the sorority.

Next Page: At the end of the year, one sorority gives each graduating senior something from Tiffany

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