Growing up, too many movie plotlines featured female leads negatively defined by her quirks. The female protagonist got good grades, but struggled getting the guy. She was sarcastic and emotional as opposed to being perky.

There was forever an unspoken toss-up between the “popular girl” and the “funny female dork,” a character who usually evolved into a beautiful swan by the end of the film.

In films, quirky women needed men to shape them, smooth them out and make them whole.

But nowadays, quirky is the new ideal, and it has nothing to do with men at all.

Zooey Deschanel in “New Girl,” Tina Fey in “30 Rock” and Sofia Vergara in “Modern Family” all embody women who are smart, funny and a different type of beautiful than what I was exposed to as a child.

Jennifer Lawrence has become a victor for females everywhere. As the actress strode on stage to accept her Oscar for Best Actress on Feb. 24, she tripped on the stairs. Palms to the floor, Lawrence pushed herself from the steps and accepted with utter grace an outstanding award seconds after committing a clumsy fall.

She gives a new depth to elegance: It is nothing without a few embarrassing moments.

It is Lawrence’s quirkiness that makes her so much more charming than the typical bland Hollywood personality. Her ability to discuss peeing her pants openly is endearing to the rest of us because it makes her real.

We view her as imperfectly perfect.

Nowadays, being quirky is just as important as being traditionally sophisticated and refined.

I know I am marked by my fear of squirrels and strange sayings such as, “I’m going to expand my mind” when I tell my friends I am headed to class. Of course, “The Lord of the Rings” Hobbit feet I once made with a friend in high school, using old sneakers and beige duck tape perfectly expose my inner dork.

The quirks are what make us real. To hide them is like hiding our own identities.

There was once a desire to refine our personalities to be delicate and modest, to laugh a typical laugh, walk with a standard stride, wear matching clothes and accessories, cut our hair in a certain shape and enter into only small talk with strangers.

It’s accepted, and even invited now, to snort along with a belly-aching laugh, skip down stairs, wear neon, floral and leather in the same outfit and cut, dye and mess with our hair until it fits perfectly with who we are.

I personally feared how my quirks would be received when I entered sorority recruitment this past February. I feared intense judgment every time I entered a house.

I figured I would not be able to find another girl who delighted in her awkward tendencies as much as I did. That was before I had conversations about made-up childhood games, my adoration for cloud stationary and “Dragon Ball-Z.” I found my house and it was these conversations that got me there.

The world is always pressuring us to fit into a specific mold. But the fact is, we’re all pretty weird, and I mean that in the best way possible.

Our oddities define us, grow with us and make us who we are. Female quirkiness is finally being celebrated, as it should be. I only hope I become a woman who embodies a confidence so fully that it allows her to own every quirk, even those Hobbit feet tucked away at home.

Anna Hodge is a freshman magazine journalism major. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at ahodge@syr.edu and followed on Twitter at @annabhodge.

Published on March 7, 2013 at 1:20 am