Nowhere girls

“Nowhere Girls” or “Mei Nu”（Chinese: 沒女）is an neologism coined to describe women who have no money, no job, no education, no prospects, no looks, no friends and no sophistication. The pinyin and pronunciation of “Nowhere Girls” is the same as that of “Beautiful Girls” in Putonghua. The term is used to characterise those women who refuse to conform to male expectations and are therefore thought to be unattractive by men, and has strong pejorative connotations. A calque of a South Korean term, it spread to Hong Kong via China, and became popularised through its use in a reality show called “Nowhere Girls”, which was broadcast by Television Broadcasts Limited. This show has aroused much public discussion on this topic.

In the TV programme “Nowhere Girls”, women are called “Nowhere Girls” because they are lazy, selfish, short-tempered, rude to others, unfashionable and are self-deluded.

Nowhere girls usually experience different psychological traumas. According to the reality show “Nowhere Girls”, they suffer from personal setbacks such as parental divorce, personal breakups, or infidelity in relationships. They are stressed, so they tend to escape reality, place blame on a third person, refuse to take responsibility for personal problems, and have a tendency towards self-victimization or self-pity.

As nowhere girls experience distinct family affairs, leaving them psychologically-hurt. Moreover, Hong Kong has low birth rates from time to time leading to single-child families. They become the treasure of their parents. They are pampered and spoiled which results in weakened coping abilities. In addition, children nowadays engage in less communication with their parents who are always out for work, and thus children receive less parental mental support.

Nowhere girls do not conform to traditional notions of beauty. In addition, they are self-centered and short-tempered. It is difficult for them to engage in the society with appropriate communication and to cooperate with others. As they are spoiled by their parents, they lack essential skills like problem-solving skills. Therefore, they do not appeal to employers and thus cannot find a job, while they insist that it is a social discrimination.

Nowhere girls become less confident and inferior in front of their friends and families because they are not appreciated. For instance, the participants in the “Nowhere Girls” show cried frequently in front of the camera. They were being teased in the cyber world. in which their background informations were being disclosed in the public. In severe cases, they may suffer from depression or psychological illnesses.

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Wikipedia