Oh you're a thought daughter? (so am i)

in defense of the literary it girl

thought daughter. literary it girl. whatever you call her, there is a certain type of girl who has been trending on social media lately.

if you’re reading this, you’re probably already picturing the girl these terms characterize: the girl with the Joan Didion book in her New Yorker tote bag. drinks matcha lattes with oat milk. posts aesthetic photos of her books on instagram. listens to Fiona Apple, frequents art museums, watches foreign films, 24/7 Sylvia Plath…

the thought daughter sparks great meme material

this girl doesn’t read just anything, though. she sticks her nose up at the Colleen Hoovers and James Pattersons of the literary world. her tastes trend towards literary fiction/memoirs, poetry, and classics, and that is what she is seen bringing to coffee shops and posting on her instagram story.

the discourse lately seems to be that people think the literary it girl is a put-upon persona, carefully crafted to fit others’ expectations of a Cool Literary Girl. that these girls are not actually reading these books, they’re just making sure they’re being seen with them. or if they are reading them, they’re only reading them so they will look cool to other literary it girls or look smart to the general population.

i’d like to offer a different perspective.

as you can tell from the title, my tastes resonate with the so-called thought daughter. the majority of the books i read are on the capital-L-Literature end of the spectrum. yes, The Secret History is one of my favorite books. yes, i love Joan Didion, Eve Babitz, Sylvia Plath, and Lana del Rey. i do, in fact, own a New Yorker tote bag. i arrange my books in a pleasing way, snap a photo, and post it to instagram. i don’t gravitate towards most contemporary romance and thrillers. i don’t think it’s a bad thing to like those books, and i don’t think it’s a bad thing to be a ~literary snob~. people like what they like, and there’s a reason certain books are categorized as Literature: they’re good!

i bring a book with me everywhere i go. i have read The Bell Jar on a bus, and made friends with a girl sitting next to me who had the same copy in her bag. that is what i believe it comes down to: human connection. i bring my book with me when i go out, i post my books on instagram, to find connection with others who resonate with my interests. to find some kind of community. while the thought daughter is a common trope online, it’s honestly not all that common to find one out in the wild. (maybe if you live in NYC or London. in Texas, where i am, it is not.)

when i see others online reading the books i love, or if i happen to meet someone on the bus reading the same book as i am, i feel more connected to others, like i do have a legitimate place in the universe. human beings crave connections, and we find that connection through common interests. i am always on the lookout for new friends, and what better way to strike up a conversation than spotting someone with your favorite Didion book at the coffee shop?

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Ciceley also wrote a piece defending the literary it girl here! read it!

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