Blog Post #7: Learning from Documentaries
The documentary I chose to watch and analyze was “Bama Rush” on Max. This is a documentary I have been meaning to watch, as I participated in formal sorority recruitment my freshman year (August 2021). This was around the same time #BamaRush started trending on social media platforms such as TikTok, where millions of people watched the videos of women around the country getting ready for recruitment at the University of Alabama (Fliet, 2023).
During my two years in the sorority, I realized the environment was toxic and not something I wanted to be involved in. Because of my experience, I was naturally curious if this is an experience held by other women throughout Greek life, and if not, how their experience differs from mine.
The documentary, “Bama Rush” is a story on the history of sorority recruitment at the University of Alabama and follows the journey of women planning to go through the process of sorority recruitment at the university.
What are the major elements of story used in the documentary?
Setting: The documentary takes place at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama (AL).
Theme: The theme of the documentary is Alabama sorority recruitment and women planning on going through sorority recruitment.
Plot: The documentary starts off showing various TikToks from “Bama Rush”, which went viral in 2021. These short clips vary from women participating in recruitment to viewers of the trend questioning why they are invested in this. The documentary goes on to introduce four women, each with different backgrounds but all planning to partake in formal recruitment come 2022. After these introductions, the history of sororities is brought up. One major takeaway from this history is that sororities started as a way to show that women could succeed in college and higher education (Fliet, 2023). The documentary speaks on the process of sorority recruitment, including the different themes of each day and how women are chosen for each sorority (i.e., criteria needed for each sorority chapter). The documentary also talks about what the women in sororities have to deal with daily including stereotypes, discrimination, harassment, etc.
Character: All characters within the documentary are women planning on participating in formal recruitment at the University of Alabama in 2022. The women featured in the video range from high school seniors to current University of Alabama students. The documentary shows how each woman plans on preparing for their journey and what each of them hopes to get out of a sorority. With each interview, the audience gets a deeper insight into the personality, experiences, attitudes, wants, needs, etc. of each of the women featured.
Shelby: The first look at Shelby is her receiving her acceptance letter for the University of Alabama months prior to the start of recruitment. When Shelby is speaking, the audience gets to learn more about her story. In learning about her background, it is clear to the audience that philanthropic work is important to Shelby.
Isabelle: The first thing heard from Isabelle is that she would not be attending the University of Alabama had it not blown up on TikTok the way it did (Fliet, 2023). After hearing her further speak, the audience understands why she wants to be in a sorority and the community she is looking for.
Holliday: At the time of the documentary, Holliday was already a freshman at the University of Alabama and had participated in formal recruitment the year prior. She was dropped from her sorority, in her words “for wearing another sorority’s sticker” (Fliet, 2023, 07:50). However, Holliday is planning on participating in recruitment again in 2022. Similar to many other women I have seen via “Bama Rush TikTok”, she is a former pageant girl, so she fits in with the established persona of sorority women.
Makalya: Similar to Holliday, Makalya was a freshman at the university at the time of the documentary. Unlike Holliday, however, she did not rush her first year at the university but felt left out, which is why she plans on rushing in 2022.
Gracie O’Conner: The documentary labels Gracie as the “original #BamaRush influencer” (Fliet, 2023, 11:45).
Various Active Members: These members are from various sorority chapters at the University of Alabama, where they speak on their experience and their chapter’s process for selecting women. These women speak about the opportunities and experiences while being in a sorority.
Conflict: The conflict begins when the narrator states the recruitment process is cutthroat, explaining what the women have to go through. For example, they compare themselves to other women and make themselves appear as if they fit in with the sorority they want to be in rather than being themselves. A major conflicting topic that is featured in the documentary is how sororities are ranked and how each woman wants to be a top tier house. Gracie O’Conner believes the fraternity boys and boys in general rank houses based on how the women of the sororities look (Fliet, 2023). From viewing TikToks and from interviews, it is apparent Zeta Tau Alpha is the top tier house at the University of Alabama, however these women have to be careful not to agree with this statement.
How does the filmmaker draw you into the story?
“Not to be dramatic, but this HBO special could be the end of Greek life as we know it” (Fliet, 2023, 00:42). This statement immediately makes me interested in what is to come in the documentary. It makes me feel as if I am going to become emotional as these women may have similar experiences to me.
The sorority chants are familiar to me and relevant to my experience so it drew me in for personal reasons.
Stating “Every year, tens of thousands of young women try to get into a sorority in the U.S.. This process is called ‘Rush’” (Fliet, 2023, 01:04) along with showing TikTok clips of the viral “Bama Rush” videos helped build the persuasive message. The documentary showcases the popularity of the viral TikTok videos, including the problems surrounding the entire sorority recruitment process. People are invested into these strangers' lives and the houses they want to rush. The slideshow of the TikTok videos lasts around a minute, further showing the popularity of the recruitment process, including videos from viewers of the trend explaining their investment.
The ominous music throughout the documentary allures to the toxic environment that is sorority recruitment.
How is it relevant to my experiences?
The documentary mentions (and does focus a lot on) that sorority women are taught to put their organization first, even above themselves.
Some of the active members of various chapters mention that many people don’t see sorority girls seriously, they are seen “like a little doll” (Filet, 2023, 21:33). I personally think this has something to do with the appearance of these sorority women on social media. The documentary mentioned how they go through editing their photos so they look perfect and don’t ruin the image of their sorority chapter.
The stereotyping of sorority women is very prevalent at Washington State University as well. The documentary mentioned the stereotypes are not only on each individual chapter but sorority women as a whole.
The ranking of the houses doesn’t change. I have found that regardless of the person, if someone finds out what house you’re in and it is a “lower tier” house, they may no longer associate with you due to the negative reputation of that house.
You have to be careful where and when you are wearing your letters. You can get in trouble with basically anything if you are doing something that puts the sorority in a negative light.
During recruitment, you cannot mention the “Five B’s” (Boys, Beer, Bucks, Bible, Bush). Basically anything that backs someone into a corner or makes them feel uncomfortable is something that cannot be mentioned.
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