What was most interesting to me was Graham's dissection of why the situation is the way it is with regard to the quest for popularity. He makes a strong argument that the daily circumstances of school life and the nature of human behavior in socially hierarchal situations make it almost impossible for kids as a group to be otherwise. As long as there are social strata to aspire to, there will be kids who are at the top, middle, and bottom of that pyramid. Graham also wisely notes that the great bulk of the tormenting comes not from the most popular kids, but from what he calls the "nervous middle classes" of high school society—those who want to be popular and haven't quite made it.

Lest the article seem too much of a downer, I should note that he also discusses at some length the reasons why the social situation of teenagers doesn't continue into adult life for most people. In two words: results matter. Or as he puts it,

I think the important thing about the real world is not that it's populated by adults, but that it's very large, and the things you do have real effects. That's what school, prison, and ladies-who-lunch all lack. The inhabitants of all those worlds are trapped in little bubbles where nothing they do can have more than a local effect. Naturally these societies degenerate into savagery. They have no function for their form to follow.

A great piece—wonderfully articulate and insightful. I'd highly recommend it to anyone, but especially current and recovering nerds/geeks and anyone who has kids. [via UnNatural History]