Legend has it that the characters of Scooby Doo are actually based off of each of the colleges in our Five College Consortium: Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, Amherst College, Hampshire College, and of course UMass Amherst. While the student bodies of each college have certainly changed since 1969 when the series started, the stereotypes surrounding these institutions are surprisingly well represented by the characters of this class cartoon. Take a look at each character and the corresponding school:
Smith College
While certainly not representative of the student body as a whole, if you were to ask a student at one of the five college about the reputation of Smith, you’d hear a lot about the amazing academics there, but also about the number of students who identify as lesbians. Velma, the brain of the group, was always the one to think through the gang’s problems logically and use her intelligence to succeed, which is definitely representative of Smith girls. But, if you watch the show carefully now that you’re older, you may notice that the writers made it clear, through sublet hints that would fly right over the head of a child, that Velma is very much in love with Daphne.
Mount Holyoke College
Speaking of Daphne, she is supposed to represent a Mount Holyoke girl. While highly respected and known for the heavy workloads bared by students, MoHo was recently included on Elite Daily’s list of “Most DTF Colleges.” UMass boys are generally considered to be lower on the status totem pole than their Amherst College counterparts, so MoHo’s female students are said to flock to them, much like Daphne fawned over Fred.
Amherst College
Fred is exactly what many would consider a typical Amherst College boy to be: preppy, rich and handsome. Supposedly, he is the boy that every other boy wants to be, or every girl wants to date. And he gets the “hot” girl – Daphne.
Hampshire College
There’s no way around it: Hampshire college students are known for being hippies who looove weed. Maybe because when we were little and didn’t know what weed was we didn’t notice how much of a pothead Shaggy was, but now there’s no excuse. Shaggy and his droopy eyelids were always down for anything, and don’t try to tell me that his eating habits aren’t the definition of the munchies.
UMass Amherst
UMass kids are known for being clueless goofballs with wild and crazy party habits, a stereotype I believe to be just as inaccurate as it is accurate. Scooby Doo is the main character of the show, just as UMass could be considered the main college in the consortium based on size alone. Scooby is one goofy dog who knows how to have fun and has a knack for running into things. But, just like UMass, Scooby isn’t as flat as his character initially insinuates. He’s very sneaky and clever when push comes to shove, and he is fiercely loyal friend.
Whether you see the truth to these stereotypes or not, the legend surrounding the five colleges will certainly change the way you think about the dynamic of the show. Take a study break and watch a few episodes and see for yourself! Rooby-rooby-roooo!