ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Tavi Gevinson - Blogger and fashion icon
Tavi Gevinson is a fashion blogger and a feminist who encourages everyone to embrace their complexity and look cool doing it.

Why you should listen

Born in April 1996, Tavi Gevinson started blogging at age eleven – then rapidly became a bona fide fashion icon. In 2009 she was featured on the cover of Pop magazine and was invited as a special guest to New York Fashion week. Her site for teenage girls, Rookie, broke the one-million page views within five days of launching in September 2011. She’s currently the editor-in-chief and founder of RookieMag.com and writes thestylerookie.com and has written for several publications including Harper's Bazaar, Jezebel, Lula, Pop, and GARAGE magazine.

More profile about the speaker
Tavi Gevinson | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxTeen

Tavi Gevinson: A teen just trying to figure it out

Tavi Gevinson: Déagóir atá ag iarraidh é a oibriú amach

Filmed:
1,768,602 views

Bhí sé deacair do Tavi Gevinson, cúig bliana déag, eiseamláirí do dhéagóirí bainscneacha a bhí láidir a aimsiú -- mar sin, chruthaigh sí spás ionas gur féidir leo iad féin a aimsiú. Ag TEDxTeen, léiríonn sí an spás daignean neamhchinnte, casta seo, cruthaithe ag comhráite ar suíomhanna cosúil le Rookie, a suíomh cáiliúla cruithaithe do agus ag cailiní sna déagóirí, a théann i ngleic le feiminineachas an lae innu. (Scannaíodg ag TEDxTeen.)
- Blogger and fashion icon
Tavi Gevinson is a fashion blogger and a feminist who encourages everyone to embrace their complexity and look cool doing it. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:16
Four years ago today, exactly, actually,
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Ceithre bliana ón lá inniu, mar a tharlaíonn sé,
00:18
I started a fashion blog called Style Rookie.
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bhunaigh mé blag faisean dár teideal Style Rookie.
00:21
Last September of 2011, I started an online magazine
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Meán Fomhair seo caite, i 2011, bhunaigh mé iris ar líne
00:25
for teenage girls called Rookiemag.com.
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dírithe ar chailiní sna déagóirí dár teideal rookiemag.com
00:29
My name's Tavi Gevinson, and
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Tavi Gevinson is ainm dom, agus
00:33
the title of my talk is "Still Figuring It Out,"
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is é teideal na hóráide seo ná "Fós ag Iarraidh é a Oibrigh Amach"
00:36
and the MS Paint quality of my slides
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agus ba chinneadh cruthaitheach amach is amach é
00:39
was a total creative decision in keeping with today's theme,
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MS Peint a úsáid ar mo shleamhnáin, chun cloí le téama an lae,
00:42
and has nothing to do with my inability
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agus níl sé fíor nach féidir liom
00:44
to use PowerPoint. (Laughter)
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PowerPoint a úsáid. (Gáire)
00:47
So I edit this site for teenage girls. I'm a feminist.
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Cuirim an suíomh do chailiní sna déagoirí seo in eagar. Is feimineach mé.
00:51
I am kind of a pop culture nerd, and I think a lot about
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Is cineál neird an chultúir pobail mé, agus smaoiním go minic ar
00:54
what makes a strong female character,
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cad is carachtar baineann atá láidir ann,
00:57
and, you know, movies and TV shows,
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agus, bíonn tionchar ag
00:59
these things have influence. My own website.
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scannáin agus ag cláir teilifíse. Mó shuíomh idirlíne féin.
01:03
So I think the question of what makes a strong female
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Mar sin, ceapaim nach bhfuil freagair ró-shoiléir ar an gceist
01:06
character often goes misinterpreted,
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"Cad is carachtar baininscneach atá láidir ann?"
01:08
and instead we get these two-dimensional superwomen
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agus mar fhreagra, faighimid na spéirmná follasacha seo
01:12
who maybe have one quality that's played up a lot,
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a bhfuil tréith amháin acu a chuirtear chun tosaigh é,
01:15
like a Catwoman type,
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carachtair cosúil le Catwoman
01:18
or she plays her sexuality up a lot,
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a chuireann a cuid collaíochta chun tosaigh,
01:22
and it's seen as power.
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agus feictear ar sin mar chumhacht.
01:23
But they're not strong characters who happen to be female.
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Ach ní carachtair láidir iad atá bainscneach i chomh maith,
01:26
They're completely flat,
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tá siad go hiomlán lom,
01:28
and they're basically cardboard characters.
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agus is carachtair aontaobhacha iad don chuid is mó.
01:30
The problem with this is that then
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Is é an fhadhb atá le seo ná
01:32
people expect women to be that easy to understand,
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go gcreideann daoine ansin go bhfuil sé chomh éasca sin mná a thuiscint
01:36
and women are mad at themselves
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agus braitheann mná feargach orthu féin
01:38
for not being that simple,
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ós rud é nach bhfuil siad chomh shimplí sin,
01:40
when, in actuality, women are complicated,
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nuair, mar a tharlaíonn sé, tá mná casta,
01:43
women are multifaceted -- not because women are crazy,
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tá mná iltaobhacha -- ní go bhfuil mná ar mire
01:46
but because people are crazy,
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ach bíonn daoine ar mire,
01:48
and women happen to be people. (Laughter)
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agus is daoine iad mná. (Gáire)
01:52
So the flaws are the key.
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Mar sin, is iad na lochtanna na gnéithe is tábhachtaí.
01:54
I'm not the first person to say this.
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Nílim an chéad duine chun é seo a rá.
01:56
What makes a strong female character
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Is é atá taobh thiar don charachtar bainiscneach atá láidir
01:58
is a character who has weaknesses, who has flaws,
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ná carachtar a bhfuil laige aici, a bhfuil lochtanna aici,
02:03
who is maybe not immediately likable,
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duine nach dtaithníonn sí leat i dtús,
02:05
but eventually relatable.
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ach is féidir í a thuiscint ag an deireadh.
02:07
I don't like to acknowledge a problem
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Ní mhaith liom aitheantas a thabhairt don fhadhb seo
02:09
without also acknowledging those who work to fix it,
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gan dóibh siúd a obríonn chun é a réiteach a luath,
02:11
so just wanted to acknowledge shows like "Mad Men,"
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mar sin, ba mhaith liom cláir cosúil le "Mad Men" a luath,
02:14
movies like "Bridesmaids," whose female characters
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scannáin cosúil le "Bridemaids" a bhfuil carachtair baininscneacha
02:17
or protagonists are complex, multifaceted.
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nó príomhcharachtair atá casta, iltaobhacha le fáil iontu.
02:21
Lena Dunham, who's on here, her show on HBO
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Lena Dunham, atá ar fáil anseo, a clár ar HBO
02:26
that premiers next month, "Girls,"
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"Girls," a thosaíonn an mhí seo chugainn,
02:28
she said she wanted to start it because she felt that
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dúirt sí gur theastaigh uaithi an clár a chruthú mar bhraith sí
02:30
every woman she knew was just a bundle of contradictions,
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gur mhéascan do chosarsnachtaí ab ea gach bean a raibh aithne aici uirthi,
02:33
and that feels accurate for all people,
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agus tá sé sin fíor do gach duine,
02:35
but you don't see women represented like that as much.
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ach ní fhaigheann tú an léargas sin ar mhná.
02:38
Congrats, guys. (Laughs)
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Comhghairdeachas, a chairde.
02:42
But I don't feel that — I still feel that there are some types
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Ach ní bhraithim é sin - Braithim go bhfuil grupaí ban ann
02:45
of women who are not represented that way,
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nár chuirtear ós ár gcomhair sa tslí sin
02:48
and one group that we'll focus on today are teens,
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agus dirímid isteach ar dhéagoirí inniu,
02:50
because I think teenagers are especially contradictory
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mar ceapaim go bhfuil déagóirí líon lán le codarsnachtaí
02:54
and still figuring it out,
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agus go bhfuil siad ag iarraidh gach rud a oibrigh amach,
02:57
and in the '90s there was "Freaks and Geeks"
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agus sna 90idí bhí "Freaks and Geeks" againn
03:00
and "My So-Called Life," and their characters,
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agus "My So-Called Life" agus a gcarachtair againn,
03:03
Lindsay Weir and Angela Chase,
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Lindsay Weir agus Angela Chase, againn
03:05
I mean, the whole premise of the shows
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Ba é bunchloch na gclár seo ná
03:08
were just them trying to figure themselves out, basically,
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na daoine a bhí ag iarraidh iad féin a oibrigh amach, a bheag nó a mhór,
03:12
but those shows only lasted a season each,
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ach níor mhair na cláir seo ach ar feadh sraith amháin
03:15
and I haven't really seen anything like that on TV since.
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ach ní fhaca mé aon rud mar sin ar an teilifís go dtí seo.
03:20
So this is a scientific diagram of my brain — (Laughter) —
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Anois, seo léaráid eolaíoch don inchinn agam - (Gáire)
03:26
around the time when I was,
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ón uair nuair a bhíos,
03:28
when I started watching those TV shows.
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nuair a thosnaíos ag féachaint ar na cláir seo.
03:30
I was ending middle school, starting high school --
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Bhí an scoil mhéanach ag teacht chun deireadh, bhíos ag tosnú san ardscoil --
03:32
I'm a sophomore now —
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Is sofamór anois mé
03:35
and I was trying to reconcile
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agus bhíos ag iarraidh tabhairt chun réiteach
03:37
all of these differences that you're told you can't be
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na codarsnachtaí a deirtear leat nach féidir iad a réitiú
03:40
when you're growing up as a girl.
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nuair a fhásann tú aníos mar chailín.
03:41
You can't be smart and pretty.
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Ní féidir bheith eirimiúil agus dathúil
03:44
You can't be a feminist who's also interested in fashion.
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Ní féidir bheith i do fheimineach a bhfuil suim agat san fhaisean.
03:47
You can't care about clothes if it's not for the sake
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Ní féidir suim a bheith agat in éadaí nuair is cuma leat
03:51
of what other people, usually men, will think of you.
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cad a cheapann daoine eile, fir ach go háirithe, fút.
03:54
So I was trying to figure all that out,
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Bhíos ag iarraidh an méid sin a thabhairt chun réiteach
03:57
and I felt a little confused,
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agus bhí beagánín mearbhall orm,
04:00
and I said so on my blog,
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agus dúirt mé é sin ar mo bhlag,
04:02
and I said that I wanted to start
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agus dúirt mé gur theastaigh uaim
04:06
a website for teenage girls
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suíomh idirlíne dírithe ar chailíní sna déagóirí a bhunú
04:08
that was not this kind of one-dimensional
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agus níor bhain sé seo
04:12
strong character empowerment thing
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le cumhacht an charachtair láidre aontaobhacha
04:15
because I think one thing that can be very alienating
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mar ceapaim go gcuirfeadh misthuiscint áirithe
04:18
about a misconception of feminism is that
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faoin fheimineachas as do dhaoine nuair a chreideann
04:20
girls then think that to be a feminist, they have to live up to
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cailiní, chun a bheith in bhfeiminigh, go gcaithfidh siad
04:24
being perfectly consistent in your beliefs,
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cloí go dlúth lena gcuid prionsabail,
04:26
never being insecure, never having doubts,
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agus nach bhfuil cead acu beith neamhchinnte, amhrasach,
04:30
having all of the answers. And this is not true,
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go caithfidh na freagraí ar fad a bheith acu. Agus níl sé sin fíor,
04:33
and, actually, reconciling all the contradictions I was feeling
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agus bhí sé níos éasca na codarsnachtaí seo a réitiú
04:37
became easier once I understood that feminism
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nuair a thuigeas ní leabair rialacha í an fheimineachas
04:40
was not a rulebook but a discussion,
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ach plé,
04:43
a conversation, a process,
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comhrá, próiseas,
04:45
and this is a spread from a zine that I made last year
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agus seo sliocht as zín a rinne mé an bhliain seo caite
04:48
when I -- I mean, I think I've let myself go a bit
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nuair a -- Tá meath tagtha
04:51
on the illustration front since.
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ar mo scileanna léaráide ón uair sin.
04:53
But, yeah.
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Ach pé scéal é.
04:57
So I said on my blog that I wanted to start this publication
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Dúirt mé ar mo bhlag gur theastaigh uaim an fhoilseachán seo a chur le chéile
05:02
for teenage girls and ask people to submit
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do chailiní sna déagóirí agus d'iarr mé ar dhaoine a gcuid scríbhneoireachta, grianghraifadóireachta,
05:04
their writing, their photography, whatever,
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cibé rud, a thabhairt isteacht, chun a bheith ina
05:06
to be a member of our staff.
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bhall don fhoireann.
05:08
I got about 3,000 emails.
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Fuaireas tuairim is 3,000 rphoist.
05:11
My editorial director and I went through them and
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Chuaigh mé agus mo stúirtheoir eagarthóireachta tríd agus
05:14
put together a staff of people,
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chuireamar foireann le chéile,
05:17
and we launched last September.
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agus d'fhoilsíomar don chéad uair an Mhéan Fomhair seo caite.
05:19
And this is an excerpt from my first editor's letter,
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Agus seo sliocht as an chéad litir eagarthóra a scríobh mé
05:22
where I say that Rookie, we don't have all the answers,
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nuair a deirim nach bhfuil na freagraí ar fad ag Rookie.
05:25
we're still figuring it out too, but the point is not to
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go bhfuilimid fós ag iarraidh gach rud a oibrigh amach freisin, ach níl sé mar aidhm againn
05:28
give girls the answers, and not even give them permission
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na freagraí a thabhairt do chailíní, agus ní chun cead a thabhairt dóibh fiú
05:32
to find the answers themselves,
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chun freagraí a fháil dóibh féin,
05:34
but hopefully inspire them to understand that
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ach iad a spreagadh chun go dtuigfidh siad
05:36
they can give themselves that permission,
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gur féidir leo an cead sin a thabhairt dóibh féin,
05:38
they can ask their own questions, find their own answers,
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gur féidir leo a gceisteanna féin a chur, a bhfreagraí féin a aimsiú,
05:41
all of that, and Rookie, I think we've been trying to make it
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agus ceapaim go bhfuil iarracht déanta ag Rookie
05:44
a nice place for all of that to be figured out.
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spás deas a chruthú chun gach rud a oibriú amach.
05:49
So I'm not saying, "Be like us,"
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Nílimid ag rá 'Bí ar nós linne",
05:51
and "We're perfect role models," because we're not,
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agus "Is eiseamláirÍ foirfe muid," mar níl muid,
05:53
but we just want to help represent girls
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ach ba mhaith linn cailiní a léiriú
05:58
in a way that shows those different dimensions.
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ar bhealaí a leiríonn na taobhacha éagsúla seo.
06:01
I mean, we have articles called
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Mar shampla, tá ailt againn dár teideal
06:05
"On Taking Yourself Seriously: How to Not Care What People Think of You,"
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"Ag Caint go Dáiríre: Conas neamhaird a thabhairt ar thuairimí Einne Eile"'
06:08
but we also have articles like,
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ach tá ailt eile againn, mar shampla,
06:10
oops -- I'm figuring it out!
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oops -- táim ag iarraidh é a oibriú amach!
06:14
Ha ha. (Laughter)
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Ha ha. (Gáire)
06:17
If you use that, you can get away with anything.
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Má úsáideann tú an líne sin, tá leithscéal agat do gach rud.
06:21
We also have articles called
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Tá ailt againn dár teideal
06:22
"How to Look Like You Weren't Just Crying in Less than Five Minutes."
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"Conas a Chuir in Iúl Nach Raibh tú ag Gol Cúig Nóiméad ó shin.
06:25
So all of that being said, I still really appreciate
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Agus an méid sin ráite, is ábhar sásaimh do
06:28
those characters in movies and
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iad na carachtair i scannáin agus
06:32
articles like that on our site,
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in ailt mar sin ar ár suíomh,
06:34
that aren't just about being totally powerful,
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nach mbaineann leis an gcumhacht amháin,
06:37
maybe finding your acceptance with yourself
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ach a bhaineann le féinghlacadh chomh maith
06:41
and self-esteem and your flaws and how you accept those.
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agus le féinmheas agus le do lochtanna agus conas iad a ghlacadh.
06:46
So what I you to take away from my talk,
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Ba mhaith liom dá nglacfadh sibh an chomhairle seo ón óraid,
06:50
the lesson of all of this, is to just be Stevie Nicks.
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ceacht an lae, ná bí Stevie Nicks.
06:54
Like, that's all you have to do. (Laughter)
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Sin a bhfuil le déanamh agat. (Gáire)
06:57
Because my favorite thing about her,
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Mar, is é an rud is ansa liom fuithi,
07:00
other than, like, everything, is that
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thar aon rud eile ná
07:03
she is very -- has always been
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go bhfuil sí, go raibh
07:06
unapologetically present on stage,
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láithreacht chinnte aici ar an stáitse,
07:09
and unapologetic about her flaws
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agus go raibh sí oscailte faoina lochtanna
07:11
and about reconciling all of her contradictory feelings
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agus faoin réitiú a dhéanann sí ar na mothúcháin grithráiteacha
07:15
and she makes you listen to them and think about them,
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agus cuireann sí dualgas ort éisteacht leo agus machnamh a dhéanamh orthu,
07:19
and yeah, so please be Stevie Nicks.
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agus sin é, bí Stevie Nicks le bhúr dtoil.
07:20
Thank you. (Applause)
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Go raibh maith agaibh.
Translated by Róisín Healy
Reviewed by Róisín Healy

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Tavi Gevinson - Blogger and fashion icon
Tavi Gevinson is a fashion blogger and a feminist who encourages everyone to embrace their complexity and look cool doing it.

Why you should listen

Born in April 1996, Tavi Gevinson started blogging at age eleven – then rapidly became a bona fide fashion icon. In 2009 she was featured on the cover of Pop magazine and was invited as a special guest to New York Fashion week. Her site for teenage girls, Rookie, broke the one-million page views within five days of launching in September 2011. She’s currently the editor-in-chief and founder of RookieMag.com and writes thestylerookie.com and has written for several publications including Harper's Bazaar, Jezebel, Lula, Pop, and GARAGE magazine.

More profile about the speaker
Tavi Gevinson | Speaker | TED.com

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