Today, people who barely ever read are sometimes viewed as idiots. Bookworms are definitely not seen as weird. But for the time period Belle lived in, then of course. ''It's not right for a woman to read, then she starts getting ideas and thinking???'' Although the stereotype of pretty girls being not as smart is still a big one and it's pretty annoying.

Depends on where she lives. There are people in some areas or cultures that value education, others that don't. Some areas that are more progressive or open-minded about women and education/independence, others that aren't.

I don't think we've come quite as far as most people would like to believe. In the US alone, the "Creationism trumps Evolution" sentiment, "vaccines cause autism" crowd, and global warming deniers have gained massive following despite MASSIVE scientific evidence to the contrary.

Anyway, being a pretty girl who has been given grief for reading too much, or for being a "nerd" and all that... Yeah. I can see this reaction, big time.

I can see both. But mostly I think they would look and say, "Oh, look, she's so smart! That girl is going to be someone important in the future!"

Most likely.

Id say.

^ Where do you all live that leads you to that conclusion? Because I'd like to move there.

^Oh, belive me, you wouldn't. At all.

I think they would still act the same way towards her because of all the technology today.