Is there a difference between being a geek and being a guy

I really don't consider myself a geek but I do enjoy playing video games and big blockbuster movies (which a majority fall under sci fi and fantasy) but so does every guy I know. So I would like to know where does the line makes some one cross over from being a guy to being a geek or are guys just geeky by nature?


*disclaimer*
I'm not saying girls can't be interested in this stuff too. i know girls who like playing video games and super hero movies and I wouldn't consider them geeks, and actually one of the biggest geeks i know is a girl, but I'm basing this from my own observations it seems guys are more into this stuff then girls are.

The word geek is a tough one to nail down. Technically, a geek is:

1. a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the head off a live chicken or snake
2. a person often of an intellectual bent who is disliked
3. an enthusiast or expert especially in a technological field or activity

And current usage conforms more closely to:

4. a person who is socially awkward and unpopular : a usually intelligent person who does not fit in with other people
5. a person who is very interested in and knows a lot about a particular field or activity

You'll notice that the current usage results in a definition of "geek" that is relative to the people surrounding the person in question, as well as their knowledge of a subject relative to those around them.

So you might not be considered a "geek among geeks", but I've met a number of guys who like other "typical" guy stuff, like outdoor excursions, sports, etc, but have little to no interest in sci-fi/fantasy movies. Among this crowd, you would probably be considered a bit of a geek, whereas at a geek convention you might not be.

In my book, if you have enough interest in geek-genre entertainment(by that I mean entertainment with a fantastical theme of some kind) to come and engage with a website like this one, you've got a fair amount of geek in you, since your interest (and likely knowledge) of some geek subjects goes beyond the norm.

I must be a geek, because I bite the heads off of live chickens and snakes all the time...

DNArington wrote:I must be a geek, because I bite the heads off of live chickens and snakes all the time...

Dude, that's awesome. Make a video next time you do it and we'll use it as the opening bumper for every Christian Geek Central video... but only if you wear some kind of giant cross necklace or a t-shirt with a christianized rip-off slogan. ("Got Jesus?" if at all possible.)

  

 

I once heard what separates a geek from everyone else is that most people like things, but geeks love that same thing to the nth degree. Most people like Star Wars, but the geek has to love Star Wars to the point he or she wants to know every facet of that universe.

Godfixated wrote:I once heard what separates a geek from everyone else is that most people like things, but geeks love that same thing to the nth degree. Most people like Star Wars, but the geek has to love Star Wars to the point he or she wants to know every facet of that universe.

That's how I see it too. And this conforms with definitions 3 and 5 (and tends to lead to or accompany #4).