“Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!” This renowned statement was coined by, quite possibly, the most famous middle child in the world.  Jan Brady, from the wholesome television show the Brady Bunch, suffered from a severe case of middle child syndrome.  She was never given enough attention from her parents and family, so she decided to whine and complain about being the middle, unloved daughter.  Alas, Jan was not alone in this bunch of Brady’s.  Another middle child, Peter, suffered from middle child syndrome.  However, he was able to pull it together, most of the time at least.  On the other hand, Jan was probably being resented for being the whiny sister, only adding to her despair. 

The case for middle children has been made over time and still, they do not receive the sympathy that they deserve.  Most middle children are forced to work through their situation alone.  Parents do not give them the attention that they so desire.  They are lumped along between the “cute young baby” or the “strong successful elder.” 

Middle children have become famous over the years and their cases have been made mostly through pop culture outlets.  Some have been pitied, while others were loathed.  Ronald Weasley, a famous middle child from Harry Potter, was always insecure about how others felt about him.  He feared that friends would ditch him for the comical twins, Fred and George, or for the cute little sister, Ginny. 

Another popular case was the one of Stephanie Tanner from the cheesy yet beloved show, Full House.  She had her moments of insecurity also, but viewers always knew that all would be forgiven when the sappy music played.  Then they would all hug, how lovely.  She worked through middle child syndrome by coining catch phrases such as: “hot dog!” and “how rude?!”  Although all of these children suffered from middle child syndrome, they all managed to become beloved icons of the pop culture world.