Yesterday a friend came up with an idea that I found very interesting, our generation is somehow substituting religion with subcultures, and our need to belong and to feel a part of something greater than us is what is making all this "emo, gothic, indie, punk, etc" sub-cultures be.
Now, it's not that I agree completelly, but it's some idea worth exploring. It comes to a point in which all this people who strive to be different end up buying their clothes in hot topic , feeling all different and alternative yet being oblivious of the fact that it's one of the largest chain stores in the USA. So their "look at me, I'm different" t-shirt is actually mass produced, and well... you see my point. Hopefully, otherwise maybe you don't deserve to be reading this, so you might aswell go ahead and read this. (this idea is sort of inspired on this strip and something I read on maddox's site).
The thing is, some young guy/gal craving for a sense of identity, all of a sudden just listens to one kind of music, starts dressing in a certain way, and loosing whatever bit of self that he/she once had. And what is even more amusing is that after just a little while they feel they have the entire right to bitch about all of the other groups because theirs is so much better. (ie. goths vs. indies, punks vs. emo's, etc).
The interesting point that my friend, Hector, stated is that all this happens because we as a generation do not have anything worth figthing for, standing for, or having faith about. For some reason all of a sudden a bunch of us felt we were too good for religions and churches, but that need that we have is still there, so we come up with new creeds, sets of values, and senses of pride. Hmmm...
The idea is eluding me... gotta go now.
** cheers
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Well, what can I say? I totally agree with this that you say... in this age I do think it is very hard for most of us youngters to define ourselves in order to have a sense of belonging.
I read that Maddox article... it was very funny, but I just don't feel in the right place to judge a subculture such as "insert name" when I don't have a clue about it. For example, I know a few people that claims to be gothic... and those are one of the most joyful, funny, smiling fellas I have ever met... for real, so I don't think a subculture is defined by the "way of being" of those who are part of it... a sub-culture is as the name states: "a group of believes, traditions and common backgrounds that are held inside of a wider culture"
I think the real problem is that people often mistakes the word "culture" with "nationality"... nationality, by definition, is that sense of belonging to something greater than the self (a spirit that unites a group) and culture is kind of a sub-system of that.
We are all part of a subculture, wheter we like it or not, maybe we don't dressed in black and wear fangs or chains, maybe we don't walk aroung with our trucker hat and our sunglasses in the night.... but I strongly believe that we are all part of something greater than ourselves.
To name a sub-culture, to narrow it to a few ways of being is a crime and prejudice. I think that the world will be a happier place when we can sit in the same table with a gothic/metal/emo/indie/ and have a conversation that goes beyong believes and looks, and more into real connection.
It will be hard though, we people tend to discriminate others and segregate ourselves all the time in the name of that "belonging".
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