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Omar Alayoub

Professor Klepper

English 113A

The Gothic Sub-Tribe

Goth subculture began in England by 1980s and spread to other countries. The culture is contemporary which has made it survive for a long time in comparison to others around the world (Hodkinson 35). The subculture gets its influence from early gothic literature and horror movies. Goths believe in bringing the underlying darkness that exists in people out to the light. People in Goth subculture wears black clothing with black and white make-up, which may be substituted with red or pink. Moreover, they are characterized by punk rock music that is created with mystical lyrics. Most people joining the subculture do so due to societal rejection owing to their behavior that does not fit in a healthy society. These people love dark atmosphere and are not happy or friendly that makes them violent although this is not their ideology, which is to be tolerant. The Goths have stood the test of time.

The fashion adopted by Goths represents something different as compared to other cultures. Many people dress to be cool. The major color of Goths wear is black, which means dark capes, black lace, and velvet, black make-up and other clothing follow this style. They use leather materials that have silver spikes, which is one of the main signs of the Goth. However, Goth clothing is not just about the above representations. It further represents the earlier times like the Medieval, Elizabethans, and Victorian age (Bešić and Margaret 114). There are different believes that Goth found their inspiration from dark, but this is not true as it was also inspired by romanticism brought by Victorian period. All through the Victorian period, fashion was extraordinarily beautiful and inspiring. It composed of long skirts, hats, delicate gloves, boots, corsets, jewelry, and other beautiful styles that inspired the Goths. Goths have adopted the style with some changes like giganticplat formed shoes, stilettos, bold jewelry and most of their clothes are dark. In addition, Goths add mystery and dramatic look to their wear by using red or pink, mostly in clothing and maintain a black and white painting. Goths are in many countries where people have adopted their wear. Young people are the easiest to change, and the streets of many towns are replicating the style.

Goth music takes a different style from the common listened songs. The music listened or created by the Goths has embraced violent characteristic fueled by obscene and harsh language used. The tone and atmosphere in the stage during performance is sad although some fans and followers enjoy it. Reggae, dub, funk, rock, and punk are the greatest specialties of Goths. They talk more about death and, therefore, characterized by dark lyrics and spooky imagery. In the past, gothic music was referred as death rock, with death rockers being the listeners. Gothic music is created using hard guitars that are characteristic of rock music(Mueller 76). This music is different from death metal or heavy metal type, but there are people who confuse it to these types. The named types, therefore, characterize Goth music, and it is freakish to many who watch or listen.

The Goths used a language that is not common to many people. Gothic was listened by Goths and was the earliest language to be recorded as a Germanic language. The language has faded due to lack of interpretation and the elimination of Goths from different countries. On the other hand, there are many youths joining the group from different parts of the world, and it is difficult to teach this language that has difficult characters and alphabets. The Goths, therefore, speak their native languages although the members like learning difficult languages like Arabic. To add on these, there are many languages around the world and different cultures have slag words referring to their members. Goth is not an exception, and there are different slag words they use, like baby bat that refers to those trying to copy or join the group. Goth members are free to practice any language, but most like challenges and this lead to learning complicated idioms.

The ideological perspective of the Goths is different and difficult for general people to understand. One of the things they believe in is individualism. This means that it is difficult for them mingle or support particular political parties or people apart from their members whom they consider as family. They concentrate more on aesthetic and forget about politics and ethics. Secondly, mood for Goths is significant as they like feeling supernatural and horrific (Del Gandio 168-169).. This makes them more dramatic and theatric in nature as compared to other people. Furthermore, Goths do not believe in causing violence, but like tolerance and teach their members to incorporate it in their lifestyle. Therefore, their ideology is identifying, recognizing, and grieving over personal and society evils. These characteristics makes the Goths look different and forms the basis of their ideology.

Movies form part of Goths daily lifestyle. The love of freakish things makes them watch horror shows in a larger way than other people. Since one of their primary ideologies is to be tolerant, they have adopted a heroic character and watching violent materials as funny to them. TV series that are horrific, like the Musters and the Addams Family, created a sound platform where Goths grew, and their work liked. Through these films, many started following this direction creating a significant following. Films such as Aliens by Ridley Scottalso depict the creativity of Goths. The movie has gothic imagery and has a high following. In addition, the horror stories and novels that people read contribute to their character and attitude. Goths are tolerant and go to extraordinary extremes to feel happy. This is through watching, reading, and creating horror material that other people are unable to comprehend.

Goths have existed for a long time and have received a tremendous following globally. They have adopted a horrific lifestyle that makes other people fear them, like skulls and erotic artwork. The people have adopted dark colors in their wear with red and pink as their favorite options. This is inspired from the Victorian period, and not from their dark past, as many people suggest. Goths are believed to be people from a dark past, mostly children mistreated and abandoned by their families and get relief by joining Goth, as they are encouraged to adopt individualism. This makes them unable to fit in a healthy society thereby find themselves welcomed by members of this subculture. The dark lifestyle leads to the creation of music using obscene language. On the other hand, watching horror movies is part of their life as they like adopting supernatural character.

WorksCited

Bešić, Nejra, and Margaret Kerr. "Punks, Goths, And Other Eye-Catching Peer Crowds: Do They Fulfill A Function For Shy Youths?." Journal Of Research On Adolescence (Wiley-Blackwell) 19.1 (2009): 113-121.

Del Gandio, Jason. Rhetoric for Radicals: A handbook for 21st Century Activists. New society publishers: Canada, 2008. Print.

Hodkinson, Paul. Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture. oxford: New York, 2002. print.

Iacob, Ionela Florina. "Rethinking Goth. Identity As Style." Scientific Journal Of Humanistic Studies 2.2 (2010): 13-25.

Mueller, Charles. "Gothicism And English Goth Music: Notes On The Repertoire." Gothic Studies 14.2 (2012): 74-88.