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Ikaros · 01-23-2006, 05:03 AM

Okay, I'm going to ramble. Feel free to skip this =P

Wait for it... trying... trying...
Nope, can't care.

The gamer geek version:
I'm sorry, but I failed my "give a shit" roll.

I honestly don't care what Goth is or isn't. I don't particularly care if I'm Goth or not. I'm as likely to wear plaid as black, as likely to listen to Stan Rogers as Sisters of Mercy. I put less direct effort into my subcultural identification than I do a pot of coffee. Does that make me less of a Goth? Don't know. Does not caring make me MORE of a Goth? Don't care.

The fact that the subculture can be satirized and we all get the joke indicates there's SOMETHING uniquely identifiable about it, but, by it's nature, it's a very amorphous thing. You're talking about a subculture without definable geographic, socio-economic, or even linguistic bounds. Tracking subculture is a sociologists nightmare: by the time it's been defined, it's changed.

Is there a clear dividing line between Goth and, say, Punk? Yeah, sometimes we can point at one and know it's not the other, but where exactly do you draw that line? I don't know how it works in other folks cities, but in both Detroit and Atlanta there was a LOT of "member-sharing" between the cliques. Throw some Rock-a-Billy in there, and good luck sorting it out.

Honestly, when someone stands behind a black velvet podium and preaches about what Goth is or is not, my first question is whether or not they've given the problem any serious thought.

Goth is like anything else involving people: It's messy, complex, at times beautiful, ugly, fascinating or dull, easy to understand if you let it be itself, a bitch to define when you start imposing terms.

Stop trying, and give a steadier set of hands a chance to bollox the job.

In response to an avater (of all things):
I'm still trying to find an Elder who I can convince that Gir is my spirit guide.

01-23-2006, 05:03 AM	#51
Ikaros Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The wood your mother warned you about Posts: 14	Okay, I'm going to ramble. Feel free to skip this =P Wait for it... trying... trying... Nope, can't care. The gamer geek version: I'm sorry, but I failed my "give a shit" roll. I honestly don't care what Goth is or isn't. I don't particularly care if I'm Goth or not. I'm as likely to wear plaid as black, as likely to listen to Stan Rogers as Sisters of Mercy. I put less direct effort into my subcultural identification than I do a pot of coffee. Does that make me less of a Goth? Don't know. Does not caring make me MORE of a Goth? Don't care. The fact that the subculture can be satirized and we all get the joke indicates there's SOMETHING uniquely identifiable about it, but, by it's nature, it's a very amorphous thing. You're talking about a subculture without definable geographic, socio-economic, or even linguistic bounds. Tracking subculture is a sociologists nightmare: by the time it's been defined, it's changed. Is there a clear dividing line between Goth and, say, Punk? Yeah, sometimes we can point at one and know it's not the other, but where exactly do you draw that line? I don't know how it works in other folks cities, but in both Detroit and Atlanta there was a LOT of "member-sharing" between the cliques. Throw some Rock-a-Billy in there, and good luck sorting it out. Honestly, when someone stands behind a black velvet podium and preaches about what Goth is or is not, my first question is whether or not they've given the problem any serious thought. Goth is like anything else involving people: It's messy, complex, at times beautiful, ugly, fascinating or dull, easy to understand if you let it be itself, a bitch to define when you start imposing terms. Stop trying, and give a steadier set of hands a chance to bollox the job. In response to an avater (of all things): I'm still trying to find an Elder who I can convince that Gir is my spirit guide.