A subculture is a group of people in a culture that distinguishes itself from the parent culture that belongs to it, often retaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values ​​on cultural, political and sexual issues. Subcultures are part of the community while keeping their specific characteristics intact. Examples of subcultures include hippies, goths and bikers. The concept of subculture is developed in sociology and culture studies. Subcultures differ from countercultures.
Video Subculture
Definition
While the exact definition varies, the Oxford English Dictionary defines subcultures as "cultural groups in larger cultures, often having different beliefs or interests with larger cultures." In early 1950, David Riesman distinguished between the majority, "who passively accepted commercially-provided styles and meanings, and 'subcultures' actively seeking minority styles... and interpreted them according to subversive values." In his 1979 Subculture: The Meaning of Style , Dick Hebdige argues that subculture is subversive to normal. He writes that subcultures can be considered negative because of their critical nature of the dominant social standards. Hebdige argues that subcultures bring like-minded individuals who feel neglected by social standards and allow them to develop a sense of identity.
In 1995, Sarah Thornton, drawing on Pierre Bourdieu, described the "subculture capital" as cultural knowledge and commodities acquired by subculture members, enhanced their status and helped distinguish themselves from other group members. In 2007, Ken Gelder proposed to distinguish the subculture of countercultures based on the level of immersion in society. Gelder further proposes six major ways in which subcultures can be identified through them:
- often a negative relationship to work (as 'inactive', 'parasitic', while playing or in spare time, etc.);
- a negative or ambivalent relationship with the class (because the subculture is not 'class-aware' and does not fit the traditional class definition);
- associations with territory ('street', 'hood', club, etc.), rather than property;
- moved from home and into non-domestic forms (ie social groups other than families);
- excessive and redundant style (with some exceptions);
- denial of the duality of ordinary life and massification.
Sociologists Gary Alan Fine and Sherryl Kleinman argue that their 1979 study shows that subcultures are a group that serves to motivate potential members to adopt artifacts, behaviors, norms, and group characteristics.
Maps Subculture
History of study
The evolution of subculture studies has three major steps:
1) Subcultures and aberrations - The earliest subculture studies came from the so-called Chicago School, which interpreted it as a form of perversion and delinquency. Starting with what they call Social Disorganization Theory, they claim that subcultures appear on the one hand because some population sectors' lack of socialization with mainstream culture and, on the other hand, because they adopt alternative axiological and normative models. As Robert E. Park, Ernest Burgess and Louis Wirth suggest, through the process of selection and segregation, there arise in the societies of natural areas or moral areas where deviant models are concentrated and inforced; they do not accept the goals or means of action offered by mainstream culture, suggesting a different one in their place - thereby becoming, depending on circumstances, innovators, rebels or retreats (Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin). The subculture, however, is not only the result of alternative action strategies but also the basic labeling process, as Howard S. Becker explains, society defines them as outsiders. As with Cohen's clarification, each subculture style, consisting of image, behavior, and language characterizes its recognition. And the progressive adoption of an individual from the subculture model will equip him with growing status in this context but will often, at the same time, uproot his status in a broader social context beyond where different models apply.
2) Subculture and resistance - In the work of John Clarke, Stuart Hall, Tony Jefferson and Brian Roberts of the Birmingham CCCS (Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies), the subculture is interpreted as a form of resistance. Society is seen as divided into two basic classes, working class and middle class, each with its own class culture, and a dominant middle class culture. Especially in the working class, the subculture grows out of a particular interest and affiliation presence in which cultural models emerge, contrary to their parent culture and mainstream culture. Facing the weakening of class identity, the subculture is a new form of collective identification that expresses what Cohen calls symbolic opposition to mainstream culture and develops imaginary solutions to structural problems. As underlined by Paul Willis and Dick Hebdige, identity and resistance are expressed through the development of distinctive styles which, by rediencing and operating 'bricolage', use cultural industrial goods to communicate and express their own conflict. But the culture industry is often able to reabsorb the components of that style and once again transform it into goods. At the same time, the mass media, as they participate in building subcultures by broadcasting their images, also weaken them by robbing their subversive content or by spreading their stigmatized image.
3) Subcultures and differences - Recent interpretations see subculture as a form of difference. In attempting to overcome the idea of ​​subculture as a form of aberrations or opposition, they describe subcultures as collectivities which, on a cultural level, are quite homogeneous internally and heterogeneously with respect to the outside world to flourish, as Paul Hodkinson points out, consistent peculiarities, identities, commitments and autonomy. Designated by Sarah Thornton as a flavored culture, the subculture was endowed with elastic and porous borders, and incorporated into interaction and intermingling, rather than independence and conflict, with the cultural industry and mass media, as emphasized by Steve Redhead and David Muggleton. The idea of ​​a unique, internally homogeneous, dominant culture is explicitly criticized. Thus the form of individual involvement in the subculture is fluid and gradual, differentiated by the investment of each actor, outside the clear dichotomy. Ideas from different levels of subculture capital (Sarah Thornton) are owned by each individual, from stylish supermarket (Ted Polhemus) and surfing style (Martina BÃÆ'¶se) replacing that of insiders subculture and outsiders - with a subculture perspective of supplying resources for the building of new identities that go beyond strong and lasting identification.
Identifying
The study of subcultures often consists of the study of symbolism attached to clothing, music and other real influences by members of the subculture, as well as the ways in which these same symbols are interpreted by members of dominant cultures. Dick Hebdige writes that members of the subculture often mark their membership through the use of a distinctive and symbolic style, which includes fashion, behavior, and argot.
Subcultures can exist at all levels of the organization, highlighting the fact that there are many cultural or value combinations that are usually proven in one organization that can complement but also compete with the culture of the organization as a whole. In some cases, subcultures have been enacted, and their activities are regulated or restricted. The English youth subculture has been described as a moral issue that must be addressed by the dominant cultural guardians in the postwar consensus.
Relationship with mainstream culture
It may be difficult to identify specific subcultures because their style (especially clothing and music) can be adopted by mass culture for commercial purposes. Businesses often seek to leverage the subculture subculture's charm to search for Cool , which remains valuable in the sale of any product. This process of cultural mastery can often lead to the death or evolution of subcultures, as their members adopt new styles that seem alien to mainstream society.
Music-based subcultures are particularly vulnerable to this process; what subcultures can be regarded at one stage in their history - such as jazz, goth, punk, hip hop and rave culture - may represent the main taste in a short time. Some subcultures reject or modify the importance of style, emphasizing membership through the application of ideologies that may be much more resilient to commercial exploitation. Different (and surprisingly) subculture punk clothing styles were adopted by mass-market fashion companies after the subculture became a media interest. Dick Hebdige argues that punk subculture has the same "radical aesthetic practices" as Dada and Surrealism:
Like 'made ready' Duchamp - manufactured objects that qualify as art because he chose to call it that, the most unremarkable and mediocre stuff - a pin, a plastic nail, a television component, a razor blade, a tampon - can be brought within the province of punk (un) mode... Object borrowed from the dirtiest context finds a place in the punk ensemble; The toilet chains are attached to a graceful arc across the crates in a plastic trash can. Security pins are taken from their domestic 'utility' context and subjected as horrible ornaments through the cheeks, ears or lips... pieces of school uniform (white bri-nylon shirts, school ties) are symbolically destroyed (shirts covered in graffiti, or blood false bonds are left open) and juxtaposed with a surprisingly pink skin channel or superior pink mohair.
City tribe
In 1985, the French sociologist Michel Maffesoli coined the term urban tribe. This was used extensively after the publication of his book: le dÃÆ' Â © clin de l'individualism dans les sociÃÆ'Â © tÃÆ'Â © s postmodernes (1988). Eight years later, the book is published in the UK as The Time of the Tribes: The Decline of Individualism in Mass Society.
According to Maffesoli, urban tribes are a micro group of people who share common interests in urban areas. Members of this relatively small group tend to have the same world view, dress style and behavioral patterns. Their social interactions are largely informal and emotional, distinct from the corporate bourgeois culture of late capitalism, based on impartial logic. Maffesoli claims that punk is a typical example of "urban tribes".
Five years after the first English translation of Le Temps des Tribus, Ethan Watters claims to have created the same neologism in the New York Times Magazine article. This is then extended to the ideas in his book
Sexual
The sexual revolution of the 1960s led to counter-cultural denials of established sexual and gender norms, particularly in the urban areas of Europe, North and South America, Australia and South Africa. A more permissive social environment in this area leads to the proliferation of sexual subcultures - the expression of non-normative sexuality cultures. Like other subcultures, sexual subcultures adopt certain styles and modes to distinguish them from the mainstream.
Homosexuals express themselves through gay culture, considered the largest sexual subculture of the 20th century. With the increasing acceptance of homosexuality in the early 21st century, including expression in fashion, music, and design, gay culture can no longer be considered a subculture in many parts of the world, although some aspects of gay culture such as leather, bears and feeders are considered subcultures in the gay movement itself. The identity and role of butch and femme among some lesbians also gave birth to their own subculture with stereotypical clothing, such as drag kings. The development of the late 1980s, strange movements can be considered a broad subculture that includes people who reject normativity in sexual behavior, and who celebrate visibility and activism. The wider movement coincides with the growing academic interest in queer studies and odd theories. The aspects of sexual subculture may vary along other cultural paths. For example, in the United States, the term down-low is used to refer to African-American men who do not identify themselves with gay or strange cultures, but who practice gay cruising, and adopt certain hip-hop clothing during this activity.
Social media
In a 2011 study, Brady Robards and Andy Bennett said that the expression of online identity has been interpreted as demonstrating the quality of subcultures. However, they argue it is more in line with neotribalism than what is often classified as a subculture. Social networking sites are quickly becoming the most widely used form of communication and the means to disseminate information and news. They offer a way for people with the same background, lifestyle, profession or hobby to connect. According to a co-founder and executive creative strategy for RE-UP, as technology becomes a "life force", subculture becomes the main bone of contention for brands as networks are increasing through mash-ups and cultural phenomena. Where social media is concerned, there seems to be a growing interest among media producers to use subcultures for branding. It looks most active on social networking sites with user-generated content, such as YouTube.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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