British Youth Subcultures
Introduction
Individuals in Britain today, specifically the younger generation, can more and more often be seen as being part of one of number of different groups which have become prominent over the last few years and are quite similar to the Mods & Rockers of the 70's. The different groups wear similar clothes to show to which group their loyalty belongs to. This article is not intended to be entirely serious by the way.
The different groups are differentiated by behaviour, clothing, hairstyles, musical tastes and, sometimes by the way they speak. If people are termed as being part of one of these groups they may take offense and say you shouldn't stereotype people, but then why do they purposely mould themselves into a perfect representation of the stereotype? The answer can be linked with sociological sub-cultural theories which attempt to ascertain the purpose(s) behind such sub-cultures. People have their reasons for forming sub-cultures sure, but in the end I strongly believe in forming one's own ideas and style first, then only adopting other people's ideas and ways if you truly agree with them; not just to be "cool". Conflicts of people's opinions are not destructive, it is natural and evidence that you are an individual and not an extension or product of someone else (providing the opinion is on something to which there isn't one "correct" answer - so gang warfare would never be a good thing no matter how many think it is).
I'll agree that it's hard to ascertain whether someone just happens to fit the stereotype, or whether they intentionally have adopted the group mentality and its associated traditions / lifestyle. I am not against people with common interests identifying with one another, I am against people desperately searching for other people's approval and trying to be "in with the crowd" for the sake of "acceptance" or "belonging".
Anyway, I will now try to identify some of the more common stereotypical definitions of the groups that can be seen in Britain today, and other terms which are associated with these sub-cultures. At the time of writing these terms were very common, though I expect they will evolve or become obsolete over time.
The Stereotypes
Chavs (also: Townies, Scallies, Charvers, Dings, Scunners)
The first group is the chavs, a word which was added to mainstream dictionaries in 2005. Chavs vary across the land, but generally have the same generally unifying characteristics. In terms of spotting them by appearance, they wear brightly coloured sports clothing, mainly yellow, sky blue and white. Brands worn include Adidas, Reebok, Nike, Kappa etc. The boys wear peaked (usually fake Burberry) caps, moved back so they peak upwards at a ridiculous angle. Shellsuits or tracksuits with trainers are the norm. For some reason they often tuck their trousers into their socks. Hairstyles are usually short, often with grease. Females wear nearly the same; tracksuits, bright colours, alongside a massive amount of facial makeup to look "grown up", and will have poorly dyed blonde hair with split ends and two inch long roots, gelled back into an impossibly tight bun/ponytail held by a fake Burberry hair-tie. Big dangly hoopy earings are quite common. The girls are heavily associalted with teenage pregnancies.
Moving onto how they act and what they are like, chavs are usually seen as being of the low intellegence range. They always seem to manage to fit the word "fucking" into every sentence. They are ill mannered and irritating, this caused by their thick, nasal accents and their need to offend everyone who is not one of them. Thankfully, although they may think they are, they are NOT "hard", and can be defeated with a swift blow to the face. Their behaviour is yoblike and they have an obsession with thinking that they are "hard". They hang around in packs of about 10 and are found near fast food services, off-licences and parks. They often shout at passers-by and mock people for no apparent reason, making them look yet more stupid. 99% of people who are not chavs themselves find them to be disgraceful and disgusting creatures. Of all the groups I shall cover, people of this ilk are deserving of the least respect and most hatred due to their destructive, ignorant and anti-social behaviour patterns. Note that it is this behaviour which ultimately defines a chav, not the clothing, but those who wear chav clothing can often be quite accurately be predicted to have "chavvish" behaviour..
Of course, the above is the extreme stereotype and there are varying degrees of "chaviness". Really though, I hate the majority of those that fit the term. They are a plague of parasites. A peasant underclass spawned from poor parenting and corrputed inner-city lifestyles combined with an ever-forgiving welfare state which sustains them whilst they contribute nothing to society. These people need a severe reality-check, and if they can't change then they must not be simply allowed to continue with their demoralizing effect their behaviour has on other people, and the bad attitudes they have. Note that Chav does not equate to "working class", nor is it a superficially based category. As I said before, it's about the behaviour and the bad attitude. The clothing and background are often connected, but aren't the defining characteristics.
Greebos (also: Moshers, Rockers, Grungers)
A listener of rock, metal, hardcore, maybe punk. Some may call them the "opposite" of chavs. They wear hoodies with the names of various metal bands plastered across them. They claim they are alternative and that they are individuals, unlike chavs, but rather, are just as conforming. Huge groups of greebos and their various sub-groups have emerged and they all wear the same things and listen to the same music, just like townies do. Generally they have long hair which is kept in a messy state, and wear very baggy skater trousers which are many sizes too large so they end up trailing on the floor or under their shoes. Chains hanging from their trousers and dyed hair (often red or black) are other things to identify a greebo. Greebos are a prime example of consumer society produce. Manufacturers quickly caught sight of the trend and created a "look" and "sound" for a whole generation. The youngsters quickly fell for it and thought it to be a great way to look anti-establishment, when it was anything but. They were turned into walking posters for a great number of bands, most of which are very poor (at least in my opinion). The youth have practically had their musical tastes allocated for them! Apart from their misguided tastes though, they are not usually bad people. They can be of any intellegence range and have various interests, only their music taste and fashion sense unites them. You rarely see them continuing their "greeboness" into adulthood though. Again, this is a stereotype and people may fit the definition to varying degrees.
Sk8ers
Not to be confused with a "skater" which is simply someone who skates, "sk8ers" are stupid kids who think they are punks and insist that pop music sucks, but that Good Charlotte are the best band in the world, even though Good Charlotte are blatantly pop. They also like to think they can skate but usually this just involves owning a skateboard and falling off it after 30 seconds of trying.. yet, as the name suggests, they continue to be infactuated with all forms of skating. Skateboards, Rollerblades and those annoying fold-up Scooters. The skaters are a big chunk of younger generations today, they are everywhere!! They also write in their own language, which is a very incoherent form of english. Examples include "u sk8? das gay if u don sk8." They tend to be between 10-15, then start to grow out of it. They have a slightly less grungy fashion style compared to greebos. They still wear baggy trousers and hoodies, but they tend to be slightly more colourful. They generally listen to pop-punk, nu-metal and ska.
Goths
A member of the Gothic subculture; in the late 1970's, the media declared Bauhaus and Siouxsie, and the Banshees to have a "gothic" sound, after Gothic literature. Gothic literature was, incidentally, named after Gothic architecture. The original goths from the late 70's had a sardonic sense of humour above all else. They often wore dark clothing, as goth was an offshoot of punk. In the early 80's, Second Wave Goth began with bands like the Sisters of Mercy. This is possibly when goth acquired the reputation of being more sullen. At some unknown date, Goth sub-culture began degenerating. It was rather like cancer, wherein there was part of the sub-culture still functioning and alive, but more and more of it was becoming sick and dying. Though some bands with a gothic sound still exist, a new name for the genre is sorely in need of creation.
Now mass marketing has decided to reshape the subculture to cater to a very lucrative demographic: rebellious teenagers of middle to upper-class families. They are those who dress all-black, have black died hair, and do not have many friends (according to the stereotype). They are associated with being manic depressives, obsessed with death and living in shadow. Goths today most likely don't like actual Goth music, but rather a follower of bands such as Marilyn Manson, Tool, Korn, Slipnot, etc. Generally, bands like these were part of the reason why "goths" kept seeming whinier and whinier. It's difficult to tell from appearance alone whether a "goth" is one deserving of respect, or not. Those who do it for attention or to be "part of the crowd (of goths)" need to wake up and realise their pathetic behaviour. Those who simply like the colour black, who are actual purveyors of the true goth culture or who do it to identify themselves as an individual (even though it's been taken over by masses of "goth-wannabes"); all the best to them.
Punks
Original Meanings:
1. A style of (rock) music built upon the ideals of "punk"; individuality, equality, and condemnation of the system.
Often loud and offensive.
2. An attitude, a way of life, emphasising on individuality and equality. It ain't about mohawks and wearing spikes, it's
about being yourself and not some second-rate version of someone else. Its about living up to the ideals of the punk attitude.
Blink182 = NOT PUNK : See "Sellout".
A lot of music today is labelled "Punk", but it isn't. Most of these so called Punk bands such as Blink182 and Sum41 are just loud repetitive chords and drumbeats with a vocalist who can't sing OR rap. Punks are generally associated with the spiky hair, black leather, chains and many piercings, but as above, it is just about being yourself. You don't have to be wild, loud or provocatively dressed. Simply really.
Geeks / Nerds
The term "geek" originally referred to the carnival performers whose act consisted of biting the heads off chickens and eating glass. The word now refers to one who has considerable knowledge of an obscure / non-mainstream subject, usually computer related, but includes fantasy, sci-fi and imaginative pursuits like stories and movies. A computer geek is one who spends a great deal of time on a computer and consequentially is extremely good with them, but probably uses them a lot for games or chatting. The activities they pursue are intellectual rather than physical and they are usually highly intellegent. It can be used as an insult by those of lower intellegence or those who do nothing with their lives, but geeks are those who usually accomplish and achieve things. There isn't a particular fashion sense or musical taste associated with geeks.
A "nerd" is also a person with high intellegence, but usually have a heavily depleted set of social skills, whereas geeks can be very sociable. Extreme stereotypes see them as socially inept, visually impaired and obsessive and depict them wearing shirts tucked into their trousers, smart trousers pulled up too high, and braces. They are less specialized than geeks, and are also more arrogant and petty. They have above-average intellegence and this leads them to believe they are superior and try to show off their status as an intellectually superior being. They are more scientific and mathematical, whereas geeks are more science-fiction and innovative. When a geek is playing games online with friends, a nerd is trying to configure his operating system for maximum efficiency.
The distinction between nerds and geeks has always been blurred and this is just my take on it. The two crossover quite a lot and are often used interchangably, but the overall traits are pretty universal.
Jocks
The term Jock is US slang for the thick-but-amiable types that always do well socially and seek to excel physically rather than intellectually (the true opposite of geeks and nerds). The equivalent is not as prominent in the UK, roughly equivocating with those who love football and girls and nothing else. Most of them are ignorant and arrogant bastards who think that the world would blow itself up in mourning if they were to die. They have very competitive attitudes. Also, they tend to lie for each other to keep their noses clean. They usually end up bagging groceries and flipping hamburgers twenty years later or, if lucky, selling used cars.
Drinking Culture
For a large proportion of the population, getting drunk is seen as a "fun thing to do" every other day, when in fact it's a pathetic attempt to compensate for poor personality, to escape reality, or to prove something. I myself was like that for a while until I realized it was stupid, a waste of time and a waste of money. Getting drunk so often I shall leave to the weak minded masses. I do see that the limitations and marginalizations placed upon people is partly to blame, but it's about time they stood up and took notice. The defence of "it is fun" is admittance that they let their emotions control them rather than vice-versa, and this still does not explain why they can't do something better with their time. If it is to "escape reality" then it is admittance that their life is terrible, and they lack the mental capabilities to correct it. The occasional alcoholic drink is one of life's simple pleasures, but getting totally drunk is destruction of the mind.
Most of these "ordinary" people have no conception of intellectual conversation, limited to talking about what they did at the weekend, television, drinking, sex, local gossip and other such monotonous topics. They're mindlessly tied into the dull every day life and they accept life as thus. They don't challenge their situations or question themselves and their activities, and so will continue to be zombified numbskulls. What's "cool" (and what is not) is predefined by some magical all-powerful influence and they all follow these like scientific facts. Unfortunately drinking yourself to death is one of the "cool" things these days.
Summary
To summarize, stereotyping people into neat little groups has become fairly easy. The groups discussed here are the main stereotypes which exist for the younger generations. I have neglected to put anything about what "normal" is because it is non-existent. There is no "standard person" who has a perfect balace of all aspects of personality and interests. Everyone is different, but some tend to be pidgeon-holed into one of the above groups more easily than others, and many fit the stereotype perfectly. You can define stereotypes, but you cannot define what is "normal".
It's funny to see the ridiculous acts of conformity seen within this society. People are ruled by trends, traditions, mysticism and the media. The majority of young people are uninteresting and simply make themselves "fit the blueprint" of socially defined behavioural patterns. There's fighting over who is alternative and who is a chav, but in the end it's all just pathetic. If you listen to dance music, you shouldn't be immediately labelled a chav, and if you like heavy metal, you shouldn't be called a mosher. You are what you are, as long as you are yourself, it doesn't matter. The only reason we have these stereotypes is because people mould themselves into their exact definitions like they have no minds of their own. Individuality is being lost to gang mentality which is pretty sad.
Although I do not like to be classified as being part of one of these groups I would say I most identify with being a "geek". I am interested in intellectual activities rather than physical ones. I like doing stuff with my girlfriend and other friends and I just do what I enjoy, which happen to be things which might be considered "geeky". I don't care. I am what I am and I like it that way. I am an individual no matter what anyone says. Others aren't quite as good at denying the consensus and blindly follow what other people do and surrender to the will of the majority. I feel sorry for those people. Everyone should be able to do what they enjoy (assuming it isn't destructive) without being looked at as being one of the above, but people should first realize they are an individual, and distinguish themselves as a person, creating their own identity. If the result is one of the above stereotypes then fair enough, but unfortunately you'll may be seen as just another sheepling.
