Looking Goth

Okay, so there are probably some Goths somewhere that have been told that they don't look Goth because they don't have pale skin, black hair, black eyes, black clothes, a black heart, black blood, a black brain, a black kidney, a black soul . . . . Or maybe I'm alone in this. Somehow, though, I doubt that. No, really, I do.

Back when I was still going to SPHS (which was just last year--as in 2011, not the eighth grade), I sat in the very back in my English 1 class, next to another boy. He and I had gotten along okay for the past few days, but people had finally started to notice that I wore at least two things that were black every day. This boy heard some certain rumors, but he wanted to ask me personally, I suppose.

"Are you Goth?"

"Yeah."

"You don't look Goth. Do the other Goths call you 'Goth'?"

"Some probably wouldn't, but I think most would."

"So you cut yourself a lot?"

"No, emos are more prone to do that, actually." (NOTE:  I am not saying that Goths can't.)

"I didn't know there was a difference."

Well, that was the conversation, basically. We talked a few times after that (I know, I wasn't accused of murdering a toddler! *GASP*), but he never asked what Goth was, and I never really bothered to explain it to him. I didn't think that there was too much that I would be able to do that would convince him otherwise that I am a Goth, even though I don't cut myself and have black hair.

There was another instance where a kind girl in the twelfth grade told me that she was pretty darn sure that if I was really a Goth, I would wear nothing but black, have black hair--well, have the list that I made in the first paragraph of this post. I did try to explain it to her, but she just nodded in that way when you know people aren't really listening to what you have to say. I gave up on trying to convince her and left her believing that I was a wannabe.

Now. I'm sure that really everyone has been told that they're not a Goth for some reason or another, but at this time, I'm focusing on the reason being because we don't look it, not because we're not depressed and don't write horrible poetry and practice self-harm. Sometime or another, though, I probably will get to the other side of being told that we Goths aren't really Goths.

If I had to guess, I think that the Ice Goths would probably be the most recognizable targets for these types of accusations, and then maybe Ghost Goths, then Casual Goths, and then Perky Goths (please keep in mind that there is a vast number of "types" of Goths, many of which are different from the next and I don't know all of them). The Ice and Ghost Goths wear a lot of white, we Casual Goths wear simple clothing, and Perky Goths wear a lot of pink and purple. I don't think there's much wrong with any of that, but . . . .

There are people in the world who don't agree with me (*cough*logic*cough*), both in and out of our lovely subculture. If I had to guess--and it's hard for me to say anything about this with confidence, because Perseus and I are the only Goths in this part of Mississippi that I know of--I would say that you're more likely to be told that you're not Goth by someone who has no idea what in the world Goth really is, rather than be told the same thing by a black-clad forty-year-old elitist (like I said, I'm not saying that it doesn't happen). So when the redneck in Wal-Mart tells you that you aren't a Goth because you're not crying, maybe you should just ignore him.

Or, better yet, tell him to leave you alone in a very threatening way.

On the other hand, if you're being told that you're not a "real Goth" by someone who was in the first generation, then it might hurt your pride a bit. You could choose to ignore them, or you could try to explain to them that you love Bauhaus and The Sisters of Mercy and all of those olden bands--your call. It might not be a wonderful idea to name any of the newest bands, since a lot of older Goths are moaning that the scene is dead.

I, for one, am not about to go out and buy corsets and stockings just because I have been told that I don't look Goth, and I hope that anyone who is reading this doesn't do it just because someone told them that they don't look Goth. If you're doing it for that . . . maybe this subculture isn't for you.

The Importance

There are three main different things that generally makes up a Goth:  the music, the fashion, and the (general) mindset.

However, there's been a lot of debate on which is the most important, and from what I've seen, music usually wins. The winner is understandable, really, since there probably wouldn't be a necessarily Goth subculture without it (all though it is possible that we all would have stuck with something else). There seem to be quite a bit of Goths across the Internet who prefer the dark fashion, despite the fact that many people believe that one needs to love the music to be considered Goth. Then again, without this particular fashion, we wouldn't be able to see who's who, now, would we? Besides that, it makes us different from the rest of the world when we dress how we want to dress.

So, what's more important:  music or fashion? Ultimately, there's no correct answer for that question. You'll have to find out for yourself. If you prefer the music, then that's more important, and if you prefer the fashion, then that is. Those of us in the subculture who have half a brain won't belittle you for your choice. However, I must go ahead and say that you should do the fashion and listen to the music. My favorite bands of post-punk and related subgenres are probably The Cruxshadows, Apoptygma Berzerk, The Birthday Massacre, and Emilie Autumn. First, though, you should probably check out the original bands before anything:

• The Cure
• Siouxsie Sioux and the Banshees
• Joy Division
• Bauhaus

Finally, though, here's my thoughts on which is "more important":

Neither. I vote for the (general) mindset. Without it, there would be no Goth music, nor would there by any Goth fashion styles, NOR would there by any Goths. See? I have a point, dang it!

What's "Goth"?

It wasn't that long ago when I was searching for the exact same answer. Thankfully, I finally found it, and now I know what I have gotten myself into (and love it). Therefore, I think that this little blog has gone on long enough without me explaining myself to the Internet world.

Since just about the dawn of civilization (I'm sure), there have always been people who, for the most part, are strange. These weirdos like different things from you; they're not scared of what you're scared of; they aren't attracted to what you're attracted to . . . . All in all, they're just plain weird. Despite a person's view of them, however, they do make up a large portion of the world, with their capes and make-up and corsets and shit-load of black clothing. Ah yes. Those people. So where did those people come from? Are they spawns from demons? Maybe even Satan himself? Probably.

Heh. I'm just kidding.

Throughout the years, however, there really have been people who think differently from others. The ones that I am talking about like deep and dark things. They have a much more artistic side than others do. They want answers. And they like black. But never ever before had there been an actual culture for these "lost souls" to identify with . . . until the late 70s/early 80s.

Around the 70s, there was the Punk subculture. But then some followers from that music genre sort of dispersed. Bands started forming a "new music genre" (my words, no one elses; correct me if I'm wrong, by all means), and the four bands, The Cure, Bauhaus, Siouxie and the Banshees, and Joy Division, became the original Goth music groups.

This music that we all know and love usually has very dark lyrics and sounds (you know Emilie Autumn? Like that. By the way, Emilie Autumn's status is kind of hard to identify, because she's always changing her style. That doesn't mean that we don't love her, though) that "connect" with the fans. Our fashion, as I'm sure everyone knows, contains mostly black. However, like I have said before, there are many different "types" out there. Which, by the way, means that we don't all dress the same . . . regardless of what the South Park goth kids believe (by the way, I love those brats! Especially the little one). And our "mindset"? Perhaps it's made up of things that others find morbid and dodgy (I suppose the biggest example I can think of is death. However, that is not me saying that we're all obsessed with death, just that its an example. Nothing more).

Lady Amarath, Goth model
Source:  Lady Aramath's website

People in the scene argue a lot over which is more important:  the fashion, the music, or the common "worldview". However, I believe that that subject is good enough to have its very own post . . . perhaps I'll do it next.

I'm not very satisfied with this post, to be honest, because I know that if I didn't already know what Goth is, then I wouldn't know what I'm talking about. So let me try to recap:

A Goth person is one who follows the music (which is usually dark), dresses the fashion (mostly black, but lots of other colors too, which include other dark colors, and some bright), and has the overall common beliefs (like dark things are better).

Hey . . . I think that summary was better than the post itself. Man, I'm horrible. I guess I should give myself a break, because I was still unsure with myself when I first read about the subculture. Ah well.

Again, tell me if I screwed anything up or whatever.