Hipsters - Origin, Characteristic Features, and How Sociology Treats Them - Research Paper Example

Hipsters If one takes a close look at the society, one can not help noticing that it should be regarded as an irreplaceable prerequisite for the development of the inner potential of a human being. Indeed, the social environment reinforces the desired behavior through the framework of conventional values that are being promotes. However, it often happens that within the dominant culture there are numerous subcultures that attract people who adhere to other values and are willing to live their lives according to different guidelines. The contemporary American society features a considerable number of such subcultures. This paper will analyze one of them, namely hipsters, exploring the origin of them, characteristic features, the way it is misrepresented in the society and how sociology treat them. To begin with, it may be rather beneficial to explore the development of hipsters. One of the most surprising points that should be articulates is that there are at least two separate hipster subcultures that have existed in the American society. Originally, hipsters were the people who were associated with the jazz culture. They were primarily white males who wanted to pursue the lives of jazz musicians rejecting the conventional norms. What is really important is that the very name hipster is derived from hip (a person who knows about the peculiarities of jazz culture) and a suffix ster (as in gangster – a member of a gang). To one might suggest that this exclusiveness was latter projected onto the modern hipsters; however, it lost its original connection with jazz. It is largely thought that the emergence of hipsters has been witnessed in the end of the previous century and in the beginning of the current one. There was no single event that triggered desire of certain individual to become hipsters: it was the American society in general, focused on consumerism pop culture that made other people reject the mainstream. While it at first it was only few people who wanted to be different, latter the technological advancement as well as economic development provided people with a chance to live their lives independently without relying on the society. In other words, the present day provides perfect conditions for hipsters since they are able to live to their own please without giving anything in exchange. Now, one may focus on the message that is sent by hipsters. Every subculture exists around a certain idea that the representatives of it promote. For example, the metalheads call for masculinity, while hippies call for peace. Hipsters send their message as well. They show that it is particularly important to reject the conventional values since their limit one’s one creativity and explore one’s true identity even if it may be manifested in things that the majority does not find interesting. In other words, the core of the hipster movement is to reject the mainstream. However, there is a cruel irony: at a certain point rejecting mainstream has become mainstream itself and created a paradox. In other words, “hipsterism fetishizes the authentic and regurgitates it with a winking inauthenticity” (Lorentzen). Indeed, while hipsters never identify themselves as such, they all dress or behave the same, claiming that that is their own individual style. It may be rather difficult to evaluate if the subculture of hipsters is or is not misrepresented in the society since “the definition of "hipster" remains opaque to anyone outside this self-proclaiming, highly-selective circle” (Plevin). This means there is no specific dialogue between the mainstream society and the representative as there is no standardized approach toward defining who is hipster. Nevertheless, one might suggest that there are several misconceptions about hipsters. The latter are often called lazy and unworthy citizens who are focused on themselves. While this may be so at first sight, it is important to understand that the laziness should not be confused with the deliberate choice not to participate in the mainstream activities. In addition to that, many hipsters are extremely creative, but their creativity is not valued by the society since it is beyond the conventional framework. Speaking of the reasons why being a hipster became so mainstream, one might need to focus on the historical events that preceded the end of the previous century. Thus, the world witnessed the Cold War and saw how the communistic USSR lost it: the United States of America became the only super power in the world. The economy was booming, the American culture was spread across the continents. As a result, the world was more and more affected by the American way of life. This resulted in the way that ordinary Americans felt deprived of their self identification: if the entire world is American, who will they be? So, they launched a protest against mainstream as an effort to define themselves. The outcomes of the subculture in question can be easily identify: there is a large group of people emerged who reject the conventional values and contribute to the development of the independent brands, bands and other groups of people. In other words, while in the previous times the market was dominated by a handful of famous companies, nowadays there is a type of consumers who deliberately choose the products that are produced by less famous companies, allowing the latter to stay afloat. The sociologists argue that the society has taken “as folk hero the hipster” (Brake 91). This is quite understandable: the group which claimed to be against mainstream became mainstream because the society was fed up with the conventional values and prosperity. It is must be noted that hipsters do not seek to destroy the well being of the people: they advocate a change in some significant aspects. For example, this subculture rejects the need to book food in big supermarkets not because people should starve to death, but because buying such food is not healthy for one’s health as it is full of various additives; contrary to that they urge people to eat organic food that is guaranteed to be free of any pesticides. In other words, hipsters offer alternative paths to the development. Finally, it may be rather interesting to see if the movement of hipsters has been accepted in other countries. With the help of social media the youth all over the world learned about their counterparts in the United States and tried to imitate them. Nevertheless, it must be noted that hipsters in other countries often failed to copy the content of the movement: they were satisfied with the form only. In other words, one should note that the American hipsters are unique since they not only were able to come up with an extraordinary exterior, but also developed some sort of a philosophy that justifies their behavior which is sometimes considered to be strange. Having examined all the points that were mentioned in the paragraphs above, one is able to come to the following conclusion: the subculture of hipsters is a rather interesting one. First of all, it is indirectly connected with a subculture of a similar name that existed many decades ago. Secondly, the emergence of it is conditioned by the success of the American society and the latter gradually developed a culture that appreciated the rejection of mainstream. Another point that should be mentioned is that the contemporary society often misinterprets the nature of hipsters: they are seen as lazy and unworthy while in reality they are quite the opposite, but people are not able to evaluate them properly because the latter are beyond the traditional measures that are accepted in the society. Works Cited Brake, Mike. The Sociology of Youth Culture and Youth Subcultures: Sex and Drugs and Rock n Roll? London: Routledge, 2013. Print. Lorentzen, Christian. "Why the Hipster Must Die." Time Out New York. 30 May 2007. Web. 17 June 2015. . Plevin, Julia. "Whos a Hipster?" The Huffington Post. 8 Sept. 2008. Web. 17 June 2015. . Read More