The other night a friend of mine was complaining about popular people. He essentially upheld the stereotypes of all circa 1980s-2000s teenage movies (their tyranny must be overthrown, they are all souless clones, etc...) while delving deeper to ask "Why them? Why are their opinions and tastes more acceptable to society than other people's?" But the truth is, neither of those statements is true. So get out your crazy clothes, start learning elvish, get a mohawk, or strap on that pocket protector, and I will explain to you how society works.
Let's look at the bigger picture:
Ever since...well, a long time ago there has always been a culture and a counter culture. The 50's had jocks and greasers, the 60s had more preppy jocks and hippies, the 70s were essentially the same except everyone did drugs, the 80s had yuppies and punks, etc. etc. Though at first these counter culture groups were feared and disrespected, they actually gained more respect and influence in the long run compared to their mainstream opposition. Let's look at hippies for example: My dad was raised hardcore conservative in the 50s/60s, so it is a given that he hates hippies. He was raised to see all of the more negative images associated with them, such as rampant drug use and lack of cleanliness, and he was not alone. Many people of that generation did not accept the hippy culture, which what made it so radical at the time. Now however, hippies are cool. Kids dress up as them for halloween, bell bottoms are back in (to stay!), tye dying T-shirts is a popular activity, and 60's music is one of the most popular genres. Most people nowadays recodnize that- despite the darker side of hippiedom- hippies did do alot to better our society, and make it more free and accepting.
How did hippies go from being ruled out to respected in the short run aswell? (By the seventies, many originally hippie-introduced concepts and fashions had become perfectly acceptable) The truth is, conservatism is boring, even for conservatives. So, very slowly at first but then at a far more rapid pace, counter culture ascends to culture. We see this happenning all the time. A perfect example of this is what's happenning in the music industry as we speak. Who was popular ten years ago? Backstreet Boys, N'Sync, and Britany Spears. Sure, classic pop artists exist and are still being signed, but who's getting the radio play now? Green Day, Simple Plan, and My Chemical Romance. Several years ago, those groups would have had far less publicity than they recieve today. (yes, Green Day was around and well several years ago, but they've definitley changed their look to fit the mold) Ten years ago, if someone turned on TRL, they would have been shocked to see a 'hardcore punk' band, something that was considered counter culture at the time, but now MTV is even getting out its studded collars and tattoos during prime time. Hot Topic went from being "the scary store with iron gates for doors" to "hey, let's go in and check out the t shirts!" (though perhaps that's more a product of age than trend) oh, and here's a juicy facy for ya: Hot Topic is owned by the GAP.
But if counterculture eventually becomes culture, where does the counterculture vibe go? This is where the water gets muddied, and the poser is born. Because counterculture wants to hold on to their rebellious and sometimes even presumptious attitude, any one less 'hard core' than they are, or who attempts to imitate their lifestyle for any reason, is quickly labelled a poser. One must keep in mind that whether or not some one or something is a poser is completley up to perspective. Some of my friends, for example, are really into My Chemical Romance, Simple Plan, Hawethorne Heights, etc. Though these bands are by no means bad, they are quickly becoming a dime a dozen. I have a tendency to refer to them as 'poser bands' because though they appear to be edgy and 'hardcore', most of their songs (from what I've heard) are about relatively light material, and follow the same pattern of most temporarily popular bands these days. (the "I'm a bad ass and don't care what you think" song, the "omg rebel girls are so hot" song, etc. etc.) The father of all these groups of course, is Good Charlotte. They were really cool when they first came out, but were then quickly labelled the ultimate in poser punk.
So getting back to the highschool scene...Things are definitley not as they used to be, or at least as they were portrayed in movies and television. Though every highschool is different, there are no 'popular people vs losers', at least in the traditional sense. Though some people may have more friends than others, it is rare to see someone truly wishing to 'climb the social ladder.' (Then again, perhaps I was just spoiled with an exceptional Highschool/Jr. Highschool experience) The people that end up being labelled as 'popular' are usually just conservative, while those who take it upon themselves to be 'outcasts' are those that follow the counter-cultural trend of the day, even though they have just as many friends. It's not that one side is more advatageous than the other, they are simply different. While the conservative, 'popular' people may think to themselves "Yay! Look at us, we're so popular!" the counter-cultural 'outcasts' think "Ew! Who wants to be a stupid popular person? We're so much cooler!" Both sides remain perfectly content and happy with their self-percieved spot on the social spectrum.
While the older stereotype is losing its steam,(pops on top, dorks on bottom) we can see how the bigger picture plays into all this. Nerds and losers have been on the counter-cultural backburner for ages, so it is only fitting that they too have their day in the sun. What was one of the most popular films last year? Napolean Dynamite. Another one? Lord of the Rings. There are tons of t-shirts advocating classic nintendo games and other nerdy past times, along with "Talk Nerdy To Me" and "I [heart] Nerds." Yes my tetris loving friends, my friend could not have been more wrong, your day has come!
But there's one more question: "Why are 'popular' (conservative) opinions automatically more acceptable to society than counter-cultural ones?" Well the truth is, they aren't, it all depends which side of the spectrum you're on. Imagine a J. Crew model and a dedicated Marilyn Manson fan both giving each other wierd looks as they walk past each other. If you want to apply for a job as an accountant, wear a conservative style suit. If you want to join a rock group, dress as radically as possible. I understand that that's based on a lot of stereotyping, and I wish that wasn't the case, but it's pretty much true.
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6 comments:
You:
"it is rare to see someone truly wishing to 'climb the social ladder."
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You just haven't noticed it; you have your own enclave of friends, and you don't care to observe the behaviors of people, really. If you spent a little more time among those with whom you're not well acquainted (suppose you were to hang out in the upper foyer a bit), you'd see that attempts at high school social mobility are made constantly. I'm a lost cause, but I see and hear of people every day who do things in order to get attention from the "popular" people.
As usual, what's the point of the post? Care to make a prediction as to the next type of counterculture that will be accepted.
Conservatism is neither boring nor struggling. The fact that as many people smoke pot as in the 60s has nothing to do with the "downfall of conservatism" you so desperately want. If anything, it's proof of the instability and shallowness of "counterculture."
Yes, in the upper foyer conservative popular people do try to climb the ladder, but they're already on the 'popular' side of the line. people in the library or computer lab don't. My point is, no one is trying to cross over the line.
The point of my post is that this is my blog and I can do whatever the fuck I want with it. What was the point of your mall post? Why not suggest nicer clothes for people to wear? Again, if you don't like it you don't have to read it.
I never said conservatism was on a downfall, im just saying that in the end counterculture will eventually become accepted as culture. Conservatism doesn't dissapear, it just has to share the social lime light.
Amen to the 'whatever the fuck I want' thing. What's the point of any blog post? To get our views out, or in this case personal observations.
Gotta agree with Tim on conservatism, though.
ok, perhaps I didn't explain this properly: let's look at flared pants for example. When flared pants (bell bottoms) were first introduced, they were considered sort of hippie and crazy looking. by the seventies however, flared pants were perfectly acceptable even in conservative womens' pants-suits.(and scary enough- on men) Though not the huge bell bottoms of the sixties, conservative style did become more accepting due to the influence of couter culture. it's not on a downfall, it just becomes less hard core.
What you call 'counterculture' (i.e. punk music, bell bottems, pot, etc) is no longer really hardcore counterculture because, as you said, its been largely accepted into the mainstream. I don't think the social hierarchy is so rigidly vertical and dipolar. What you identified as counterculture is now "popular" in its own way, with its own large following that accepts it. There are still truely fringe ideas and sub-cultures (like punk when it started) that are actualy outcast, like people who want to learn Elvish.
yay, someone finally agrees with me!!!
it's like two fields, only the grass is always greener on the side you're on. True, elvish learners are still in the vast minority, but your day will come...
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