Every generation develops a counterculture, a group of people seeking to expand diversity and oppose the status quo. However, our plugged-in, hyper-cultured generation seems to have taken the concept to a new, philosophically confusing extreme.
The predominant counterculture attitude comes from the college hipster scene, a movement both based in, and yet opposed to, mainstream culture.
Through observation — and participation — I’ve come up with a list of hipster characteristics you can use to test your hipster-ness. Nothing is definitive, but if you find too many behavior similarities, it may be time to consider yourself labeled.
First, hipsters flock to undiscovered music like mosquitoes to florescent light —the more obscure, the better.
If you’ve ever said, “I liked their first CD better,” or “They were good … before they sold out,” check yourself.
Contrary to books, hipsters can reliably be identified by their appearance. Tight, blackwash jeans coupled with a plain, American Apparel t-shirt or form-fitting plaid make up the standard male uniform.
Women’s apparel becomes harder to define but can still be set apart by eclectic pairings and off-brand, bargain-store compilations.
Owning more band shirts than shirt shirts could also be an indication — and yes, the type of band matters. Stick with indie and experimental groups.
Attending three or more concerts in the last month, each for less than ten dollars, could be a sign.
Last, if you’ve ever planned an entire outing around loitering at an obscure coffee bar, you could be part of the hipster scene.
All this could be construed as a simple trend, so what makes hipsters a counterculture?
That’s harder to pin down.
Plenty of subcultures flow through Phoenix, but most rely on old tenets.
The Green Movement and its constituent eco crusaders too closely resemble the environmentalists and tree huggers of the ’70s.
Similarly, goths and punks have largely become old-fare caricatures of themselves, struggling to maintain the immediacy of their rebellion from a culture that faded years ago.
A truly new trend must establish its own doctrine; it can’t simply reiterate an old creed. Hipsters provide a new angle on cultural antithesis by challenging the counterculture’s basic theme: opposition.
Being a hipster means staying ahead of the cultural curve, never satisfied with the established vogue, always first to discover the new trend. It requires heavy participation in established culture.
Perhaps, as the first generation matured in the glow of computer monitors and social media, cultural immersion came naturally. However, the key for hipsters is going further.
Like Eastern philosophers, hipsters become so immersed in culture, that they transcend it. They attempt to move beyond the cutting edge to the yet undiscovered.
It’s a compelling goal with a definite sense of urgency. The struggle to keep up requires diving into the gyre of media and fashion, but if you emerge on the other side, you can attain artsy nirvana.
Join Channing in his struggle to become way too hip and artsy at
channing.turner@asu.edu.
