Ive complained enough about elitists over the years and to be perfectly honest,

elitists arent the only problematic members of the goth subculture. If you were to
put goth on a scale it would be be broken up into three major groups.

On one end you would find the elitist group. A group of goths who believe that there
is absolutely only one way of being goth and in order to be it you must abide by
their strict rules. These are the people who prefer to bully other goths than keep
their opinions to themselves. This group is usually on the smaller side because most
goths dont like engaging with them because of the drama that they bring. But ive
already discussed this group many times before.

In the middle of the scale we have a very balanced group of goths. This is also the
largest group. This group encompasses thousands of goths around the world of
different styles and ages. These goths believe that goth is a subculture and is
something that should be respected. These goths are also very aware of where and
when goth started and how. This group respects the music and though not everyone
in this group listens to goth music, they are still very aware of its importance to the
goth subculture. This is the best place to sit on the scale. These goths often feel
that goth should not dictate who they are as a person but at the same time these
goths feel that the history and the music should be respected.

Now we get to the last group that unfortunately has been growing in numbers over
the past few years. This is the group that poses a threat to the preservation of goth
as a subculture.

First, im going to start with a definition for the word subculture

A cultural group within a larger culture, often having beliefs or interests at variance
with those of the larger culture

This means that a subculture is a smaller culture within a larger one and that there
are specific values, beliefs and interests that divide this culture from the larger. So

in order to be a part of a subculture you must have these same beliefs, interests,
and values. Of course there is a ton of wiggle room when it comes to the goth
subculture. Goth does not restrict you to these interests and values, but instead
allows you to include your own. You can be goth and have non goth interests. You
can be goth and listen to non goth music. Also the values that are often considered
more mandatory are simply based on respect. Many will say that you dont have to
limit yourself to listening to only goth music but, it is important to respect the music
because the subculture, fashion, etc. wouldnt exist without it.

This is where problems arise. In the modern goth subculture, we are seeing more
and more goths throwing these values out the window and ditching all respect for
the subculture. These people are treating goth as more of a fashion statement than
a culture. Goth was never meant to be a superficial concept lacking any depth or
substance. Like punk, goth was a strange and amazing phenomenon that occurred
at just the right moment in time. Goth was this thing that connected people through
a love of dark music and a taste for the darker, stranger side of life. The fashion sort
of came after and was mostly influenced by the artists producing these dark genres
of music. So no matter how you look at it, goth music is really what kick started the
whole thing

But many of these young, new goths dont care about that. They believe that goth is
anything they say it is. When this is just not true. You cant walk up to a member of
the Rastafarian subculture and tell him that his values and beliefs dont need to be
respected and that Rastafarian culture is completely subjective. Thats just not how
subcultures work. Subcultures are not subjective. Goth as a subculture is not
subjective. You can be a goth have your own views on the world. You can have your
own interests and beliefs but goth is still a subculture and certain values NEED to be
respected. If we dont respect these certain values than we risk losing our
subculture.

By ignoring the history and beliefs of a subculture you are leading to its erasure.
And if you know anything about todays social issues, this should sound very
familiar. We live in a time where all cultures, not just subcultures, run the risk of
being erased due to racism, appropriation, the domination of mainstream cultures
as well as other factors. So its important that we keep some of these values and
continue to respect the history of goth as a subculture.

Unfortunately this is becoming harder and harder to do, with the rise in popularity of
blogging and social media as an outlet for expressing ones personal views and
opinions. Many goth blogs on tumblr are getting popular for very superficial reasons
such as fashion and aesthetic purposes. Its very easy for a blog that only posts goth
fashion to become popular and though this isnt negative on its own when the
person behind the blog starts divulging their opinions about the subculture, they
already have a large follower base to listen to them.

So if this blogger who only cares about goth fashion, who doesnt respect the
subculture starts pontificating on topics they know nothing about or respect, this
will subsequently lead to a large number of less educated people to believe in
misinformation about the subculture. If a popular blogger starts saying things like,
you dont need to respect or like goth music to be goth, or, you dont need to
know anything about the history of goth to be goth their followers will start to
believe this, when its just not true.

If this keeps up like it is, eventually we are going to see a lot of young goths who
dont care about the subculture. Who only want to be goth because it looks cool or
it scares my parents. Goth will eventually become nothing more than a trend.
Something a kid does for attention. This will also divide goths even more. You will
start seeing a lot of older goths stop wanting anything to do with the younger
generations and their lack of respect for the culture.

Yes goth should be something a person can have fun with but there is more that
divides goths from the mainstream than just our look and many of us would like to
keep it that way. Goth used to be about music, literature, art, philosophy and more.
Goths were mature, refined and intelligent people who liked discussing topics such
as philosophy and psychology. We were a cultured breed who enjoyed history and
arts. Goth is not a gimmick. Its not a trend. Its a way of life and its a culture. And
many of us are tired of seeing younger people try and ruin that.

And another thing. This is something that is not said enough and its so damn
important. You do not need to be goth to like goth things. You dont have to restrict
yourself to a label. Its okay to like goth things and not consider yourself goth, in fact
i encourage it. If goth really is right for you, you will want to know everything about
it naturally. You will feel a passion for learning about its music and history and above
all, you will respect it. If not, maybe goth just isnt for you and thats okay. Even if you
dont fit the label, you can still follow goth blogs and have goth friends and go to

goth events but if you really want to preserve goth, you need to respect it as more
than just an image. You need to respect it as a subculture that is rich with history,
art and very importantly, music.