You know those shops in London's Camden Town filled with wedges, corsets, piercings, chains, and velvet dresses? Well, if you've ever wondered who the typical customers of those shops are and why they're all black, get ready: you're about to discover the world of Goths.
Once upon a time there were the Goths
Goths are certainly one of the longest-running but also most confusing subculture that they ever existed. Some have associated them exclusively with the world of the macabre, some with the dark heavy metal fans, those still involved in depressed movements that advocate suicide. Yet, behind the name Goth, which certainly derives from "Gothic," lies a long, much richer history steeped in meaning that goes far beyond pale faces and eyeliner. To begin with, the word "Goth" derives from Goti, the Germanic tribe that decreed the end of the Western Roman Empire. Having become synonymous with barbarian, especially following the fall of Rome and the Christianization of Europe, in the Age of Enlightenment the term "Gothic" began to be associated witharchitecture of the Middle Ages, thus taking on a completely denigrating and vulgar meaning especially when compared to the culture and art of the Greek and Roman classics.
Then, towards the end of the 700th century, things began to take a different turn, to the point that the first seeds of a subculture were planted. In the United Kingdom, in fact, some artists, architects, and aristocrats, somewhat nostalgic for Gothic art, took a different stance and began to rebel, championing values other than the order, reason, and rigor typical of the classics: creativity , a common had to be brought to the forefront, as well as the typical style of the Middle Ages, made of darkness and mystery. This is how the Goths were born, so called for the first time by horace walpole (who, mind you, was also the first to use the term serendipity!), author of “The castle of Otranto“, the first Gothic novel ever written, from which developed a literary genre and an entire iconography imbued with dark and grotesque elements.
The role of music in the construction of style
The label “Gothic Rock” was first used by critic John Stickney to describe the music and violence that characterized the concerts of the Doors in the autumn of 1967, in stark contrast to thehippie atmosphere and relaxed that still hovered in the air after the famous Summer of Love of that same year. After that, the adjective "gothic" was used again only later, towards the end of the 70s, in reference to some post-punk bands and their music imbued with loneliness and desolation. A dark genre that contributed to the creation of the distinctive Goth style, but which in turn owes much to some predecessors, such as David Bowie for his androgynous appearance and his warm, deep voice, the Joy Division, for the dark and somewhat depressed inclination, the Siouxsie and the Banshees for the look of their singer Siouxsie Sioux, a true icon with a total black style that led to the painting of nails, torn fishnet stockings, Victorian dresses, lace, in short, all the clothing in black. Then, in 1979, when the Bauhaus they released the single Bela Lugosi's Dead, imbued with macabre and dark elements, such as bats, blood, tombs, bell towers and cemeteries, everything became increasingly markedly sinister, from the Goth style to the music of the bands that played at the Batcave in London, the most legendary club on the scene, which became famous for having hosted The Cure, Sex Gang Children, Siouxsie and the Banshees and Alien Sex Fiend.
Thus, thanks to the spread of Gothic rock, the bands, their live performances and the radio, the ground became increasingly fertile, until the 80s saw a real explosion of the scene, especially among teenagers, who were the most active in claiming their distinctive identity , free from political connotations, open and tolerant towards issues of race, sexuality and gender, but in stark contrast to trends and the mainstream, in favour instead of individual creativity and free self-expression.
Masculine and feminine, what does it matter?
Although the Goth subculture is alien to any political connotation, their distinctive approach has always expressed a certain disapproval towards heterosexual norms and gender categories. For this reason, their transgression can be considered a real reaction aimed at deconstructing roles. Jewelry, piercings, makeup, long hair, slender bodies, and minimal clothing are just some of the elements that made the Goth style feminine and ambiguous, thus mocking stereotypes e social models, in favor of the bisexuality and free self-expression.
Then, as always happens, the fashion industry and the media began to appropriate the Goth style, stripping it of any kind of meaning. The films Dracula by Bram Stoker, Interview with the vampire, The Crow, released in the 1990s, are just a few examples of how pale skin, fake fangs, and colored contact lenses were used to create scary, vampiric characters, thus fueling the cliché that Goths are closely linked to the world of horror. Yet Goths are nothing to be afraid of. Of course, unless you try to take a photo in one of those Camden Town shops, because then, yes, you might suddenly change your mind!
Alice Porracchio
" If there's not a rebellious youth culture, there's no culture at all. It's absolutely essential. It is the future ."
