Speak for yourself...

In case it wasn't apparent from certain inferences in the info on my account, or if you've simply never looked, I am (albeit on what many would call a somewhat moderate scale) into the goth subculture, and have been for some time. Generally, I'm not about debunking myths (about goth) and trying to make goth seem comfortable for non-goths...unless those myths just happen to be spun or promulgated by an alleged goth...

This article has been online for untold years, but no one has ever seemed to raise any objection to the way in which the culture is portrayed, so this one's had a long time coming, even if it is just on a blog site. To get the facts straight, this article is not by someone who identifies as goth, but it IS on the site of an author who more than believes he passes for the characterization; someone quite active, prolific, and influential within the culture, as a matter of fact. Therefore, I say that "a goth is saying it".

The article is about Gothic, or "Dark" Paganism--no doubt something I'll tear down soon enough, but not today--and is by Elizabeth Barrete. It appears on the website of John Coughlin ( the aforementioned influential individual) "waningmoon.com".

Let's begin, shall we?

The article begins as follows:

hat is thWhat is this "Gothic" stuff?is "Gothic" stuff?

Gothic refers to a lifestyle which blends modern and historic elements of darkness and power. Goths often love the color black, also other dark and powerful colors like purple, blue, and burgundy. A Goth dressed as a Goth is pretty hard to miss; the outfit may hark back to Victorian or even Dark Age garb, with white lace and black scarlet-lined cloak, or it may draw on modern times with leather, more lace, chains, and sharp spiky studded collars or wristbands. No, they don't look like bikers, though the differences may sound subtle in a text description. There are a number of Gothic clubs, bars, and other gathering places, mostly in large cities; and there are some Gothic events such as conventions and other gatherings. While many Goths cherish their solitude and love to haunt lonely places, most of them do enjoy the company of other Goths and similar like-minded people.Goths may frequent cemeteries, read horror stories (one subgenre of which is even called "gothic" horror) especially the classics like Shelley's Frankenstein, tell ghost stories, have a keen interest in the processes of death or decay, study psychology (especially criminal psychology), enjoy the sight or taste of blood, appreciate old architecture including mausoleums and cathedrals, delight in reminding people that everyone has a dark side, consider rain and fog "beautiful weather" and avoid the sun, live a nocturnal life as much as possible, appreciate wild places, see social game rules as arbitrary and sometimes ludicrous constructs, collect death symbols (especially merry macabre ones like dancing skeletons), read mythology about death deities, struggle openly (as opposed to secretly) with powerful desires, believe in confronting rather than avoiding fears and challenges, and generally find appeal in things that most folks consider somber and unattractive, even disgusting. There are many more markers of this type, as there are for any culture, and most individuals have some subset of these rather than all of them. In fact I doubt that anybody has them all, and of course this is just a partial list. Some people have a sizable subset of these markers without necessarily identifying as Gothic, although they may follow a similar path.

     The entire first paragraph is the first thing wrong: firstly, no mentions of the one thing that essentially created and binds the culture together--the music. It just "blends elements of darkness and power". Guess Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and every children's show villain was goth. Not to mention the Hell's Angels, The Bloods, Crips, and virtually ever other street gang that's cropped up. Secondly, the last sentence "While many goths cherish their solitude and haunt lonely places...", sorry goths only do that in movies.

Secondly...you know what, I'm just gonna give you the bullet points of this rag:

Starting with the next paragraph:
1--"...Read horror stories (one sub genre is even called "Gothic" horror)"

...lol. Just...lol.

2--"study psychology (especially criminal psychology)"

 speaking from experience, this is a gross generalization. I'm not denying that there are goths who find such subjects intriguing, I myself find psychology of all kinds to be fascinating, the criminal bent not being the least of which, but it's irresponsible to try to use this as something that reflects Goth. In fact, more often than not, the "serial killer thing" is endemic to "baby bats", metal heads, and, of course, poseurs who think they're cool for touting something "dark".

3--"Enjoy the sight or taste of blood"

..........................................................what? I want to make something perfectly clear, there is a BIG difference between the goth and vampire subcultures. there  are similarities, and I personally believe the vampire movement to have been born of vampire enthusiasts who saw in goth everything they wanted to be, and there are goth vampires...but for every one vampire who is goth, there are ten non-vampiric (did I just type that?) goths who disdain them and everything having to do with them; even goths who enjoy vampire media (quite a few). I remember back in highschool, in a town where there were no real goths, all the Mansonites and those who wanted to identify with the "freaks" would brag about things like how they liked to hurt themselves because it turned them on, and of course, how good blood tasted and how cool it was. I wonder, did Ms Barrette attend that same school?

4.-- "Delight in reminding others that everyone has a dark side" 


Yeah, we like doing that alright. I love to remind people. In fact, one way my goth friends and acquaintances like to greet me is "Have you revealed the dark to your neighbor this night?"By the way, YOU'VE GOT A DARK SIDE!!!!


5--"Live a nocturnal lifestyle/avoid the sun as much as possible"


Again, more indicative of Vampire than goth. Its true many goths value pale skin and some even go out of their way to obtain and or maintain it, but goths have jobs, and therefore most go out in daylight, and get this: quite a few enjoy sunlight, even if its not exactly conducive to pallor. Incidentally, I once saw an interview with a gothy vampire who claimed they were nocturnal, even though the entire interview and nearly every piece of footage that showed she and her friend took place in the daylight, but I'm getting off topic.


6--"Appreciate wild places..."

No elaboration on what a "wild place" is, or what's so gothic about them? Guess any definition of wild will do, so long as its night time right?


7-- "See social game rules as arbitrary and sometimes ludicrous constructs"

What are "social game rules"? Saying "Hi"? Calling before you come over? Asking if its ok before screwing someone? Her lack of clarity on this particular subject just makes Goths sound like social morons who belong in mental wards instead of night clubs.

8--"Struggle openly (as opposed to secretly) with powerful desires"

 What exactly is "struggling openly"? If a goth has an urge to beat the ever loving hell out of someone, do they walk over and act as if they're not in control of their own body, raising their fist, then restraining themselves, then raising their fist again? Sounds that way.

In conclusion, to the woman's credit, she does at least say that most people "don't have all these markers, and most have a subset of them". Now if she'd only said "hardly anyone has most of what I just mentioned, I have next to no idea of what I'm talking about."

Shame on you Mr Coughlin. Shame. On. You.