Summary
Highlights
The video begins by explaining that societies, particularly in Europe, comprise numerous cultural groups. It differentiates between cultural identities based on race (physical markers) and ethnic cultures (ancestry, language). These differences are often influenced by migration, transnationalism, and globalization, leading to the formation of minorities or diasporas. Subcultures are introduced as cultural groups that do not form the majority and tend to stand out as different.
Historically, the Chicago School defined subcultures as deviant groups from the majority culture. The Birmingham School, in contrast, focused on youth subcultures in the 1960s from a class perspective. The hippie movement of the 1960s is given as an example, characterized by resistance to the Vietnam War, advocacy for sexual freedom, and drug use, making them non-conformist and deviant. Other examples include hip-hop fans and their use of graffiti, bikers as outlaws, and more recently, rooftop photographers.
Today's understanding of subcultures has evolved beyond the Chicago School's concept of deviance or the Birmingham School's focus on young, lower-middle-class white males. Subcultures are now more broadly defined as groups operating with distinctive standards and behavior patterns within a larger society. While not necessarily deviant, they are often treated as 'the other' due to their smaller numbers, though not necessarily lesser status.
Key characteristics of subcultures include informal participation without formal leaders, allowing individuals to belong to multiple subcultures or both a subculture and the majority culture. They share distinct meanings in cultural objects, values, and practices, shaping their everyday lives. Subcultures are unified by a collective identity, often resist societal issues, and tend to become marginalized outliers to mainstream society due to their distinct views and actions. They frequently develop specialized vocabularies.
Examples of subcultures include Harry Potter fans, fashion subcultures like Gothic Lolita, various gender subcultures (queer, transgender, LGBTQIA+), goths, geeks, computer gamers, emos, and hipsters. The video emphasizes that the definition of a subculture is influenced by place and time. For instance, being vegan might not characterize a marginalized subculture in predominantly Buddhist societies or in India where Buddhism and Hinduism coexist, but in Turkey, where veganism is a distinct lifestyle choice and a rights-based movement, it could be argued to be a subculture due to its distinctness from mainstream society.