Aesthetics of Goth as a subculture style

Abstract

Subcultural style is the center of subcultural identity and the clothes and adornments are the most visible symbol of membership. The Goth subculture has associated tastes in music, aesthetics, and fashion. The style symbolized the strong subjective subcultural identity held by most Goths and acted as the practical basis to demonstrate their commitment to the subculture. This study investigates the aesthetic and the style of Goth subculture in its heyday of 1980s which has continued to affect mainstream fashion and culture since its birth. In order to inquire the concept of subculture and its style, this study executes literature survey as well as investigates the images of street style magazines to analyze the visual elements. The stylistic and the aesthetic characteristics of Goth subcultural style analyzed in this study are grouped into four categories as follows: first, Victoriana, which embodies the fear of death and the nostalgia for the past using Victorian morning dresses and corsets, second, vampirism, in that some Goths who are fascinated by vampires are costumed in vampire figures to advocate diabolism and decadence, third, sexual ambiguity of male Goths which emphasizes feminine appearance in the pursuit of androgyny, and fourth, sexual fetish of female Goths which represents aggressive eroticism utilizing fetish paraphernalia.

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