Leah Bush

This ethnographic thesis examines the cultural construction of aging in the Goth subculture in Baltimore, Maryland. Formed in Britain in the late 1970s, Goth retains a relatively high number of Elder Goths who participate in the subculture beyond their youth. By combining interdisciplinary analyses of Goth in the American imaginary with the lived experience of Goths over 40 in everyday life and the nightclub, I argue that participation in the Goth subculture presents an alternative to being aged by culture. Elder Goths subvert constructions of age-appropriate normativity by creating individualized "Gothic temporalities" to navigate through the challenges of adulthood and imagine their futures. This thesis underscores the importance of reconceptualizing aging as a lifespan project. Deconstructing age categories moves authority away from structural forces which support ageism and places power in the hands of individual agents.

This bibliographic essay analyzes literature on the “Goth” subculture and examines Goth sartorial style, subcultural consumption practices; gender, sexuality, and identity, and Goth as an ageing community, and concludes with identifying and developing future avenues for researchers interested in American subcultures and consumption.

This literature review of 18 works examines two questions: “How is popular music used by society to determine or develop a subcultural identity?” And “How can subcultural members use popular music to determine or develop a subcultural identity?”  The review also traces the development of major themes regarding music and identity which have emerged in the social sciences, cultural studies, and psychology.

Aging is part of a social process in American culture which begins with a narrative of progress and growth in childhood and quickly becomes a narrative of decline as we move towards middle age. The societal stigma of growing older is determined by external structures and marks the decline of our economic value as workers and our perceived value as human beings. Pierre Bourdieu describes this process as a form of social aging which leads people to resign themselves to their socially stratified existence and make do with who they are and what they have.

Drawing from Bourdieu and Jack Halberstam’s concept of queer temporalities, this paper examines temporalities of aging presented in the IFC television sketch comedy Portlandia. The show is a contemporary representation of the complexities of middle class adulthood which explores and gently satirizes the dynamics of friendships and romantic relationships between middle aged adults in a fictionalized version of Portland, Oregon; a city proud of its commitment to independence, creativity, and nonconformity. Through a discussion of two of the show’s couples, platonic life mates Fred and Carrie, and Elder Goths Vince and Jacqueline, this paper argues that the temporalities present in Portlandia theorize alternatives to social aging. Fred and Carrie’s loving, non-sexual partnership presents an alternative to marriage and child-rearing. Jacqueline and Vince’s alternative temporality, shaped by macabre Gothic styles and values, revels in planning the end of life - which for Goths, is only the beginning. Understanding these visual representations of aging portrayed in Portlandia encourages us to be true to ourselves as we move throughout the lifespan.

Presented at the Chesapeake American Studies Conference Spring 2015: Urban Places, Digital Spaces
Saturday, March 28, 2015

This paper explores how the physical and digital facets of the American “Goth” subculture intertwine to create multi-layered subcultural communities and form “Gothic spaces” in Washington, D.C and Baltimore, Maryland. Goth, a style-based subculture characterized by themes of the macabre and an overwhelming emphasis on the color black, maintains a membership of “Elder Goths” over the age of 30 and continues to attract new members. According to subcultural scholar Paul Hodkinson, the primary element of participation in the subculture is attendance at Goth nightclub events, which provide a space for collective consumption, appreciation of shared tastes, and competitive sharing of subcultural styles. As part of a larger ethnographic project, I intend to examine how Goths shape private spaces to appeal to Gothic identities through the “Do It Yourself” (DIY) efforts of promoters, DJs, musicians, and independent retailers connected through physical and digital worlds.

In the words of my informants, the Washington D.C. Goth scene is “on life support,” with promoters renting out space for monthly Goth events in small sports bars. In contrast, the Baltimore Goth scene has what I argue are dedicated “Gothic spaces,” such as Club Orpheus and The Depot, where the public performance of Goth styles is frequent and encouraged. How do Goths shape these private spaces to appeal to Gothic identities? What is the role of social media groups such as “Goth After 30 (Elder Goth),” “Baltimore’s Gothic and Medieval Community,” and “I Love 80’s Goth” in connecting and transforming Goth communities? Why is the Baltimore scene flourishing and the Washington D.C. scene fading away? Have digital communities replaced physical spaces? Through a combination of participant-observation, interview, and analysis of social media promotional materials, I argue that an understanding of Gothic spatiality can provide a window into how style-based subcultures define themselves and their subcultural identities throughout adulthood.