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Dark, gloomy, with a dash of horror. That is how Goth literature is mostly described. Looking back, Goth gave the stage to medieval women writers challenging the norms of the day. Centuries later, Goth grew into a subculture in the music genre, the fashion world, and as a way of life that represents nonconformity. This element of nonconformity in Goth, often romanticized as being dark feminine energy, has continued to evolve to this day in pop culture, in clubs, in the life lived by today’s Goth generation.

As a literary genre, Goth came out of the post-Romanticism era in medieval England. Some say it is a subgenre of Dark Romanticism. Classic Goth features dark romance with a damsel in distress in a remote, gloomy castle in the mountains, waiting to be rescued.

If we take a look at what, or rather who, the term Goth referred to, we will see that it referred to a Germanic tribe which were responsible for the fall of Western Rome. The ancient Goths, called the barbarians by the Romans, invaded Rome and weakened Roman culture. Their kingdoms rose after the demise of the Western Roman Empire. The two branches of the tribe, the Visigoth and Ostrogoth, where its people were believed to have originated from Scandinavia, paved the way for the rise of medieval Europe while spreading Goth culture. The term Goth was then generally used to describe a style of medieval architecture that was popular in the 12th to 16th centuries. The castles typically featured masonry pointed arches and stained-glass windows—the epitome of Goth architecture.

So how did this medieval genre with its signature chivalry trope turn into a subculture of rebellion and nonconformity?

The medieval setting in literature characterized by remote castles, mystery, and terror with romantic overtones were known as Goth because of its association with medieval architectural type of settings. The first novel to be called gothic was one given such name by the author himself. Horace Walpole’s Castle of Otranto, published in 1764 was the first gothic novel, where he used the subtitle, “A Gothic Story.” He used the term to describe something barbarous and medieval. Other novels following this style of dark and medieval setting with the damsel in distress trope have since been labeled Gothic.

So how did this medieval genre with its signature chivalry trope turn into a subculture of rebellion and nonconformity?

Although it is one of the most classic forms of patriarchy in literature, Goth in fact gave rise to women writers and more women readers. The genre emerged at a time when women’s literacy in England was on the rise as well as the educated middle-class. Women began to write and more were reading. Ann Radcliffe is considered to be the first Goth female writer; her first novel, The Castles of Athlin and Dubnayne (1789), was written anonymously. Then she rose to fame and fortune with four more novels during her lifetime. This was an important moment in history as it was around the time Mary Wollstonecraft published A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792). Although Radcliffe's writing still leaned towards the patriarchal values of the time, over the years, Goth evolved as more women authors began to create less traditional female characters and thus began the conversation of patriarchal oppression and social change.

Radcliffe herself bore the label of being anti-Catholic because her novel The Italian (1797) portrayed elements of Catholicism negatively. Later female Goth authors, such as Louisa May Alcott, Charlotte Bronte, Emily Bronte, and Mary Shelley would challenge gender roles and raise issues concerning subjugation, class, and female autonomy through their female characters.

Siouxsie Sioux (Pinterest)

Centuries later, in the music scene, Goth rock became a genre that embraces this attitude of dark fearlessness. This genre is marked by its poetic lyrics that romanticize darkness with themes of nihilism, sadness, pain, and death presented by haunting vocals, heavy basslines, and distorted melodies with an ambience of gloom. Well, of course this is a generalized description, however, the dark music and style of Siouxsie and the Banshees and the Cocteau Twins are often used as typical examples of Goth music and fashion, whether the bands like it or not.

Gothic rock emerged during the post-Punk era in late 70s Britain with Joy Division and Bauhaus considered as pioneers. The genre flourished throughout the 80s, and then further evolved in the 90s and 2000s. To go with the music, Gothic fashion reflected the dark mood with its trademark black attire, dark hair and makeup, and often androgynous appearance. However, dark eye makeup aside, Nico (German singer-songwriter, once of the Velvet Underground) with her proto-Goth sound is the godmother of Goth rock.

Women found their voice through Goth literature in 18th century England and women authors used it as a means to express critique of the society they lived in. Because of the famous Gothic women writers and their nonconforming narratives, Goth is associated with women’s equality and modern-day feminism. Fans of Gothic novels will find a somewhat wide range of this literature penned by female authors today.

Interestingly, centuries after the emergence of female-penned classic Goth literature, out of Goth rock emerged a new female image of feminine rebellion and empowerment. Earlier, the punk era saw more women playing in bands. However, during post-Punk, we saw the rise of a few female icons in Goth rock, like Siouxsie herself, and they were definitely no damsel in distress.

Goth is not just a literary or music genre or even fashion trend.

Fashion-wise, Goth faded in the 90s but like the cycle of fashion that repeats itself, Goth has re-emerged—sometimes called Neo-Goth for ditching the black dress code—but still maintains the dark feminine energy that fuels Goth-girl power. Examples are in today’s popular TV series, such as Wednesday, or Goth clubs in different parts of the world.

Goth is not just a literary or music genre or even fashion trend, although it may be for some. Goth actually represents a way of life that is, according to its followers, founded on equality and values outside established norms. Today’s Goth generation tries to live a life of freethinking and sexual freedom founded on a gender egalitarianism which was considered lacking in previous subcultures. Although today’s Goth subculture is post-feminist, it nevertheless faces the struggle of achieving inclusivity and ousting heterosexist norms. The revolution goes on!

-Some Thoughts from the Cappuccino Girl- (2023)

#Goth #gothic #Gothliterature #Gothrock #Gothfashion #music #feminism #gender #subculture

Top Image: Rob Oo (Wikimedia)

You might be interested to read: Who Were the Mods? Modernism and Paris After the War Check out my other blog, Some Thoughts from the Cappuccino Girl for topics on gender and history.

Sources:

Darya (2018) ‘What the Hell Is Goth Music? Brief History of Goth Rock.’ Miss Mephistopheles. https://missmephistopheles.wordpress.com/2018/07/20/where-the-hell-did-goth-music-come-from-and-what-the-hell-is-it-the-history-of-goth-rock/ (Accessed 19 July 2023).

Jarus, Owen (2022) livescience.com. https://www.livescience.com/45948-ancient-goths.html (Accessed 19 July 2023).

Ledoux, Ellen (n.d.) ‘The Female Gothic: From the Second-Wave to Post-Feminism.’ Atmostfear Entertainment. https://www.atmostfear-entertainment.com/literature/books/female-gothic-second-wave-post-feminism/ (Accessed 20 August 2023).

Wilkins, Amy C. (2004) '“So Full of Myself as a Chick”: Goth Women, Sexual Independence, and Gender.' Gender and Society, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 328–349. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4149405 (Accessed 19 August 2023).

Music and fashion in our pop culture eventually become a regular part of our life because we hear, wear, or see them every day. We tend to forget that some pop cultures first started out as a subculture or even a counterculture. In fact, if we look back in history many trends were actually a response to the social, political, and economic environment. Many of course started as a youth lifestyle characterized by the music and fashion youths strongly identified with.

During the 50’s in the UK, a new urban youth culture called the mod (from the word modern, because the youths were into modern jazz) began to emerge. Like other social or cultural changes that have happened in the past, coffee houses were also an important part of the mod social setting. The mods would cruise around the city at night on their scooters and hang out in coffee houses where they listened to jazz and ska out of a jukebox—popular music genres of postwar Britain.

The mods had a distinct style and were very fashion conscious. Influenced by French and Italian art films, these youngsters wore tight suits and pointed shoes. The mods came from urban working-class communities who, because of better economic conditions and job opportunities after the Second World War, were able to live a somewhat consumptive lifestyle of fashion and staying out at night. Buying clothes was an important part of the mod lifestyle, where mods spent most of their wage.

Mod women popularized androgynous fashion by wearing masculine leather jackets as they rode their scooters through the night. Women were quite visible in the mod culture. As working women, their economic independence allowed them to adopt the mod lifestyle.

At a glance, the mod lifestyle may appear to have no political relevance, but it was a political statement in itself: a rebellion against the conventional postwar English life of hard work and conformity. The youths felt that the values their parents held did not get them anywhere better.

In the swinging 60s, the mod style became a trend in London’s center of fashion, Carnaby Street, and overnight the fashion industry launched Twiggy as a mod fashion icon. Likewise in the music scene, mod was the buzzword and new rock bands, such as The Who and The Small Faces, identified as mods. David Bowie also sported the Mod look. Once a counterculture, mod became commercialized and turned into pop culture.

The mods later evolved into the skinheads. These original skinheads had reggae and ska on their jukebox playlist, and were a mixed-ethnic group of working class youngsters; quite different from what would be commonly associated with the skinheads of today.

Fashion and music associated with mods experienced a series of revivals, especially in the ‘80s. Rather than being too fashion conscious, the mods of this era took a lot more interest in political issues. Such is the case with bands like The Jam and The Style Council who sported the mod look.

Nice to see that mod-influenced fashion is still present today, although unrelated to what mod had stood for and only reminiscence of the rebellion the counterculture once inspired.

-Some Thoughts from the Cappuccino Girl- (2019)

You might be interested to read: The Rise and Fall of the Rockers and the Mods https://wordsmith.social/cappuccinogirl/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-rockers-and-the-mods

#Mods #history #music #UK #fashion