grown-ups and youth subcultures

In the last class someone posed a question about whether you can be an adult and still be punk. While most adults can retain a connection to the subculture, I think that it’s difficult to be fully committed, especially in terms of maintaing a radical physical appearance. There is a pressure to conform, at least somewhat, in order to secure employment. In your heart you can be a die-hard member of whatever subculture that you associate with, but you still need to have food in your fridge. In order to ensure that, the grown man with the bright blue hair might try to find a way to make money that doesn’t require him to compromise himself. However, I’m not convinced that a guy with blue hair working in corporate America had that hair color at the time of his job interview. Often in these types of settings, people can afford to look quirky only after they have established themselves, or if they already have resources available to them in the event that their “look” isn’t embraced. So, when I see an adult who embodies the stereotypical style of some youth subculture I think that he/she falls into one of two categories: either he has a professional outlet that allows him to reject the mainstream, or he is able to operate in mainstream culture because he has money, power, or prestige to fall back on.

There are people that fall somewhere in the middle, who opt for jeans and sneakers over suits and button-up shirts in professional settings. Location might play a part in that. I’m from New York, where it’s pretty liberal and there is more freedom in terms of how you can present yourself. Even in a place like New York, I still think that people take less risks with their appearance if they want to advance in their career and haven’t made a name for themselves yet. Steve Jobs can wear sneakers to work, but that is because he’s Steve Jobs. He could wear SpongeBob underwear and fuzzy slippers if he wanted to and people would still buy iPads. He commands respect regardless of his attire because he has a great deal of money and influence. I’m not an advocate for stuffy suits, but the reality is that not every adult can completely indulge in a youth subculture just because he/she wants to.