American History X and Why Some People Join Subcultures

  I just wanted to talk about some ideas we discussed in class about reasons why someone wanted to join a subculture.
  In American History X, you can see that Derek joined the racist Skinhead culture because, after the death of his father, Derek wanted to make him proud by holding up his father's racist ideals. The same pattern can be applied to Danny. When Derek left for jail, Danny felt the need to make him proud by joining Cameron Alexander's racist skinhead group even though (in my opinion) he doesn't truly follow their ideals. In the scene where Danny shows Derek his tattoo, you can see Danny's hesitation and nervousness in the way he clenched his jaw and swallowed when Derek doesn't react the way he expected to. He just wanted approval from Derek. The way Danny acts towards Seth and the sarcasm he uses when talking into Seth's video camera also shows that his heart isn't in the words he's saying. For these two brothers, the reason they joined that culture is for a personal sense of approval from figures they look up to. The key word there is personal. I believe that though cultures form as a collection of people with the same interest, the core reason one joins is personal. Whether it's because one feels lost and alone and needs a sense of community, because one wants to rebel against something, or simply because the style appeals to them, one starts to define themselves as an individual within these cultures. It's important not to see (as most people have with skinheads) a member of a subculture as a representation of that whole subculture, but rather as an individual with their own ideals and beliefs.