A subculture is a group whose members share beliefs and behaviors that are different from those of the dominant culture.
The term subculture is not part of the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy . The notion, however, is very common in sociology and anthropology . The concept is used to name the group of people who share behaviors and beliefs that are different from those of the dominant culture of their community .
It could be said that the subculture is a differentiated group within a culture . Its members can meet for various reasons, such as age, ethnicity, sexual identity, musical tastes or aesthetics, among others.
It is common for a subculture to define itself in opposition to the dominant culture . There are times, however, when such opposition is not radical.
Characteristics of a subculture
The members of a subculture usually share a similar appearance that identifies them, such as a certain hairstyle (the crest in the case of punks, for example) or the color of their clothing (black, for goths or emos). Within a subculture, a particular dialect is often spoken or terms that are not common in other groups are used.
The emergence of a subculture is established by the existence of shared symbols . This differentiates simple groups of people who meet for common tastes from subcultures, where there is symbolic interactionism . In the aforementioned case of the Gothic subculture, its members use black clothing and white makeup to convey their skepticism and lack of hope regarding the development of humanity.
Meanwhile, the group of people that acts as a subculture within a city is known as an urban tribe .
The punk subculture is very numerous.
The prejudices
Like any trend that takes people away from the path pre-established by society , subcultures are a very frequent target of prejudice and discrimination. Given that there are many and very diverse ones (as much as punks and floggers , who do not seem to have much in common), contempt is based on an infallible base that is widely used by our species in its fight to divide and exclude: they are not normal .
This rejection common to all subcultures is followed by particular issues, sometimes related to the way of dressing, hairstyles and makeup, or lifestyle ; All of this, it is worth clarifying, is based on assumptions generated in the minds of those who have never really approached individuals who are part of the groups they attack. Why is a person dressed in black and with white makeup irresponsible or disrespectful? Why should he frighten his surroundings? There are no sensible answers to these questions.
And this brings us to the beginning: they do not respond to the norm . Human beings fear the unknown and tend to believe that we are part of a large group that makes us feel safe, ignoring the diversity present within each class , those characteristics that make us unique. Perhaps this attitude is natural in living beings, as a defense mechanism that alerts us to the presence of someone or something strange; The problem exists when, after that first encounter, we develop hatred , a persistent and harmful rejection.
Social look at subcultures
We are all responsible for the judgments we make and the way we relate to other living beings; However, there is a very powerful organization above us, which is responsible for targeting those who threaten the monotony that we usually call life: studying, getting married, procreating and working until we grow old to support our offspring.
Proof of this is found in the term subculture itself: the prefix "sub-", according to the Royal Spanish Academy, indicates inferiority, being below something or someone, being secondary. Therefore, how can we expect people to perceive subcultures positively if their name indicates that those who are not part of them enjoy a certain superiority?