Beats, Hippies, Greasers, And Mods

Fashion is perhaps the most notable aspect of a subculture. Since appearance is often the first thing analyzed in any individual, fashion or other visual symbols stand as the quickest way of communicating which subculture an individual belongs to. As a result, many subcultures develop very unique or distinct fashions. Some subcultures became fashion symbols of the mid 20th Century as the subculture gradually integrated into the pop culture where they inevitably became mainstream. Beats, Hippies, Greasers, and Mods are, in the current age, thought of as icons of their times based on their fashion. Hippies, for example, became icons of the 70’s with their unkempt and often “natural” appearance. Their style went against the ideals of the pop culture,

Slang, as defined by Merriam Webster, is “an informal nonstandard vocabulary composed typically of coinages, arbitrarily changed words, and extravagant, forced, or facetious figures of speech” also known as jargon or argot. Slang can be found within any subculture. Examples of 20th century slang include using words like “hip,” or “cool cats,” as adjectives. Though slang varies from group to group, onlookers find themselves confused regardless if they do not speak the language of the subculture. Outsiders who overhear a conversation between members of a subculture often struggle to understand the often nonsensical language and the references that seem to fly over their

In years past one would have to spend a decent amount of money to buy the fashion of their subculture. Once they bought the apparel they would have to commit for several months to several years as clothing was more expensive and not made for quick trends. By using social media youth can express their style through social media posts without ever having to worry about committing to a subculture. If they grow tired of the subculture there is nothing to tie them to it. They do not have to continue wearing the clothes or hanging out with the same people; They can make simple change to the layout or theme of a social media page and completely reinvent their online image. As for the people they associate with online, they can cut them off by simply blocking them on social media and disappearing from their