Why Hipsters?

“I think what people hate is the vanity,” agrees Stuart Berman, music reviewer for Pitchfork and the author of This Book Is Broken, a volume about the Toronto indie-rock band (and hipster deities) Broken Social Scene. “It’s not so much that hipsters are on the lookout for new things and new experiences [that’s irksome],” he says. “It’s the fact that they’re celebrating themselves for doing so.”

 

 

The proliferation of hipster-hate sites and “are-you-a-hipster” tests on the internet signals a kind of obsession that the mainstream society seem to have on hipsters – targeting hipsters for their supposed snobbish attitudes and pretentious “taste” (in accordance to Bourdieu’s definition of taste as related to class positions). The ways in which “hipsters” is used as a disparaging term is baffling as, for someone who is guilty of relying on Pitchfork for music and reading obscure magazines on a regular basis – it’s confusing why being “hipster”, or having interests that aligns with “hipster” culture, can feel like a bad thing. What markers do hipsters use to identify themselves,  and how do mainstream society identify one, or even a group, when the first rule of all rules of being a hipster is that one do not admit to being a hipster?

We were enamoured with exploring the subculture hipsters particularly because it is more often than not seen an anti-thesis of mainstream culture. One may argue that the subculture of the hipster is gaining common ground to the extent of being considered ‘mainstream’’ because it is widely practiced, but one must note that ultimately, a dichotomous relationship exists between the mainstream and the hipsters. Hipsters may be seen as rebels under Merton’s Social Strain Theory as they do display a tendency to outwardly reject cultural goals as well as institutionalized means, displayed in their debonair pursuits of an ideal lifestyle which seemingly demonstrates no purpose or goals whatsoever other than the revel in their chosen activities – almost decadent ala. narcissistic ancient Greek hedonism.

 

Conventionally seen as a white, middle-class culture typical of liberal-arts graduates, hipsters relies on cultural capital as a source of their perceived superiority over mainstream society. Here, cultural capital becomes a new form of wealth which allows hipsters to renegotiate their positions in society. Cohen defines the emergence of  subculture as “groups that are somehow limited in their dominant cultural resources [that] try to collectively solve their problems by alternative methods,” (Williams 2011:7) “hipster” culture can be seen as ways in which hipsters subverts society’s notions of success – of excessive material wealth and expensive lifestyle that are relatively inaccessible with liberal arts degrees with a new kind of wealth – of good taste, greater sense of social awareness and sensitivities (strict vegan lifestyle & progressive world views) than the average and innovating new markers of cool that are to be later  adapted by mainstream society.

One example of this would be Instagram – a photo-sharing app that first appeared on Apple’s app sharing platform. (And of course, it has to be a Mac. Hipsters love Steve Jobs.) Hipsters essentially reject society’s notions of ‘cool’, reinventing their own standards with regards to taste, life goals and activities and create their own standards.

 

 

We could also observe that ‘hipster’ is a reaction to the capitalist condition as well – portraying some similarities to the hippie subculture of the 60s. Though still rooted in consumption, hipsters often support consumption of goods, services or habits that are not categorized as mass-market. Pride is often found in indulging in consumption that is highly unique to an individual – from obscure tee shirts at flea markets to supporting unknown underground bands. Herein is the attempt to destroy the monopoly of the consumption of popular goods and to break the hegemony of mass-market consumption – a rebellion of conforming to society’s expectations of desired goods.

Another reason why studying hipsters is intruiging to us is clearly demonstrated in the videos here.  Youtuber iamOTHER takes to the streets in this video, conducting a survey of whether passers by were hipsters or not.

Video – Are you a Hipster

The video shows that the notion of a hipster is simply a grey area – there is no clear definition which provides for more interpretation on our part. Localising it in our country’s context, the term ‘hipster’ is used commonly nowadays without further investigation. Chua Beng Huat previously investigated the notion of ‘Ah Bengs’ in their heyday in the local context since they embodied a common identity and we should continue to do so with hipsters as well since they are a highly visible group which can be easily identified, through internal self-identification as well as by other members of society who classify them as a group.

 

Not convinced? Let’s hear the “Shit that Hipsters Say”.

 

Video – Shit Hipsters Says

Clearly, there are numerous identifiers which make up the hipster. We hope to discuss this further in the course of this blog and explore in-depth issues with regards to hipsters as well.

 

 

We would also like to investigate the sources of the growing antagonism between mainstream society and hipsters, the implications of various class factors that impedes/encourage an individual in participating in “hipster” culture and how locality – also known as “sites of resistance” allows hipsterism to be expressed. We would also like to investigate the importance of commodities and cultural goods and their role in hipsterism – which objects are distinctively hipster (a thousand dollar bicycle maybe?) and the meanings assigned to these objects.