h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm writing my dissertation on the colour black & it's role in subcultures like Beatniks & Goths. Im trying to link black to the origins of cool behaviour (as in acting detatched as a way of coping with life), I think black has played an important role in underground cultures, expressing a cool detatchment from and rejection of mainstream society.
Id love to know what anyone else thinks about this, is black worn partly to show our peers we are rejecting their ideals? Are you born goth or are we drawn to it because of social situations?
I'm not a goth exactly but I do love wearing black & I'm aware that I do it partly to keep people at a distance, or maybe make me feel in control. Something like if I look slightly unaproachable then I get to choose if I talk to people or not!
I just wondered if anyone recognises this in themselves or am I just odd?!

Hi and welcome to h2g2!
First of all y<ou might want to take this question over to <./>askh2g2</.>, it'll gain more attention there.

For Goths the answer might be that black is considered the colour of death.
I, personally, do think that I'm born goth, looking back at what I felt, did and thought even before I discovered the scene.


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i kinda do that as well except i dont wear as much black as id like to, i dunno whether im goth or not

I can't say as to the origins of wearing black, but a few guesses include the severe simplicity of the color "making a statement" to match the philosophical ideals...There certainly is a rejection of the perceived mainstream, yet as I am in my late twenties and "found" the goth scene early on, I see more goth kids now wearing solid black than I ever did in the late '80's. Of course, I am speaking from a Chicago-area US standpoint and have noticed differences in US style versus English/European. I started wearing black in high school simply because it's hard to find clothes that don't clash with red hair I'm actually quite fond of deep blue and neon green...
(I aplogize if this turns out to be one huge paragraph; I forgot the start new paragraph command...)
As for the inherent mindset versus social statement, that is a difficult question as I believe personalities are shaped BY social situations. I was always uncomfortable around people, even in childhood, and never had many close friends or peer groups I liked. When a classmate in 8th grade introduced me to "goth" music like Siouxsie and the Cure, everything just felt natural. I suddenly fit in with others who understood me as I had never understood the "normal" kids. I have noticed that a high percentage of goths come from wealthy or upper-middle-class but broken families and bad childhoods. My personal theory is that social trauma in childhood creates the skewed mentality needed to understand goth as a beautiful thing. Of course, that is a huge generalization, but as I stated before, I am working off of my own experience.