It has been bought to my attention that the internet (and maybe even the world minus Africa and Antarctica) has been inundated by people writing articles about the phenomenon of the hipster. How this defined group of people are full of contradictions and sucking the meaning out of former staple working class values like smoking and wearing flanellette.
Phrases like 'ironically detached,' 'narcissism,' and 'Lisa Pryor' are pretty common in these articles. The central theme invariably involves the writer just doing a bunch of philosophy about themself, concluding that a hipster is a bad thing to be. The conclusion usually starts with an accepting sigh: '(SIGH!) Well, I don't care what you say, I'm GLAD I'm not a hipster. (SMUG SIGH) I guess I'll have to be content being a regular, observant white person who lives in the inner city and writes feature articles in the first person. Definetly not a hipster though.'
BONUS: I have decided to write my own definition of hipsters.
Hipster: A Definition by James Ross-Edwards
Hipster is a word that's thrown around all too often these days. Sometimes underpants are called hipsters. If these underpants worked at Bourke St Bakery, would they forget that hospitality is more about being nice than wearing a plaid pinafore and being a dick?
Hipsters usually do things like go to Bandits and be DJs. Some hipsters dress like pirates, others go to club nights that have the F. word in the title. Ketamine is a main drug of hipsters (citation needed).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
9 comments:
see you at the shakey then?
how far away are we from the superconglomerate known as "bourke st bakery bandits" coming to fruition?
Can't believe I got vaguely turned on by your mention of underpants.
A commendable definition James. However, lines (excuse the quite intentional pun) begin to be blurred when exploring hipster traits by suburb, aka Surry hills Vs Newtown. for instance, while on a 423 (just to marrickville thanks) bus I was sat next to some young people whom i would describe as "hipsters" yet they would not fit within your definition as snugly they would a crisp pair of 501s. Rather speaking of inner city clb ntes, these young people were talking animatedly of the upcoming All tomorrows Parties festival; "god bless nick Cave" one said before boldly proclaiming that if "Warren Ellis is one of the curators than the dirty three MUST be playing!!!!"
Should we broaden our antiquated definitions of hipsterness or stick with the universally (AKA SMH) excepted basics of leggings, flat boots and Apple products? So confused =(
This is a difficult one, Katie. I subscribe to a particular litmus test, when trying to weed out the Surry Hills/Darlinghurst from the Newtown hipster:
"What is your favourite Dirty Three track?"
Surry Hills hipster: Everything is Fucked
Newtown hipster: something that isn't there best and best known song.
I've always subscribed to the theory that Newtown hipsters take the Northern Line home to their parents' place on the weekends. Surry Hills hipsters can either take the North Shore Line or catch the bus down New South Head Road.
fuck man
you are getting such a big hug for this
Check this out:
http://www.hipsterrunoff.com/2008/11/what-does-alt-mean-2-u.html
“For James, signs of the ‘affluenza virus’ include shopping too much and keeping up with fashion”
James’ second main contention is as flawed as the first. His claim to originality in linking ‘selfish capitalism’ – also sometimes called Thatcherism or Reaganomics – to mental illness is dubious.
Post a Comment