Brenton
Characteristics of the alternative
October 31st 2006 01:07
Candy Ravers Could Be Considered Part of an Alternative Culture
* The alternative is parasitic. No mainstream, no alternative. Hence, with "alternative rock" or "alternative comedy" -- to such an extent has the alternative been assimilated into, or become, the mainstream, or to such an extent has the old mainstream died, or to such an extent is there Balkanization or melange.
* The alternative can be an outsider-imposed label, a product of the mind that can only fathom "mainstream" or "non-mainstream", an umbrella term insensitive to subtler differences.
* The alternative can be a self-identification, a call to arms. It can conceive of itself as community, and therefore set its likes and dislikes in stone, and develop symbols and styles with which to include and exclude (an old phenomenon -- Aristophanes speaks of "lazy long-haired louts wearing onyx signet rings").
* The self-conscious alternative defines itself against, is created in response to, the mainstream, and is not a label of statistical fact. Classical music will never be the new alternative, no matter how unpopular it gets.
* The self-conscious alternative is a product of the mind for which issues of identification are important, and difference is important -- maybe it makes you feel special.
* Why has there never been alternative literature, art, film, or theatre? Instead of "alternative", one speaks of schools, trends, and movements, of the experimental and the avant-garde, of "outsider art" (the art of the naïve or the insane), of "indie film" (the financial underdog).
The reasons might include:
-- the vocab at one's disposal
-- the lack, sometimes, of a clear mainstream
-- the lack of sharp break with the mainstream
-- the desire to become the mainstream
-- the lack of community
-- the separation, in these spheres, of the mainstream from popularity (romance novels are the bestsellers, but have never been the literary mainstream).
* Importantly, the alternative often imports an issue of choice. An "alternative lifestyle" and "alternative medicine" are not simply statistical minorities, but are things about which to make a decision. And there is a sense in which everyone has musical tastes, though not everyone reads books, looks at art, watches theatre and film.
* "Alternative culture" often sets itself up as a complete either/or choice.
* The self-conscious label of "alternative" is a validity claim. It is something that is rational to choose. It is as good as its own alternative.
| 86 |
| Vote |
Comments (4)
Add Comments
Read More
