What Makes A Goth?

[odims_sphere]

I started working at a cemetary after school and on weekends when I was 12. First it was just driving a water truck *Gasp! a 12 year old driving* It progressed in to doing burials, and eventually running the crematory. I wroked there for a total of 8 years, Mainly part time of course. So I guess I'm kinda goth by default!

[Scary Guy]

Depends on the type of goth style

most common anymore are those whom feels they have to live out as a combination of a Charicter from stargate+animewith an addition of a painted resporater....

i do semi fall under that catagory minus the anime and the stargate and the addition of camo pants,bondage cuffs and band tshirts

Good answer.

[nilhil_glory]

hahaha i became a goth(which i still dont think i am) becouse when i was a little kid i had the biggest crush on christina ricci when she played wensday addams

i really wanted her for a girlfriend

[Fierce Critter]

Yep. I don't claim to be "goth". I'm just me. I just happen to like much of the same music, films, books, general likes and dislikes, similar view points, different view points, an affinity for black, and so on, as many of the folks on this site and other "goth" avenues.

Being one of the geezers on here, I guess the biggest thing that helped mold me to who I am was exposure to punk when I was very young and eventually other alternative forms of music that also touched me. That and the disconnection I felt from my peers throughout highschool and early 20's.

I was getting ready to be a smartass and say something like, "I know it when I see it, and I AM it." But this response pretty much answers it for me perfectly. Including the geezer part.

And I don't have a problem calling myself goth. I love labels, unlike a lot of people.

I am also very punk. And to be honest, the only reason I hesitate to say that sometimes is because I was never into a lot of hardcore punk music. Sex Pistols were alright. Ramones, again, alright. Black Flag? Meh. Most early punk was too loud for me. I preferred things a bit more melodic, so I probably was more into what would be categorized as post-punk. Nevertheless, while I to a point agree with someone in another thread that said if you're not into goth music, you can't be a goth, I mostly disagree. I think there's a general overall atmosphere that makes something/someone/somewhere "goth" or "punk" or "emo" or whatever.

I hung out in punk hangouts. I definitely looked punk, and still do. I definitely have a seriously anarchistic, rebellious punk attitude & outlook on life. I definitely associate well with punks of every persuasion (except teens today who think Greenday and Avril Lavigne are punk. Puh-LEEZE). Though I wasn't into the music so much, I was THICK into the scene, including concerts that I might not have been there for the main act, but I liked the opening acts and the people there to see all of them.

I don't think anyone has to be 100% something 24-7 to be considered to fit into a category. If you're on this page, something "goth" brought you here. There's a little goth in all of us DGN'ers.

Do you want a little goth in you??? ROFLMAO

[GOREgeouslyDecorated]

I got into the Goth thing when I was about 13ish (I'm 24 now), and altho I dont get as dolled up as I used to back in the day, I do LOVE dressing up for Necto and CC and what not - I dont dress up everyday, but anytime I go anywhere I do dress up and I LOVE the music and the clothes and pretty much the whole lifestyle ;-)

[DJDeadbeat]

Nonono, that's "What Makes A Metalhead?".

Right!

[DJDeadbeat]

I got into goth in the 7th grade when I discovered Lords of the New Church, Bauhaus, The Cure, Joy Division, Siouxsie, and all of the typical "goth" and goth related bands. I also got into futurepop, ebm, and industrial dance, which I soon got out of when It bored me. Then I fell into punk, then learned more types of punk, found deathrock, post-punk, old school industrial. Opened my eyes to hip hop, electro-funk, avant-grade, art-punk, noise rock, etc and learned to love music that struck my interest. But my passion has and always will be dark post-punk.

But what makes a goth? Music, aestetics, and interested and love for the gothic subculture. Its a musical subculture that has its roots in the darker romanticism of life and death.

[Destroit]

Actually, in all seriousness, my gothness started before I had any idea there was a such thing as "goth". I didn't get led into it by friends or anything like many people are, basically around the time I was 9 I noticed that I really liked black...alot. I liked the way it made me feel when I wore it, I even had ONE black shirt in fourth grade (keep in mind I lived in normalville my whole life, goth population = me) that I wore only on Fridays because Friday was my favorite day for obvious reasons. I tried...TRIED so hard to be preppy, but it's kinda like those certain homosexuals that try to convince themselves they're straight - it didn't work. When I got to middle school though I had a friend (one friend mind you) who was a bit of a follower, wasn't necessarily goth so much at first but copied my style, and we noticed two girls in grade 8 who dressed like we did. Hannah told me that they were "goth" and that sparked my interest and we asked if we could join their group, the answer was no of course because we were in 7th grade, but it didn't stop me from dressing how I did and listening to what I did. I got made fun of ALL my life for it, horribly horribly made fun of to the point where kids would put tacks in my chair and they'd made fun of me in front of the teachers, who also didn't care because I was "weird", yet still I didn't stop. High School was a little different at least because people grew up a little and left me alone more, and there were also four other goth kids in the school even though I wasn't friends with them.

To think, I thought I created it myself all those years ago I wasn't disappointed when I found out that I wasn't original (I don't really give a shit about all that "non-conformity" stuff, I've always felt that was more punkish) I was relieved actually to find out there were people in the world that knew where I was coming from. Now...I'm here

[CandyQuackenbush]

My Gothiness startes in middleschool/highschool.

First I was getting out of the grunge phase. * I still like a good flanel shirt*

Then progressed when I started making my own clothes in Highschool and started wearing alot of dark makeup, and putting wires in my hair when I had pigtails in.

So I'd like do say since about 99 is when it hit home that I wasn't like the rest of my friends.

[phee]

i'm just here because i like gothic women. is that so wrong?

HW is an honest man.... Ilike

[phee]

*Checks his "How To Be A Goth" Handbook*

It says here the 4th step to being a goth is denying that you are one... so um.... I AM NOT GOTH....

[Head Wreck]

me either.

[Burrich1]

John Bellairs was my favorite author from when I read The House with the Clock in the Walls in 2nd grade, and I couldn't get enough of him all the way until he died. Part of the reason's that Edward Gorey illustrated his books, and I still to this day love his work. I had the Ghastly Crumb Tinnies hanging on my wall all thru college, to the horror of many. Also, sometime as a kid, I remember going to the art museum in Chicago, and just staring at the Ivan Albright paintings for hours on end, and actually being physically dragged away from them. Most of this was long before I discovered I dig the music and the clothes. Still not sure all this combined with my dark dry sense of humor officially makes me goth tho.

[Homicidalheathen]

...ALL of my dryer lint comes out black.

[CandyQuackenbush]

How to make a goth:

4 razors.

500 bucks in black clothing.

700 buck worth of boots or shoes.

7 pairs of ripped fishnets.

Black Hair dye.

Lots of eye shadow.

Mix the Fishnets, clothes and boots into a sperate bowl.

Mash the eye shadow and hair dye until a creamy smooth texture.

Slowly mix the fishnets, clothes and boots into the eye shadow and black dye cream.

Place on a Non-Stick cookie sheet, form to your desire and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Let sit for about 5 minutes. Use Razor Blades to cut the batter up, and then place on the side of whatever you made...

and don't forget...

ENJOY! You now have you own pesonal tasty goth all to your self.

Oh wait a minute... Razor blades? I think I just told you how to make an Emo....

Oh well. Sorry.

[Nevar (5)]

Well i was pretty much born dead, yet alive enough to get jipped out of a death certificate, but eather way i was born to be me have always been me and will always continue to be me up intill my most certine demise,

it's a little tricky to define goth, i mean through out history there has alway been some form, yet each being slightly different. it's kinda like asking what makes you christan, pagen or follow budda and so on, i mean everyone makes there own image, there own beleaf's, there own standard's, you can't really say what's the right way, wear, or life style. we are all in are own universe, are own right and wrong. i mean yeah i spike my hair, get percing, and urne the darkness, but thats me, thats my form of expession. (to each there own) i always say, because they'll always be conflict and differents of opinon, i beleave everyone has there own voice,

no use to take offence in another's opinon or way of thinking, i mean this message board is here to share thought's, it's not for bashing, yet all i see is conflict. i know i'm geting a little off topic but thats how i feel.

so on that note were all who ever we wan't to be, I'll leave it at that.

[GothicRavenGoddess (3)]

To quote myself

You know.... I'm called "Goth" all the time... i have even been called a devil worshiper (which is kinda hard, sence I am Wiccan, and don't believe in a "devil") BUT..... I am SO not goth compared to most goths that I have seen. Hell, i was dressing in all black, and wearing dark makeup, and writing deep poetry for years... way before i ever heard the look being called goth.... us shadow heathens where just called simply "Freaks". and of course, everone automatically thought that we were easy, or sluts... and that the guys did drugs, and cut themselves... that we were lazy, and stupid. That all we did was listen to music, get high, and have sex.... scuse me... i was still a virgin several years into my "gothdome" anyways.. i love heavy metal, and rock, punk, and some bands that EVERYONE else classifies as emo. who cares, i don't. I listen to a song cuz i like the song, not cuz i hope my friends will think i'm cool... gawd... so....

I LOVE CITY CLUB, and... I LOVE THIS FORUM, and.... I LOVE GOTH GIRLS, and..... I LOVE GOTH BOYS, and.... I LOVE THE VINYL MAN SKIRT, THE CHAINS, THE MAKEUP, THE FETISH CUFFS, THE OH-SO-LOVELY-"D" RING, "ok, enough with the caps already" oh, sorry... I love the look, the feel, the atmosphere. I love the creativity that pours out of my depression. I love the dark things, the evil things, the things "that go bump in the night", the look of blood on the ground during a full moon (looks silver, if the light hits just right)I love the romanticized vampire. the novels that talk about them. I love the supernatural, fishnet everything... I hold my head up high when the little preppies snort at me, and give me dirty looks... i smile at little children that stare. Im loud and obnoctious, in publick, so that even if ppl want to look away, they can't no, im not that bad... my skin and eyes burn, when i pass by and American Eagle, Abercrombie, Old Navy.. you get the idea... so yeah... im not goth, i swear... "who you trying to convence? Us or yourself?" no one, i'm being a dork

edited to change the color from blue to green

I started dabbling into the whole "goth" thing very slowly... i just dressed how I felt...dark, depressed, and outcast... yeah....