Why do so few books capture the goth aesthetic? Do people in that subculture just not write books?I saw some goth girls downtown and it got me thinking I don't know a single book written by one, despite girls writing most books now.
>>24681404Gothic is an entire genre anon, some of it is even good
>>24681408Gothic is not the same as like... aesthetic goth.
Ever heard of Goosebumps?
>>24681404Its a subgenre that died with the times in the early 2008s. It's like asking if the 90s are ever gonna come back. Well, maybe for you they might.
in the 80s these people were posers already let alone the rerererehashed ethots we've got today
>>24681441I saw three goth girls walking down the street today.
>>24681404https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03QyX6uCWNQ
>>24681404What does goth mean to you, anon? My understanding is that, like all major fashion subcultures, stemmed from a lifestye: that being the musicians and fans of a genre of music that subverted Christian (specifically Gothic style within Catholicism) iconography in a rejection of its oppressive influences in sexual expression. In time this subculture was commercialized and become synonymous only with the sense of eternal malcontent and excessive amounts of black and silver (the vestigial clerical attire). So then, what themes would a goth piece of literature address? I think it would be mankind's relationship with sin, as in the forces of societal conservatism coming into friction with expression of one's identity. I think there's plenty of literature that does this, though perhaps not in the same wardrobe. If you're willing to compromise between visual aesthetics and these sinful themes, there's Gothic vampire stories (see Anne Rice). If you're just interested in the fashionable aspect, I'm afraid that kind of work rarely sees academia or major syndication; you might have to look for internet-published fanfiction and original stories (half in jest, I might say My Immortal is an example). But goth is ultimately a visual and auditory aesthetic first.
Poppy Z Brite mentions goth bands like Bauhaus, The Cure and Siouxsie etc in her novels and they feature goth characters and goth clubs. Exquisite Corpse is her best and most mature work imo, Lost Souls is the cooler concept but being her first novel it suffers from being very fanfic-y. Very purple flowery prose but it’s only annoying in the earlier work. All of her work is literally gay homosexual dick in ass gay tho so beware.
Not everyone you see wearing black is goth, retard. Goths ARE very literary, they read more than the average faggot, especially trve poetry. Most books written BY goths are nonfiction/biographies/commentaries about the scene however. Goth being mostly about music (certain sound and bands) goths that would be writing would probably be writing lyrics for music. Also I’m goth and write trve poetry, most goths do but we just don’t publish or we have our own little websites/neocities etc
>>24681517post some of your trve poetry
>>24681404>I saw some goth girls downtownNo you did not. You just saw girls dressed in black with ridiculous amounts of makeup on
>>24681612That's 95% of goth girls
>>24681411Goth culture was big on Gothic lit back in the days before Hot Topic and mall goths. t. old fuck who was goth in the days before Hot Topic and mall goths
>>24681707That's actually pretty interesting, maybe I should read up on the movement a bit.
>>24681605No I’m self conscious but thank you for showing interest anon you made my day. I write them, mostly sonnets or experimental dactylic or anapestic lyrics, on blank pages in my copies of Swinburne, Poe, Keats etcI also have the penguin anthology of english decadent poetry it’s great
>>24681441>Its a subgenre that died with the times in the early 2008s.The goth chicks are listening to Twin Tribes and bands like that nowadays. You can't really kill it, it always manages to crawl out of the grave.https://youtu.be/-XEavwcHU78The gothic scene also seems to be a bit stronger in Mexico and Germany, and some of these groups can be aesthetically gothic but sonically it's electronic Schlager-pop which is quite funny.>>24681478>What does goth mean to you, anon? My understanding is that, like all major fashion subcultures, stemmed from a lifestyeI think of goth as a "dark" offshoot of Romanticism, so the genre predates the musical subculture. It first referred to architecture then to literature and then to music and the subculture around that. Romanticism was a 19th century art movement that focused on emotion and passion in defiance of rationalism. That was very influential and gothic is basically about that but with more vampires. The romantic love genre is different but I think (?) it emerged out of Romanticism too, or carried some of the themes explored by the Romanticists into popular / commercial culture, and then that links back up with goth again. A lot of goth bands like The Cure actually write love songs.>But goth is ultimately a visual and auditory aesthetic first.It's essentially an aesthetic tradition more than a single form of expression. This is why you can have Siouxsie and the Banshees, and a German electronic pop band like Blutengel both be considered gothic even though the music sounds totally different. Well it has a similar aesthetic or mood or evokes similar feelings:https://youtu.be/TjvvK-Rj0WIhttps://youtu.be/sfN6kRAd2bQ>So then, what themes would a goth piece of literature address? I think it would be mankind's relationship with sin, as in the forces of societal conservatism coming into friction with expression of one's identity.Tragic romance. Destructive passion. It's not just "dark" in a horror sense, it's romantically dark. It involves a tormented, inner world. Or like, your lover is passionate for you but is also cursed, and condemned. Or you want to become a vampire but actually there's a plot twist because being a vampire has a dark side you didn't think about.
>>24681404My Immortal
But you know this is why I think goth will be with us for awhile because it's part of an aesthetic tradition that can update with changes in technology, whether it's in the music or the materials used to make the outfits. It's not a one-off thing like dubstep or synthwave which is committed to a particular form and the rules don't let you diverge from the 32 or so different combinations of notes because it's no longer part of the genre.Goth is an undead genre like that. And a rich one in many ways and quite longstanding one in Western culture. It's good. Very German.
This is what it is. No big mystery.Also for music there are bands like Boy Harsher and Drab Majesty. They seem popular with goths. But then I'll come across some Hot Topic looking band wearing latex that pulls a huge crowd (for a goth act) in Mexico City. https://youtu.be/YdZwVbPMtvQhttps://youtu.be/5lVfNtsx1y8
