‘I am not a goth!’ The Unspoken Morale of Authenticity within the Dutch Gothic Subculture AgnesJasper,UniversityofAmsterdam ABSTRACT Notions of authenticity and identity in Dutch gothic subculture focus on the paradox of being a subcultural insider, i.e. being simultaneously an individual and a member of a homogenous group. This paradox also triggers the problem of authentic identity. Gothic insiders emphasize that they are not goths, but that they identify with what they describe as gothic, only to explain later that that is not authentic gothic. I will argue that this denial is asubculturalstrategy,awayto‘wardoff’classificatorystrategiesofdominant,non-subcultural culture.Namely,assoonascriteriaforsub-culturalidentityareconceptualised,theycanbecopied byoutsiders,andthisshouldpreferablybeavoided.Empiricalmaterialwilldisplayhowgothic subcultural identityispracticedwithinthemonitoringandconceptualisingprocessesprompted by outsiders like themedia, and how authenticity seems to be avoid, nothing but an abstract, unspoken,sub-culturalmorale. Introduction It is quiteexciting to enter a gothicparty and find oneself in a world full of mystery. MostvisitorsIinterviewedtoldmetheyfinditdark,magical,fantastical.Strangersto thissubculturetoldmetheywerestruckbythepolitenessandtheenhancedpracticeof etiquetteatthoseparties.Themusicthatisusuallyplayedwithinthegothicsubculture workswellonthesenses,asitoftencontainsacertainsadnessoranger.However,the atmosphereat the parties was not the only feature of gothic subculture that intrigued mein an almost‘physical’way. Wearingacorset, forinstance,feelsasif someoneis holdingyouallthetime;itchangesyourbodystature,infact,itmakesyouawareofyour body.Within thegothicsubculture,everythingis dressed in acloudof mystery.Most importantly,itmakesme,andmanywithme,feelathome:thesmells,attitudes,clothes, colours, tastes and visual aspects of a party and its visitors tell us we find ourselves amongstourkind,inafamiliarplace. 90 ETNOFOOR,XVII(1/2)2004,pp.90–115 Foryears,exactlythissenseoffeelingathomewithinthegothicscenefascinatedme. Consideringthemysterious,uncommonand exceptionalfeaturesofgothicsubculture turnsthissenseofhomeintoastrikingfeature.Andwhatisevenmorepeculiaristhat theyoftenrefusetobecalledgothic.ThefollowingquotationisfromacertainMister Y.Rose,whoisaninsidertogothicsubculture.Pleasenotehisevasivetacticsregarding thegothicidentity: Yousharesomepointofviews,youknow.IwasalwaysattractedtothisDARKTHING, ::: butIwouldnevercallitgothic.IknewCharlesBaudelaire,IknewEdgarAllanPoe[henames someofthewritersthatareappreciatedinthegothicsubculture],Ireadallthesethingswhen Iwasakid,butitdidn’tinterestmetogivethesethingsaname.Thesethingswerejustapart ofme,youknow.IknewBauhaus,IknewtheCure[someofthebandsthatareoftenlistened towithinthegothicsubculture],butIwasn’tinterestedtogivetheseinterestsaname,aplace, asticker.Thisiswhathappensnowadays,butIdidn’tdothat!Itisnotmyfault!! [ ]Aretherecertainthingsyouappreciateespeciallywithinthegothic? ::: Yeah,ALOT!Theimagery,Ilovetheimagery.Ithasalwaysappealedtome.Ialwayswear somethingblack,youknow.EvenifnotconsciouslybecauseIwanttobegothic,youknow. Andsomepartofthephilosophy[darkromanticism]appealstome.[ ].AsmuchasIgot ::: intothegothicscene,Ilostthat! Really?! Yeah.Youhavetogetawayfromthegothicsceneitselftobeinagothicway,youknow? ya okay butthenexplainallthesegothsthataretogetherthen ::: ::: ::: ::: IamNOTtalkingaboutthem.Iamtalkingaboutme. Mister Y. Rose’s words contain a paradox that recurred in many conversations and interviews during my research: gothic party visitors (from now on I call them gothic insiders) state that they are not goth,1 but identify with what they describe as goth, only to tell me later that that is not authentic goth. Is this ‘negativity’ some kind of subculturalstrategy?Isitawayto‘wardoff”theclassificatorystrategiesofdominant, non-subculturalculture? Ithinkitisimportanttotrytograspthisparadoxinallitscomplexity.Detaileduseof empiricaldatawillshowthatwhatisatstakehereis,first,relatedtothemoregeneral problemofbeinganindividual,whileatthesametimebeingamemberofagroup;And, second,itisrelatedtoanattemptofguardingsomekindofsubculturalauthenticityinthe all-absorbingcontextofcommerceanddominantculture.Gothsthemselvesdonotuse thetermauthenticityexplicitly.But,asIwillshowbelow,notionsofauthenticityseem tomorallyhoveraboveeverythingtheydo.Being‘authentic’seemstobeasubcultural necessity;itseemstobesomekindofunspokenmorale.Onewillfindthatsubcultures and notions of authenticity and identity are intricately intertwined. Before I will turn to my ethnographic data, I feel inclined to elaborate on subcultural theory and the anthropologicalhistoryofthetermauthenticity. 91 Thinkingabouthomogenoussubcultural‘others’ Subcultures always differ from the dominant culture or mainstream culture within which they exist. There are two schools famous for their research on, and theories about,subcultures.Iwillonlyveryshortlyintroducetheseschools.TheChicagoSchool focussedonsmallgroupsthathavetrouble‘fittingin’becauseoftheirsocial,oreconomic differences.Thesecondschool,theBirminghamSchool,evennarroweddownthefocus onsubculturesingeneraltothespecificstudyofyouthsubcultures.2Subcultureswerenot onlyplacedoutsidethesocialconventionalnorm,theywereplacedoutsidethegeneral adultworld.Alongwiththis‘othering’cametheideathatwithinsubcultures,different behaviourswerepracticed.Theseyouthcultures(mods,rockersorpunksandskinheads) were seen to practicedeviantbehaviourdirected against their parentculture, and this brought up an interest in alternative cultural knowledge and (sub)cultural resistance. Anthropologists started treating subcultures the way they had treated cultures in the non-western world, as homogenous, traditional, continuous cultures, and subcultural insiderscametobeseenaswestern‘others’. In ResistancethroughRituals(1976)differentauthorsstudythemesofnegotiation, resistance and struggle connected to subordinate youth cultures.3 Influenced by Gramsci’s theory of cultural hegemony, the authors portray how dominant classes exercise their power by ‘coercing’ subordinate classes to conform to their interests. Theydescribehowsubordinateculturescontinuouslyfindthemselvesbetween‘giving in’andpracticingresistancetodominantculture.Inwhatway,then,cansubculturesbe autonomousand,assuch,‘authentic’? Hebdige,alsopartoftheBirminghamSchoolandtheCCCS,andheavilyinfluenced bythespectacularpunksubculture,elaboratesinhisbookSubculture:TheMeaningof Style(1979)onhowdominantforcesofmassmediaandcommerceworktoincorporate, regulate and negotiate subcultural ‘looks’, fashions or styles. Hebdige’s argument is that no subculture can be authentic because as soon as it’s look, style and fashion are incorporated in the dominant capitalist culture; it loses its raison d’eˆtre, that is, resistancethroughaparticularstyle.InreadingHebdige,onecomestounderstandthat theauthenticityofsubculturesistobefoundatthespectacularleveloffashionandstyle. Muggleton,ontheotherhand,statesthatClarke,HebdigeandthewholeCCCSfall intoatrap:theytendtoreifysubcultures.Byposingthefollowingrhetoricalquestions, hetriestoprovetheuselessnessofdescribingsubculturesasauthentic: How do we identify the point at which innovative style becomes incorporated fashion? On whatcriteriacanparticularsubculturalists4beregardedasauthenticorinauthentic?Wherecan wedrawthelinethatseparatestheoriginalsfromthefollowers?(Muggleton2000:24). Muggleton states there is no ‘true’ subculture. According to him, all subcultures are manifestationsofself-expression,individualautonomyandculturaldiversity.Thereare but‘subculturalists’:groupsofpeoplethatsharethesamesensibility,beitpost-modern, 92 working-class,orsomethingelse.Thisdevelopmentcanbetracedbacktothebeginning ofthe1960’s(ibid:164). Muggletonoptsformoregeneralizing,grandtheoriesapplicabletoallsubculturesin general, whereasHebdigeand othersfocuson the differentstyles of subcultures,and consequently,reifythem.Eitherway,scholarsmovedfromdoingparticipantobservation to observationofstyles andthewritingofgrandtheory.For now,Iwouldliketoturn tosomeonewhoremainedveryclosetohisempiricaldata,andevenstudiedthesame (gothic)subculture,althoughinEngland:PaulHodkinson. Gothicsubculturalsubstance Contemporary gothic subculture does not consist of a group of people with the same homogenous economic, social background. Neither is it a youth-culture, since subcultural practitioners age from early teens up to mid-forties. Nevertheless, their ‘spectacularity’(thetypicalblackclothesmadefromPVC,velvet,leatherorsatin,and the light skin and dark make-up)turns gothic insidersinto ‘others’in the brightlight of dominant culture. Whether resistance is what lies at the core of gothic subculture remainstobeseen. PaulHodkinson(2002),likemeaninsidertogothicsubculture,5pointedoutthatso called‘spectacular’aspectsofgothicsubcultureareinfactsubstantiveaspects,because they havebeen moreor less the same for morethan a quarter of a century.In a way, heblessesgothicsubculturewith an auraof authenticity.Thisstandsin starkcontrast withHebdige,whoshowsusthatanysubculturalauthenticityisinfactacontradiction in terms, because as soon as subcultural styles emerge they will be copied, and all subcultures, according to Hebdige, will thus be incorporated into dominant culture. Gothic insiders, however, have contained a similarity over more than a quarter of a century, since the late ’70’s up till today. Gothic culture has always been dark in music,symbolism,fashionandattributeslikesculls, deadflowers,macabrepaintings, et cetera. Of course, new technology brought new music and it brought the Internet, but gothic remains fairly true to its origins in the late ‘70’s, early ’80’s. Also, most gothicinsidershavebeenfrequentingthesubculturalarenaforyearsandyears.6Thisall seemstoconfirmHodkinson’sideathatsubculturesingeneralhaveakindofauthentic substance.Accordingtohim,thissubstanceconformstothefollowingcriteria:thefirst three,consistentdistinctiveness,sharedidentityandcommitmenthighlighttheinterplay between the individual and the social (Hodkinson 2002: 30-3). But the fourth needs someelaborationhere.Hodkinsoncallsit‘autonomy’anddescribesitasfollows: Ourinterestistodistinguishbetweeninternalorsubculturalformsofmediaandcommerce– which operate mostly within the networks of a particular grouping–and external or non- subculturalproductsandservices,producedbylarger-scalecommercialinterestsforabroader consumerbase(ibid:33). 93 Asubculturalinsiderhastoinformhim/herselfconstantlyonwhatthespecificsubculture inquestionisactuallyabout.He/shehastobesociallyactiveandinconstantdialogue with the subculture. Hodkinson’s description of autonomy is very important; for it distinguishes the role of media and commercein the subculturalworld from the role theyplayin thenon-subculturalworld.Hodkinsonexplainshowgothicinsidershave created their own, autonomous media and commercial networks, and he proves that Hebdige’s theory of dominant culture destroying subcultures is incorrect. The gothic subculture has survived and remained autonomous (homogenous?) regardless of the dominantforcestoincorporatesubcultures. One could wonder whether it is not merely Hodkinson’s insider affinity with his subculturethatmotivateshimtorescuesubculturaltheoryfromtheaffrontingideasof post-modernnihilism.Idonotthinkso.Iwanttopresent,ethnographically,thecomplex interplaybetweeninsidersto gothicsubculturewho areat thesametimeautonomous individuals,andpartofasubculturalgroupthatonerefusestobepersonallyidentified with.Itisinthelightofthisparadoxthat,Ithink,itiseasiertocomprehendwhygoths statetheyarenotgoth;whytheyidentifywithgothic,andsimultaneouslydenythatthat is,whattheyare. Mister Y. Rose’s words,in theexampleI used in theintroduction,motivatedme to studythegothicsubculturalworld,notpurelyfromwithin,norpurelyfromthedominant outsideperspective.Iwantedtofocusontheliminal,undefined,interactionalareawhere thesetwoworldscometogether,andtousethisfocusasastartingpointforethnographic research.InthenextsectionIwillfocusonthefollowingquestions:whenissomething orsomeoneconsideredsubcultural,ornon-subcultural,bywhom,andwhy?Whatisthe roleofsubculturalandnon-subculturalcommerce–andmedia-networks?Howdothey handletheparadoxessenseofidentityandauthenticity?Idecidedtoresearchwebsites, articlesinthemediaongothic,andthesymbolicworkthatcomesalongwithidentity, withexplainingone’spositioninlife. Subculturalauthenticity:anegativedialectic? WhenIaskedmyinformantstoco-operatewithmyresearch,theirreactionoftenwas defensive or distant. Informants would claim, at first, with almost no exception, that theywerenotgothic.Oneexplanationcouldbethatmystatusasresearchercausedmy informantstopracticeoverlyprotectivebehaviourtowardstheirculture.However,Ido notthinkthisisthecase,becauseIalreadywasaninsider.Foryears,Ihaveworkedas avolunteeratgothicparties.Istillorganisegothicparties,Iamaperformanceartist,I playinagothicband,andIhavemanyfriendlyorsemi-professionalcontactswithalot of peoplein thegothicsubculture.So I knowfora factthat this positionhasbeen an advantagetomeasaresearcher,because,asSarahThorntonwouldsay,Ihaveaccess toalotof‘subculturalcapital’(1995:200-9). 94 Nevertheless,atthestartofmyresearchperiod,Isensedasuddendistancebetween me, now insider-turned-researcher, and my acquaintances, now informants, which fortunatelydiminishedratherquickly.IfeltagreatneedtostatethatIdidnotintendto writeajournalisticandsensationaliststory,knowingthisisacommonsubculturalfear thatcausesprotectivebehaviourtowardsthesubculturalin-group(seealsoWiddicombe andWooffitt1995).Toavoidthissubculturalfearofbeing‘freezed’or‘pinneddown’ (ibid.), I started to explain my research as a study on the ‘dark world’ that they (my informants) feel related to and that some of them might call gothic and others not. I explainedmyinformantsthatIwantedtotakeaseriousandgenuinelyinterestedlook inside this so called ‘indefinable world’, and adopted some of the evasive tactics my informantsappliedandthatIwassofamiliarwith. IthushadtoalmostdenythatIsawmyinformantsastypicalgoths,inorderto‘trick’ themintogivinginterviews.Regardlessofmysuccessfuleffortsofnotidentifyingmy informantsasgoth,theystillfelttheneedtodistancethemselvesfromthegothiclabel. Ievennotedaheightenedoutspokennessaboutmaterialandpersonalfeaturesthatare definitely not goth. In spite of being well equipped to describe their idea of gothic culture,theyatthesametimeinsistedthattheythemselveswerenotgoth.Iemphasize their resistance against a labelling process, because this is truly the issue that I am dealingwithinthisarticle.Ithinkthiscouldberecognisedas,whatWiddicombeand Wooffitt have called, ‘the moral code language’ subcultural insiders adopt to remain seenasauthentic.Theirmethodofconversationanalysisenablesthemtoconcludethat ‘beingseen to conformto the criterialfeaturesof asubculturalgroupis taken to bea signofin-authenticity’(ibid.:226). Onthebasisofempiricaldata,Iwillshowhowinsiderspracticegothicsubcultural identity.Iwillshowinwhatwaysauthenticityandsubculturaltheoryarepartandparcel oftheknowledgeofthemediaandsubculturalinsiders.Iwillshowaswellthatinsiders areverymuchawareofthedoubleparadoxinherenttosubculturalauthenticity. Goths:‘ordinary’people,ora‘naturalstateofbeing’? Time and again, my informants explained how ordinary they actually were. I give a couple of examples. Jeanette, who has a secretary job, has played in several gothic bands,andisavideo-DJatgothicparties,saidtome:‘Iamjustanordinarypersonwith anordinaryjob!AndIhaveafamilyandIevenlikeDancemusic!’Christine,whoworks withcomputersandorganisesgothicparties,putitthisway:‘Iamjustlikeanyoneelse, IalsodomygroceriesattheDirkvandeBroekandBlokker’.7PatriciaandAnton,who bothhavejobs,butalsoDJatgothicpartiesandhaveseveralgothicWebpagesthatare consideredtobeveryimportantforthe gothicsubculture,useaslightlydifferentway ofsayingthesame: 95 Actually,wearevery‘burgerlijk’[atranslationthatcomesclosesttothisDutchwordwouldbe ‘petit-bourgeois’,AJ],becausewegettogetherathomeandsimplyplayordinaryboardgames. Thisisnotgothicatall! EverytimeIpersuadedmyinformantstotalkabouttheirpersonalsubculturalidentity andthatofothers,oraboutissuesofauthenticity,theydidtheirutmosttoexplainhow ‘ordinary’theyactuallywere.Theyseemedtofeelmorecomfortableshowingmetheir ordinary status than proving me how perfectly they fitted all the subcultural criteria, criteriatheythemselvesjusthaddefinedas beinggothic.Thequestionarises whether gothicauthenticityisusuallydeniedinagothiccontext.Canauthenticitybeaffirmative aswellwithinthesamecontext? In conversations and discussions, on Webpages and at parties, gothic insiders do emphasise some kind of ‘authentic’ state of goth-dom, which can be found in its ‘naturality’andinitsindividuality.Gothicinsidersexplainedinwhatwaystheycarry their goth-existencewithin themselves. Being a goth is somethingone simply cannot resist. It is just there, natural, even genetic(!), and authentic. Patrick, a photographer (bothatgothicpartiesasinthenon-subculturalworld)explaineditasfollows:‘whenI takeother[non-gothic]pictures,theyaremadethroughagothicfilter. Itjusthappens. I can’t help it’. George, an artist, performanceartist, and fashion designer within the gothic subculture, tells me about one of his ‘ordinary’ jobs: ‘I worked as a window- displayer,andeventhatcameoutdark.Itisjustme,Ican’thelpit’.Marco,agothicparty visitor,definesagothasfollows:‘ nevertheless,itisatypeofperson,definitely ’ ::: ::: AndGeorgesuspectsgenestoplayaroleinbeinggoth: [Gothic]isjustsomethingthatispartofyourmentalchemistry.You’rewarpedinalittleway. [ ].Yourmindchemistryisdifferent.Doctorshaven’tyetfoundthetraceofit. ::: PeterandJoyceevendefinepeoplewhoarenot‘goth’as‘naturally’gothic.Peter,who worksinagothic-orientedbar:‘Ihaveafriendwhoisnotgothic,althoughheiseven moregothicthananybodyIknow’.Joyce,singerinaDutchgothicband: Arendhatesgothic,butheisthemostgothicpersonIknow.Itisjustinsideyou,regardlessif youweararubberoutfitornot.Hehadaveryheavychildhoodandkeepsescapingintoafantasy world.Hehasanordinaryofficejob,butwhathedoes whenyouhearhimsing thereis ::: ::: darknessinhislyrics.Ithastocomeoutinsomeway;itjustbecomesacreativeniche.You carryitinsideyou. Itisobviousthatgothic,togothicinsiders,containsanaturalessencethatgoesbeyond styled identity. ‘Naturality’ is timeless, has been around forever. The gothic insiders mentioned above emphasise that they always have been goths, thereby trying to give examplesof their longhistory of subculturalparticipation.Moregenerally,some will evenexplainthattherealwayshavebeengothsthroughouthistory,likeLucille(student, gothicmodel,designerofherowngothicclothes): 96 thisdayandage,ourstyleiscalledgothic.Butatothertimes,therehavebeenpeoplelike ::: us.Theywerejustcalleddifferently.Itisnotnew.Ithasalwaysexisted. Gothic insiders seem to gladly identify with natural and historical features they find truly gothic. Goths authenticate their own identities by saying it is their nature, they cannothelpit,ithasalwaysbeenthere.Thesequotationsshowthatgothicinsidersdo whattraditionalethnographershavedonewhentheydescribednon-westernculturesas ‘natural’,homogeneous,andtimeless,authentic.Inthissense,itisonlyunderstandable thattheyfindthemselvesnormal,or‘ordinary’. Nevertheless,bystatingthattheyareordinarypeople,gothsdonotdenytheirgoth- ness.Whattheymeanbyemphasizingtheirordinarystatusisnotdenyingtheirgothic identity,butimplyingthefactthatanybody,evensomeonewhoisnottakingpartingothic subculture,canbeagoth(asthequotationsabovemakeclear).Clearly,whatisthematter hereistheambiguityaroundgothicidentity:ononehand,gothicisseenassomething natural that you just ‘are’, a state of mind; on the other hand, it is something that is ‘lived’andshared.Itisagrouppractice,itisculturalpractice,andassuchdebateable. Insidersasauthenticators? Appadurai stated that ‘authenticity today is becoming a matter of the politics of connoisseurship,ofthepoliticaleconomyoftaste,andofstatusdiscrimination;beyond that, it is a matter of power, of who has the right to authenticate’ (1986: 44-5). The questionriseswhatgothicinsidershavetosayaboutlabellingorauthenticatingsomeone asagoth.Lucille,awell-knownandrespectedinsider,toldme: Therewerealotofyounggirlswhoaskedmewhethertheyweregothenough.Ithinkthatis sad like,ohgirl youknow.Inevereverwantedtoposethatquestionmyself. ::: ::: It is not only common amongst insiders to deny gothic identity, but the wish to be ableto properlydisplay gothicidentityis perceivedas negative.Lucillecalls it ‘sad’. Whengothicinsidersgetidentifiedas‘goths’byotherinsiders,orwhentheyasktoget ‘gothed’bythem,theyalmostbecomeoutsiders.Wehavetotakeintoaccountthatthe subculturalidealissomewhatromanticandadventurous:individualsarefreetomanifest themselves,everythingisallowed,therearenoboundaries,onecangoforanypersonal adventure, one is ‘free to be’. Initiation ceremonies are non-existent and there is no regulatedsystemforauthentication.Theonlyconditionisthatallinsidersseeandtreat thecultureastheirpersonalandindividualhome. Theideaofastandardgothicidentityisperceivedasfrighteningandrepulsivetogothic insiders,andopposedtotheidealofbeing‘freetobe’.Toget‘gothed’isconsidereda badthing.Keith,awell-knownDJwithinthegothicsubculture,onceexplainedtome, inaverycynical,disapprovingtone,thatheandhisgirlfriendwerecalled‘U¨bergoths’.8 Herepeatedseveraltimesthathedidnotseehimselfasagoth.IassumeKeiththought 97 it important to state his ‘U¨bergoth’-ness because it implied some subcultural status, (‘ournameswereonalltheguestlists,wealwaysjumpedqueues,hadallthebackstage passes,wavedwithdrinktickets ’)whichis,inaway,apositivepersonalfeature.It ::: is,however,alsoanegativefeature,becauseitshowsthathardworkforthesubculture (theyorganisedparties,DJ-ed,madegothicart,helpedwithpromotionandbookingof bands)givesoneagoth-tag,whilealloneissubculturallysupposedtodo,iswhatone is‘naturallyinclinedtodo’.Astheromanticidealofsubculturescallsforequalityand freedom,oneshouldnotbe‘U¨bergothed’.Thefactthatthe‘U¨bergoth’-taghasprobably arisenoutofjealousyfrominsiders,whodonothavethissubculturalstatus,emphasizes thenegativeconnotationevenmore. Insideidentityjokes Gothic insiders experience the ambiguity inherent to identity. After the first wave of negative‘U¨bergoth’identitytags,ayounggirl,gothicinsider,claimedthe‘U¨bergoth’ identity tag. She started handing out flyers at gothic parties with her name, a nice picture and a declaration of her ‘U¨bergoth-ness’. Her self-imposed ‘U¨bergoth’ status was,subculturally,seenasafunnyjoke.Shebecameawell-knowninsider.Thisexample showsthesubculturalhypersensitivitythatsurroundsnotionsofidentity.Gothicinsiders areawareoftheambiguitythatsurroundssubculturalidentity,andlikethe‘U¨bergoth’- girl,theyplaywithit,makefunofit,andbydoingthis,theymakefunoftheemphasis theythemselvesputonnaturalityandancientgoth-dom.Thefollowingcartoonismade byagothicinsider-cartoonistinabookcalledOhMyGoth!(seefig.1). This cartoon ridicules young Goths that claim to have a centuries old gothic experience,and claim to havebeen to parties they could neverhavewitnessed unless they were approximately eight years old at the time. It illustrates the fact that gothic insiders are very much aware of authenticity claims, or authentication-practices, and thataso-called‘gothicidentity’canoftenbefakeandincorrect.Gothsareverymuch awareoftherolesoftheirfellowinsidersatapartyorawebforumontheInternet.They areawareoftheperformativeaspectsoftheirculture:peoplewhodressupspecifically foraparty,takeuponthemselvesaroleorcharactertheywilladaptto. I haveseen, forexample,youngboysdressedlikeancientvampires,(teeth,contact lenses,walkingsticksandtophats,alltheretomatchthecharacter).Ihaveseenwomen in their 30’s, 40’s dressed up like little girls (complete with ponytailsand outfits that resembleschooluniforms).I have seen girls dressed like witches, playingthe femme fatale;orpeopledressedupasiftheycamestraightoutofthemovieTexasChainsaw Massacre,wearingwhitecottonclothessplatteredwithfakeblood.9Gothicsubculture isfullofrole-playandotherperformativeaspects.Butitisexactlythisfeatureofgothic thathasadirecteffectonso-calledtruegothicidentity:itbecomesambiguous,itcanbe faked,liedabout,exaggerated,itisopenforinterpretationbyeverybody. 98 Fig.1.BernieWeinstein-VladtheImpaler,Voltaire2003 99