I never went through a punk or goth phase, but I have worn outfits that could be considered punk or goth “style”.
Me in 2007 all dressed up for a night at an alt dance club.
I like different styles and I wear what I want to wear. Clothing is one of the areas in life where we really have a lot of control. Even in places where clothing has been standardized (uniforms), people show their individuality by adding highlights – colorful socks, headbands, jewelry, shoes, etc.
Clothing is such a superficial thing – it’s so easily changed! But it can very much affect how people see us, how we see ourselves, and even how we act. I’m fascinated that we can seem like different people when we change our clothes. When I went out wearing my nose ring and this punk-ish hoodie, people definitely treated me differently than when I am in more “normal” (normal – WTF, mate?) clothing.
That’s no big discovery, though – we all know and have experienced that clothing makes the (wo)man. But I was surprised when I discovered that I could actually regard and treat people differently depending on what I’m wearing. When I’m being slobbish and lazy and I wear PJ bottoms and an old t-shirt to the grocery store, I tend to have less patience for people – I’m annoyed that they see me dressed like an idiot, and I’m annoyed that they’ve probably thinking that I’m an idiot for dressing like one.
How do you feel about your clothing and style? Does it affect your attitude?
PS – Don’t I look badass in these photos? You can’t see it here, but in the bottom photo my Shakespeare magnetic poetry kit is plastered all over the refrigerator to my left. Verily, a nerd no matter what clothing I wear.
Well, today’s introspection is inspired by NCBI ROFL’s blog post Personalities of punks and perils of their pointy parkas. I mentioned in an earlier post that NCBI ROFL takes serious studies and presents them humorous ways. This post was about the uniqueness of punk juvies and non-punk juvies:
“The purpose of this study was to provide some understanding of punk rockers. Although they have received media attention in the depiction of their unusual hair and clothing styles, there is limited information about their personalities. In this study a delinquent group of punk rockers was compared with a delinquent group of nonpunk rockers on self-image, a personality factor related to teenagers’ mental health and adjustment. Each group consisted of 20 subjects, 15 males and 5 females, aged 14 to 17. Subjects were administered a Screening Questionnaire, the Offer Self-Image Questionnaire (OSIQ), and the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) while detained at a Southern California juvenile hall… No significant differences were found between the groups. The importance of these findings is that even though punk rockers may look and act unusual, they may actually be similar to other groups.”
What – you mean we’re all human beings with similar human emotions underneath all of that leather, the hair dye, the spikes and patches? Ha! I don’t believe it! I’m surprised that punks and non-punks can still produce viable offspring! *shaking head* Wow. I make fun, but the larger study is interesting and may help correction professionals have more positive interactions with the youth with whom they’re working.
Photo source
There is a second journal article associated with this NCBI ROFL blog post recounting the dangers of spiky punk jackets:
“Stab wounds to the thorax are seen in the emergency department (ED) and can be caused by a variety of mechanisms. This case highlights an unusual cause of injury: a leather jacket with spikes on the back of it. This type of jacket is often worn by “punks” as a fashion statement. We report that falling onto such a jacket may result in accidental thoracic injury leading to subcutaneous emphysema. A thorough clinical assessment is mandatory to exclude underlying lung injury or pneumothorax.”
Yeowch.
Stay away from this punk mouse. He’ll pneumothorax your ass! Well, your lung…you know what I mean.