Identity Most people, unless they choose to be an outsider, want to be considered “cool.” Whether it’s to fit in with a peer group, or clique, or to impress someone in particular, like a member of the opposite sex, or a potential mate. Or possibly to gain something from an individual for financial or social gain (see “Scamming”). What are the limits of how far you would go to be considered “cool?” For example, do your beliefs or your religion hold you back or have an effect on the level of “coolness” you want to achieve? Do you draw the line at wearing T shirts with logos? Maybe you would wear blue jeans that are “Bedazzled”, but not jeans that are pre-bleached in areas? How about shoes with tassels or curled up toes? Can you be …show more content…
Oh, yeah, slang and vulgarity are often used to make a statement or description a little more colorful. I don’t ever hear “you’re an anal orifice”, or “eat feces and die”, or “fornicate yourself”, or “excrete and fall back in it”, although I find them colorful. I do, though, draw the line at maternal fornication (or paternal for that matter), but it’s to my understanding that there are some southern states where it’s distasteful to breed outside of your family. If you’re a polygamist, this would still give you lots of options, eh? I wonder if polygamy is cool? Maybe if you’re a Mormon or something. Who’s to say what’s cool, and what’s not? I guess it goes back to who you are trying to impress! What’s cool to a Mormon may not be considered cool by a cannibal, and vice versa. And what kind of fashion accessories would be considered cool at a nudist camp? Maybe body piercings? (Ouch, that’s just wrong!) Whatever floats yer boat! I don’t think I’d put a lot of effort there. So cliques and peer groups are the main reasons people to want to be cool. I know, because I just said so. And that’s the same psychology the media uses to “sell” people on “what’s cool”. There are a lot of celebrity news programs and the “E” channel, telling the viewers “Who’s hot and who’s not” or what kind of clothes are trendy, or Jennifer Aniston’s hair is the bomb, or Angelina Jolie has great lips, etc. I think it’s a good thing we have Joan Rivers and Kathy Griffin to put their
Author, Alexandra Robbins, in her novel The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth, describes her quirk theory and establishes its credibility as she centers her theory around seven different characters as she narrates their high school experiences. Robbins focuses on the negative effects of popularity and how social norms can affect an individual, regardless of what social group they belong to. She creates an amusing, informative tone in order to appeal to the geeks, freaks, and popular crowds with relatable experiences and strong essays in regards with the social scene, exclusivity, and how one handles a given situation.
In Murray Milner’s: Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids, chapter three mainly talks about conformity and how it really takes place in school, specifically high schools. Throughout the entire chapter Milner talks about what these students do in order to conform with the rest of the “school society”. The basic rules and regulations these teens have to go by in order to really fit in with certain groups. Milner talks about different topics throughout the reading which breaks the entire aspect down for better understanding. He goes from the idea of crowds and their rankings, clothes and the styles that are in demand, speech and different language, all the way down to body language. The status of how a person displays themselves equals the status they are with a specific groups and idea. The idea of a person being broken down
It is sad to see how these teenagers think of themselves as being cool because of the activities they choose to do, when they each see how it is making them live a shorter life and none of them are doing a thing about it. Life is worth more than feeling cool. Proverbs says, “Since they hated knowledge…the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them” (Proverbs 1:29a, 32). The teenagers in “We Real Cool” have an image of their selves as being cool on the outside because of the badly behaved things they are taking part in and want others to think them as being cool. These teenagers want to think that they are cool for doing the things they do, but they know that the destructive life they live will soon be a factor to their deaths. Brooks demonstrates in “We Real Cool” that even though people acknowledge their own behavior and think of themselves as being cool, their destructive ways will be a part of their short lives and none of their coolness will ever matter again.
Wear that hoodie you purchased at your favorite musician's concert, despite the fact that you practically swim in it. And yes, wear that frumpy T-shirt that unforgivingly asserts your Hogwarts house. Wear these with pride and confidence, because I believe that it's okay to not look like you just popped out of an issue of Teen Vogue. My definition of style is not the current trends or the most flattering cuts for my body type, but rather what screams "me." I want to stand out from the crowd, but not for pretending to be a girl that I am not. I believe that conversational clothing, no matter how weird, is the key to fostering new and meaningful relationships, because strangers are just friends I haven't met yet, and I'd like to meet them all. But I want to meet them as myself, the girl who belts show tunes when she's home alone, not a cookie cutter girl of anyone's beauty standards. This I
Particularly, the willingness to be like others around us is mostly seen in middle school and high school. Teens are following the new trends and sporting the latest accessories because they see everyone else doing it. And if anyone is caught wearing something that was “so last year” or has an android instead
What makes Cool distinctive is its extreme variability as it is more affiliated with people rather than objects. Although Cool is meant to reflect what is inside, mainly the internal change and the revolutionary inclination from within, still one can not fail its manifestations on the outside. These are clearly demonstrated in the way the subcultures express their ideology through dressing and fashion. According to Pountain and Robinson, “Fashion has always been the key signifier of Cool.. It is the court in which Cool displays itself.”
Teenagers are at that age where they are trying to figure out who they are and what they want to be, or to look like. They have this strong desire to look “cool” in front of their friends. They must have the best and latest designer brands, smartphones and bags. With the influence of celebrity lives, they have put an emphasis on how important material objects are and they would go to any length to obtain
adolescents will still relinquish their better judgment to “look cool” in front of their peers.
Growing up I consider being an only child an essential part of my identity, on the other hand, a relationship with a sibling could be deeply formative versus the absence for me has been a powerful stimulus to my imagination and my growth mindset as a person. When I am introduced as an only child, people often react as if growing up by myself meant that I was growing up lonely. It is most certainly true that I spent a lot of time alone even though I had friends from school whom I spent my most time with, but I never felt alone. As a young boy, I loved to get lost in various creative activities where I needed no partner or playmate to communicate with. The act of creation itself became my friend. I challenged myself upon improving my skills, researching about different topics and reading about different personalities. This gave me satisfaction into daydreaming. It was a powerful tool to give me ideas to shape my future.
In the film, a company called "The Cool Hunters," searchers for trendsetters. They find teens that "look outside their backyard for inspiration" according to Dee Dee Gordon who is a Teen Market Researcher. These people go out, take pictures of trendsetting teens, and interview them while posting publicly their findings. In result, more and more teen's spot what is on these sites, almost mimicking what they see is cool. Once that happens, these trends no longer are considered genuine. Due to the trends posted publicly, teens are receiving a less than authentic experience. This type of researching and advertising corresponds with Douglas Rushkoff's argument on how teen market and media are fixed into a "giant feedback loop." The researchers
Does everyone want to be cool? Or do some people just feel the need to be accepted and comfortable in his or her friend group? Is “coolness” the top priority for majority of people?
Trends, social acceptance, and popularity are desirable traits in adolescents; studies have being conducted to
Almost every high school student just goes to act cool instead of getting an education. 95% is guys and all they do is show off their cars with windows down, one hand outside the window and sometimes even smoking. I will never understand why young people like to act like if they were grown people already.
The desire to fit in with peers can be a very strong influence on teens.
appeals to snobbery and the desire to be cool and to keep up with what