Tribalism: does individualism really exist?
No one would ever have thought that you could get style tips from someone who is destitute. They are forced onto the streets through no fault of their own and their clothes are down to charity and necessity. They certainly don't go out of their way to inspire hipsters who are trying their darnedest to look alternative.
To be honest, old Ricki doesn't look any different from his Hoxton/Shoreditch counterparts. They've hijacked the beard, claimed real ale and revived NHS specs. All they've done is cherry pick from the image of old men and geeks. These people take on style perceiving it to be alternative and counterculture, therefore starting a trend and making it mainstream acceptable.
In the 70s, we had punks. The bright pink mohicans, ripped leather trousers and safety pin nose piercings genuinely shocked... nearly everyone. This was extreme even to the rockers.
Then in the 80s, we saw grown men wearing a lot of makeup and frilly shirts, this also shocked. However, doesn't this just hark back to Georgian Dandies? Regardless, a lot of time had past and people forgot that this is what the creme de la creme of society wore and it had gone back to being shocking.
In the case of Ricki et al, people still look like that. You just need to head to an ale festival or a science lab or the frozen foods section of the supermarket to see people looking like that without giving a second thought to fashion or image. Yet these hipsters seem to be a making a non-statement against I'm-not-sure-what to prove some-sort-of-point.
They just want to be part of a scene. Just like metallers all wear plugs and black lipstick and chavs wear fake Burberry and fashionistas wear the latest designer gear. They're part of a pack. Using their image to assert themselves in society. Join a tribe. Find a kin.
We all have an image of self. Someone we aspire to be. Sometimes this happens naturally and sometime it's nurture. It's mainly a bid to find like minded people so you can enjoy the same pastimes and enrich yourself in things that you enjoy and identify with.
Although tribalism is important, especially in an increasingly digital world where the only way we can brand ourselves to the public and your peers is by tweeting and retweeting things that affirm your self-image. In a digital world though, you can find the answer to the most obscure question and find information about the most shocking lifestyles. For every miniscule thought, hobby, interest or behaviour there will be someone, somewhere who's done it, bought the t-shirt and is waiting to tell you all about it. In these instances, people find like minded people, support, comfort and affirmation. This can be a good thing.
So if this is the reality of the internet and society. Does individualism really exist? Is anyone truly individual? If so, is it really important?
Individualism is the only true freedom (outside death). If you live your life for you without harming others, then surely this means that you enrich your mind and soul. Without the constraints of judgement and politeness, we are free to expand our mind, indulge our passions and live in reckless abandon to achieve real happiness.
Would Dylan Thomas have produced such amazing poetry if he didn't live in his secluded home town and got drunk every night? Would Rossetti have created such amazing paintings if he didn't live in his Chelsea menagerie and shag lots of beautiful women? Would Marlon Brando have been the actor he was if it wasn't for the license to introspect and draw on his own experiences? Would Pink Floyd be so revered if they weren't allowed to explore their musicality?
Getting fashion tips from Homeless Henry is fine, as long as you don't think you're setting the world alight. After all, Johnny Depp has been pioneering the homeless look for decades. What does set the world alight is true individualism. People who aren't afraid to experiment regardless of opinion and people who will sacrifice all for their art.
Ricki is just a model who is copying people who drink at Dream Bags Jaguar Shoes... or open cereal bars on Brick Lane...
To be honest, old Ricki doesn't look any different from his Hoxton/Shoreditch counterparts. They've hijacked the beard, claimed real ale and revived NHS specs. All they've done is cherry pick from the image of old men and geeks. These people take on style perceiving it to be alternative and counterculture, therefore starting a trend and making it mainstream acceptable.
In the 70s, we had punks. The bright pink mohicans, ripped leather trousers and safety pin nose piercings genuinely shocked... nearly everyone. This was extreme even to the rockers.
Then in the 80s, we saw grown men wearing a lot of makeup and frilly shirts, this also shocked. However, doesn't this just hark back to Georgian Dandies? Regardless, a lot of time had past and people forgot that this is what the creme de la creme of society wore and it had gone back to being shocking.
In the case of Ricki et al, people still look like that. You just need to head to an ale festival or a science lab or the frozen foods section of the supermarket to see people looking like that without giving a second thought to fashion or image. Yet these hipsters seem to be a making a non-statement against I'm-not-sure-what to prove some-sort-of-point.
They just want to be part of a scene. Just like metallers all wear plugs and black lipstick and chavs wear fake Burberry and fashionistas wear the latest designer gear. They're part of a pack. Using their image to assert themselves in society. Join a tribe. Find a kin.
We all have an image of self. Someone we aspire to be. Sometimes this happens naturally and sometime it's nurture. It's mainly a bid to find like minded people so you can enjoy the same pastimes and enrich yourself in things that you enjoy and identify with.
Although tribalism is important, especially in an increasingly digital world where the only way we can brand ourselves to the public and your peers is by tweeting and retweeting things that affirm your self-image. In a digital world though, you can find the answer to the most obscure question and find information about the most shocking lifestyles. For every miniscule thought, hobby, interest or behaviour there will be someone, somewhere who's done it, bought the t-shirt and is waiting to tell you all about it. In these instances, people find like minded people, support, comfort and affirmation. This can be a good thing.
So if this is the reality of the internet and society. Does individualism really exist? Is anyone truly individual? If so, is it really important?
Individualism is the only true freedom (outside death). If you live your life for you without harming others, then surely this means that you enrich your mind and soul. Without the constraints of judgement and politeness, we are free to expand our mind, indulge our passions and live in reckless abandon to achieve real happiness.
Would Dylan Thomas have produced such amazing poetry if he didn't live in his secluded home town and got drunk every night? Would Rossetti have created such amazing paintings if he didn't live in his Chelsea menagerie and shag lots of beautiful women? Would Marlon Brando have been the actor he was if it wasn't for the license to introspect and draw on his own experiences? Would Pink Floyd be so revered if they weren't allowed to explore their musicality?
Getting fashion tips from Homeless Henry is fine, as long as you don't think you're setting the world alight. After all, Johnny Depp has been pioneering the homeless look for decades. What does set the world alight is true individualism. People who aren't afraid to experiment regardless of opinion and people who will sacrifice all for their art.
Ricki is just a model who is copying people who drink at Dream Bags Jaguar Shoes... or open cereal bars on Brick Lane...
First published 18/06/2015
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