Youth Culture 9th form

Youth Culture

Being a teenager is a time of intense conflict and change. It can be the greatest and most exciting time one minute and the most traumatic and difficult the next. Many aspects of your life become harder to cope with – parents rarely seem to understand you, school pressure has never been greater, and relationships with friends become either stronger or more complicated. The culture of youth is often connected to how teenagers create and develop their identities, finding ways to express and discover themselves. Many aspects of teenage culture involve associating with a particular group; by dressing in a certain way, listening to a particular kind of music, and/or doing a particular activity or sport, This all helps to define them as belonging to a group and so offers protection and support.

Teenagers have often had a great influence on the fashions of a time – with low or no incomes, they often improvise, either making their own or mixing whatever is available.

To many teenagers, image is important and expressing one`s own tastes and identity is very much a part of growing up and discovering oneself. This is often associated with using a particular type of language, or slang, which can also help to define you as belonging to a certain group. These days, in Britain, much of the slang used by teenager seems to involve using words that are opposite to what you want to say. In this way, ‘wicked’ or ‘bad’ actually means ‘fantastic’ or ‘really good’. Other words are made up because they sound like what they are describing. For example, ‘ minging’ was originally invented to mean ‘smelling disgusting’, and has evolved to mean revolting or even ugly. Therefore, ‘he`s a minger’ means ‘he`s disgusting’ or ‘he`s really ugly’. This sort of slang evolves extremely fast and by knowing the latest version, you identify with the group that uses that language. By using this ‘code’, you therefore claim membership to a certain group and at the same time, you exclude those, for example, parents, that you don`t want to know what you are talking about.

Sport, such as football, tennis and athletics, will always be popular as they mix keeping fit with socializing. Skateboarding is hugely popular, particularly in cities, both as a way to get around and as part of a culture including music and fashion. Groups of lads wearing massive baggy trousers, over-sized T-shirts and hooded tops can be seen in most green spaces and even car parks, practicing skating down steps, sliding alone hand rails, trying to ‘catch some air’ or ‘pull a vert’. The tricks some of these guys can pull are incredible and it gives them something to do while just hanging out. Girls, known as ‘Skate Betties’, are also a part of these groups, although it seems that they do less of the actual boarding. But the fashion is still there -     baggy jeans, little tops and belly rings and the occasional eye brow ring can all be seen.

At seventeen or so, many teenagers are getting their first job and a little cash is starting to come in. School work is also putting on the pressure as exams approach. It is therefore important, even crucial, that they get to spend time relaxing with friends – hanging out. Music, TV, films and computers all have their part to play in filling this time. There is a huge amount of music types in the charts and in the shops these days; hip hop, pop, rock, indie, r&b, soul and reggae, to name just a few. The music itself comes with associated fashion, dance styles and images delivered through videos, magazines and TV. Of course, as teenagers grow up, there is a lot of experimenting to be done. Trying different styles associating with different groups, even experimenting with schools, drugs and sex all play their part.

The rise in the use of computers and, in particular, the Internet has opened up a whole new world for spreading information about all aspects of youth culture. Teenagers    in, say, Prague can simply log on to a chat room and can be chatting away to teenagers in, say, Manchester within minutes. This has meant that , instead of having to filter down through magazines, TV and word of mouth, interests such as music and fashion can be shared immediately. This instant access to information has had a huge influence on youth culture, which now changes much more rapidly and with influences from all over the world.

As teenagers start earning money, many choose to get themselves a mobile phone. The phenomenon of ‘texting’ has taken the teenage world by storm, being able to send and receive short messages instantly. It has also brought about a whole new kind of language, as texters try to shorten their messages to save time and money. Now, letters mix with numbers and punctuation to make messages that can take some time figuring out!