Halloween is coming up SPOOOOKY. Sorry to state the obvious but I thought that was a great opening line to give you a taste of what this post will be inspired by – Halloween. You see, when I think of Halloween I think of darkness, shadows, and, well, eccentrics. Halloween is an awesome holiday…people can dress however they want and they don’t need to care what others think. You know the quote from Mean Girls “In girl world, Halloween is the one day a year when a girl can dress up like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.” People do not care on Halloween when it comes to dressing up. However some people tend not to wear fancy dress. In fact it could be said that goths and punks (and sluts) are a stereotype in which people copy for Halloween, but is this right? Should we be mocking this culture?
Punks and goths (who I will refer to as “poths” from now on) are absolutely awesome. They are a culture that inspire so many different looks and styles. Designers such as the infamous Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood have thrived on these subcultural groups – their style literally derives from everything poths (remember this is my term for punk+goth) stand for. These designs are so grungy and imperfect that there is a certain elegance about them; McQueen even referred to himself as a “romantic schizophrenic”. Poths definitely inspire designers to think outside the box and break boundaries, as well as the fashion morale. But, also, both the blackness and awkwardness of the ‘look’ causes the fashion-admirer to feel a deeper meaning within the outfit (soppy Sasha, I know, but it’s true!). In an interview with Vogue Vivienne Westwood said: “I just couldn’t stand the idea of people being tortured…I hated the older generation, who had done nothing about it. Punk was a call-to-arms for me.” What I can gather from this quote is that punk (and the gothic) is about going against the norm. The look is a stance of fighting for freedom and rebelling against society – scaring society into changing its ways.
What else do the poths inspire fashion wise? CRAZINESS – the ability to wear what you want, say what you want, dye your hair whatever colour you want, get a piercing in the craziest place (I’m not a fan of the Prince Albert to be honest). In all seriousness, do you think people would have enough confidence to walk out the house wearing what they felt (emotionally) were it not for fashion embracing the punk grunge and the dangerous romance of the goths? If fashion never deemed these looks sexy or cool then, let’s face it, people probably wouldn’t have the guts to mismatch outfits or wear PVC. I’m not saying that it’s acceptable for fashion to choose what people should wear, but it has to be noted that in this instance the fashion industry has used its power to the best of its ability. We have to praise the industry for embracing the punks and the goths. They promote innovation, fanatical looks – fashion breaks boundaries. I’ve said this many a time before, but it’s true. Without fashion breaking boundaries then people would have 0 confidence and wouldn’t feel free to wear what they want to speak.
So, do I think it’s wrong that people dress as a poth for Halloween? Well, it’s not wrong to the extent that they should be put in jail and protested against, but it’s wrong in the sense that dressing up as a punk or a goth for Halloween is acceptable. It isn’t a costume. It’s a serious style that has inspired fashion and people – it is one of the only looks that speaks words. But, I must say…girls who dress up as sluts for Halloween – HAHA. Despite what Cady from Mean Girls says – girls will always bitch about you if you dress like a slut. Ass and boobs will never be in fashion (unless you’re Kate Moss).
Looking up the Skirt 