What's society's beef with goths?

[Nei3rd]

I have problems with organized religion and I don't get along well with priests. Maybe the ones I try to have a normal conversation with are the "Holier-than-thou" types. Now I'm regarded as a devil worshipper. I just laugh and welcome it. Fine, judge me because I disagree with you and have my own beliefs. Like I always say "Hail Satan...bitches.". I will always be myself, wether they like it or not. Now if you'll all excuse me...I gotta go roll up inna fetal position and cry, but not after I write bad poetry in my black notebook!

[Graillik Tur]

Don't forget the black ink on black paper, so you have to move it around under a black light to read the freaking thing.

[Nei3rd]

Hehehehe! That's right Tur! Can't forget to set the mood buy playin some Him and Limp Biscuit! God damn for some reason people think I like Limp Biscuit, Linkin Park, and the such. I just tell em "No I don't like the sound of someone draggin a piece of metal over a chalkboard. Now get outta my kitchen before I beat you.". Then I cry because NOBODY UNDERSTANDS ME! Oh em geee! WHYYYYYY!? Whatch as I cwy my little goth eyes out while singin Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On". Oh Shino, hold me. Hold me like never before.

[Legend]

Dude, Nei3rd, Shino is totally all mine, you can't have him.

Honestly, stereotypes exist for a reason. Not -all- people fit into the categories exactly, but usually there is some trait in the stereotype they -do- have if they are said to fit into the stereotypical category.

That is, if you wear black all the time and dark lipstick with eyeliner and crap, but don't worship Satan, you're still feeding the goth stereotype of wearing black and eyeliner. And it just tends to happen that the categories you -do- fit into you're more obvious about. Goths who worship Satan and listen to Metallica are more obvious about those facts than the goths who don't. So that's what people see (because honestly, can you be bothered to talk to EVERY SINGLE PERSON you meet? I can't. Heck, I hardly ever talk to -any- of them.) and so that's what people assume being 'goth' is all about.

I happen to actually like stereotypes for what they are. They do help people to distinguish between people they probably won't enjoy talking to and people they might. Sure, you can be brought to change your mind about a person you didn't originally think you'd like, but that takes time and effort and multiple experiences with that person.

I don't mean you should hate people because of what they appear to be. But it's perfectly normal for me to dislike someone who looks like a cheerleader based on the fact that almost all the girls whom I've run into previously that looked like the cheerleading type -were- the cheerleading type and -did- drive me up a wall.

Don't take it personally. Be proud of who you are, and people will be drawn to it. Confidence inspires interest. If you're confident in your goth-ness then others might be more inclined to get to know you for who you are other than a goth and find out that you don't worship Satan or whatever. If they don't care to, you don't need them anyhow, so what's it matter if they think that? You'll probably never see them again anyhow, and if you do, you'll eventually show them that you're different through actions, undoubtedly, so it still won't matter.

[Ming]

My biggest problem is with people who do things solely for the purpose of getting attention. I really haven't talked to many actual goths before, but I'm pretty sure they're all ok people. I think you're getting them confused with emo kids...who are precisely the kind that do annoying things for attention, and that I will not tolerate.

[GAAZ]

Whoa whoa whoa...Settle down Mingy.

I know an entire chapter of goths that listen to speed metal.

But don't worship Satan.

[Ming]

I'll settle YOU down!

Seriously though...I don't know much about goths or what they do. Just that when I think Metallica, the first thing that comes to mind isn't "goth".

[Legend]

..It was just an example, guys. I don't claim to know all that much about goth stereotypes. I associated Metallica with Goth only because they're both dark in nature, and that's about as far as I usually get. I have no idea what Goths actually supposedly listen to.

...and it doesn't matter anyhow, even if I did get them confused with emo kids (I've always thought of emo as just 'goth lite' anyhow) because it's not really important to the point of what I was saying.

[FawkesFyre]

[oxxyjoe]

Society is screwed up. So those who are deemed anti-social by these outlets of our society are most likely putting them in their places.

Society takes fault with alternatives.