Gothic Culture Essay -- Goths Renaissance History Essays

Gothic Culture You're walking down the street and all of a sudden you encounter a group of oddly dressed youngsters all in black, or perhaps wearing elaborate lace and brocade, looking strangely like they came out of eighteenth century. You immediately feel a bit of apprehensions as you clutch your child closer to and wonder what exactly it is that these kids are up to. Are they part of a Satan worshiping cult, or just a band of traveling actors? In either case their strange dress and pale likenesses took you aback and made you a bit prone to prejudge. What you were probably looking at were a group of Goths. What exactly is a Goth you may ask, and why the weird dress and affinity for black. This along with the origins, and some of the trials and tribulations faced by this extraordinary group of individuals, along with dispelling some common misconceptions is the objective of my writings. First lets take a look at what Goth is and where it began. Gage Canadian Dictionary defines "Goth." as "an uncivilized person, barbarian."( 1975:425) the origin of the word dates back to the third or fourth centuries when a Germanic tribe called the VisiGoths overran the Roman Empire and settled in what is now Sweden and the surrounding area (Shultz,1984:325). The word gained its modern meaning during the Italian Renaissance when the word was used to describe the architecture that was emerging at the time. The architecture was considered barbaric because of its pointed arches and steep roofs, along with the frequent use of the gargoyle, which was thought to ward of evil spirits. The modern Gothic movement and its origins are not as easily defined, and varies according to your source. I've combined the two to show an evolution of how it all... ...nformation has always been the key to help ease prejudices and discrimination, by introducing the ideology behind the Goth culture and explaining the reason behind the dress; I hope that it has brought about a better understanding of these people and their plight to a peaceful existence. Bibliography Fulton, Ben "Goths For Goodwill."City Beat (1998): 2p. Online. Internet. June 4,1998. www.slweekly.com/news/citybeat/cb 980604 a.html "Dictionary of Goth" 6/24/98 http:www.jesus.cam.ac.uk/~vkc20/goth/qzhtml Shultz, James.(1975) Germanic Tribes (3rd ED), Published by Weber and Van Syckle: Berlin Sangange, Eretica "Darkness Can be Felt"(1999): Online.Internet. June 30, 1999. http://pages.prodigy.com/Fifth Dream/goth.htm Yvain, Euphrosyne "Origins of Modern Gothic Culture"(1999) Online. Internet June 24,1999. http:www.blood-dance.net/goth/origins.html