What is a Goth?

Goth (göth) n. A member of a Germanic people that invaded the Roman Empire in the early centuries of the Christian era. {< ME Gothes, Goths < LLat. Gothi, of Goth. orig.]

Goth•ic (göth'ik) adj. 1. a. Of or pertaining to the Goths or their language. b. Germanic; Teutonic. 2. Of or pertaining to the Middle Ages; medieval. 3. a. Of or pertaining to an architectural style prevalent in western Europe from the 12th through the 15th century and characterized by pointed arches, rib vaulting, and flying buttresses. b. Of or pertaining to painting, sculpture, or other art forms prevalent in northern Europe from the 12th through the 15th century. c. Of or relating to an architectural style derived from medieval Gothic. 4. Often gothic. Of or pertaining to a style of fiction that emphasizes the grotesque, mysterious, and desolate. 5. gothic. Barbarous; crude. --n. 1. The extinct East Germanic language of the Goths. 2. Gothic art or architecture. 3. Often gothic. Printing. a. Black letter. b. Sans serif. 4. A novel in the Gothic style. --Goth'ically adv.

Goth•i•cism (göth'i-siz'em) n. 1. The use of or imitation of Gothic style, as in architecture. 2. A barbarous or crude manner or style.

Goth•i•cize (göth'i-siz') tr.v. -cized, -ciz•ing, -ciz•es. To make Gothic.

Angst (ängkst) n. A feeling of anxiety [G.]

Gothic things can include movies and novels like Frankenstein and Dracula, or any work that has spooky, moody, pale creatures in settings that resemble large old European type of art and architecture. That would include works like Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, Dracula, Edgar Alan Poe, and The Crow. Other Gothic things include the architecture of Gotham City in classic Batman, and even Lydia from Beetleguise.

But who and what are today's Goth's?

So many think that it's about the fashion and the imagery, but I feel that there's more to it. There are people that are considered to be Goth by those who don't know. They see the stereotype. The stereotypical Goth is into black clothing, black hair, and angst. The black clothing, the makeup and hair, the jewelry; they have that all in common. Stereotypical Goths like things dark and mysterious. They think about death and despair a lot. They're generally fascinated with most things dark and with the night. Vampires, werewolves, witches, spirits, the paranormal; all of this is generally of interest to a stereotypical Goth.

But I think that being a Goth is more a reflection of attitude and inner being. Sure, we have similar tendencies to fashion and music and such (I think there are many good Goth bands today), but it's not a superficial thing. We are a diverse group of people. Sure, many of us study the occult, and yet many do not. Many are artists, using their skill to communicate their inner feelings, and others don't. The point is that one very large part of being Goth is maintaining your individuality. We're not always playing the game of "who can impress who more", meaning that we're not trying to out do each other; rather we are enjoying and growing from the works and creations that others of us generate.

We can be found all over the world, but generally you will find us in the Americas, Australia, and Europe. We can quite often be either very depressed, or perky and upbeat. We have your psychotic ones too; these are the people who get us into trouble because they can become violent or just carry things too far. But that's true of any group of people. All of us have been to an event, a gathering, or a party at one time or another where "that one guy" ruined it for everyone. Not all bikers are evil criminal gangs, not all doctors perform unnecessary surgery, not all rock stars do drugs, not all cops are crooked, not all lawyers chase ambulances, not all Goths wear trench coats and carry guns to school. Every walk of life has their select and minute group of idiots who unfavorably exploit the human condition, and these groups shouldn't be judged because of those idiots.

We seek out others like us because it is the dark that joins us, and that is a very powerful connection. We come from all different religions, races, countries, backgrounds, languages, states and people. There is no set standard for being a Goth, and if you would try to establish one, you'll most likely be argued with a passion only we Goths possess. We are all a little different from the rest of humanity, and all a little different from each other. We love, we feel, we cry just like the next person, but we do it with more intensity, more lust. We are who we are and we love it. Dark things; those are basically what the rest of society views as evil or Satanistic or just plain freaky. We like these things, different things, things that are off-the wall. Immortality and religion, need I say more? We love to find beauty in things out of the ordinary, take disgusting and make it beautiful. To try and find happiness in the littlest of things, everything is important, nothing should be neglected. The tiniest detail could make the greatest difference. We don't try and make everything perfect, that's impossible, but make it a point to make everything as good as it can possibly be.

Wow, guess I was ranting. Hope I didn't miss anything...