Facial Hair: Seems to be a sign of Masculinity in many cultures, but now appropriated by the Hipster culture as a symbol of their fashion. Beards don’t display hard work or manliness anymore, but instead they represent a taste for pumpkin spice frappuccino’s and new age music. Is societies idea of masculinity transforming or is facial hair becoming less a sign of masculinity and more a sign of tastes?
Gluten Intolerance: Celiac Disease was once extremely rare, but lately more people have been self diagnosed with the disease. The Gluten-free diet has become very popular lately and in supermarkets its become increasingly easy to find gluten-free foods at the store. Is Gluten Intolerance a serious health issue that needs to be tackled? Or are people feigning a weakness to Gluten as a fashion statement? If so, what does this say about people who fake a disease as a fashion trend? What does it also say about the people who accuse people of faking a disease.
Craft Beers: A brewery that produces a small amount of beer every year and specializes in quality and technique is known as a microbrewery. Over the years they’ve gained immense popularity and beer connoisseurs have pledged their lives to them. But why isn’t normal beer good enough? Why do people chastise Budweiser and Coors Light? However, some say that only real men drink Bud and Natty. Does drinking cheap beer prove your masculinity?
I think the beer topic is great. I think the darker, stronger the beer the more it represents a societal image of males. Males are supposed to be mysterious, strong and tough. They are supposed to be complex. Since hipsters’ beer preference reflects all those traits that then they think they are more manly. They rely on a sort of “when men used to be men” understanding. Hipsters are always one to stand out in the crowd, so blatantly through these performances-flannel shirt, mustaches they are saying, “I am a man, I am straight”.
Which brings me to an interesting topic, what if a guy doesn’t drink? Does it make him less of a man?
I literately love the topic of hipsters. The things we have talked about in class about the rise of beard salons and things like that baffle me so much. Think about it 20 years ago that was not common but now I go to the mall and am not even surprised to see what I find. As a person with a true diagnoses of a wheat intolerance, different than gluten, I have to say it has helped me have a wider variety of foods in my diet i can say that. Honestly these artifacts are really interesting and i love the topic.
I am not really a big fan of beards but the other I was watching a video how a barber use some kind of string to cut facial hair from the client’s face. So I think beards are a new age of art which his so beards for me to say because I can not stand people with a lot of hair in their face. Furthermore, I learn that beards can be an art.
I literally do not know what is gluten free. And I did not know that people do get sick because they can not eat without it. it is nice to know that the stores and supermarkets can help. I am not a beer guy but from what you describe makes me wonder and i think that it does not matter if you like cheap beer or not because all beers contain water. But great topic thanks.
FACIAL HAIR – A culture in the growin’, you say? I wonder if facial scarification will ever catch on? Oy, I’ve read scarification is done to both men and women in some cultures in Africa, but then I guess those who argue for beards’ manliness feature might not enlist that idea, but aren’t scars TOUGH, aren’t scars MANLY? So much more so than a well-groomed collection of supra-labial follicles, am I right guys? (I’m impersonating/being sarcastic right now). Yet, perhaps blood and scars isn’t the type of manly the hipsters are going for with their facial hair. Perhaps they are going for a more refined, yet poised aura around themselves, something that eminates the idea of Frederick Nietzsche’s “Ubermensch”. Nietzsche himself has quite a proud mustache, one that you may want to take a look at and see if any hipster mustache history goes back to him. I really wouldn’t be surprised given the slight transmutation of his ubermensch I can imagine more hipster males may have groomed themselves after; try looking the Nietzsche’s idea of the ubermensch too for possibly some support for your paper; there are some great videos on it.
GLUTEN INTOLERANCE – I wouldn’t be surprised (not much surprises me at this point), but is this really a hipster thing? You didn’t mention it explicitly in that bit so I’m not sure. Please do answer those questions of gluten intolerance’s relationship to the hipster ethos on your paper for me. I don’t know about it at all, but I’d be very interested in seeing how this functions in the hipsterian ideology apparatus. Human societies have a long history of how they work around the issue of the healthy vs. the ill (healthy/ill dichotomy or dualism). Examples: some schizophrenic patients in medieval Europe were considered welcome in communities because there hallucinations and other conditions were viewed as demonstrating the limits of reason (taken from “Madness and Civilization” from Michel Foucalt, a prominent French, ideological historian/philosopher of the mid 1900s; see short video covering a short bit of it starting a 3:16 on youtube: “Philosophy – Michel Foucalt”, link below.)
CRAFT BEERS: Forgive me, yet another one I have very little knowledge on, ha! But what I can say of it: I think America shares an affinity for those things which are “unique” in sense, or have a certain exceptionality to them (such as, some fanatic patriots might say, Americans themselves); except they have to not infringe on our freedoms! Perhaps there is a kind of “freedom”, a kind of prestigious feeling of “access” that one might feel when delighting upon that which is not alls. For examples: I think arguably few would brag or pride themselves on the greatness of the air around them (although this might change as environmental degradation ensues), yet some will still folly other supposedly “flat” lands (like Florida — a friend told me this) for not having the great air quality your get when you’re living up on a mountain, to which I might say, “Well, perhaps you’d like to google ‘Brazilian Favellas’.” Anyhow, this distinguishing ability to “access” that which is not available to all may be tied to the image of grandiose extravagance, say, like the “access” to money and wealth, “acess” to the right people and resources, and, maybe if we really get flavorful with prevailing “masculinity” tropes, “access” to women.
Anyhow, all in all, cool stuff. Do shoot me a word or holler if ever you want to discuss things like this over with someone! Thanks!
Let me help you out with craft beers! They’re a sign of a “refined palate” or “aquired taste.” Natty light is great for tailgates and shot-gunning, don’t get me wrong, but someone might get funny looks for ordering it at a bar. People put down payments on craft beers because they “taste better.” My own personal opinion is that poeple do it because yuengling and guiness are now too mainstream, so in order to compensate they drink a funky buddah beer.
I found an article by “business insider” outlining why craft beers have gotten more popular in recent years. Their reasons Berr drinkers and breweries experimenting with flavors, the social aspect of it, and the supply and demand side of the craft beer industry. Regardless of its 15% increase inpopularity over the past year, Micro-breweries still only make up about 10% of the beer market.
http://www.businessinsider.com/why-craft-beer-is-so-popular-2013-4
Now i’m gonna go twist my mustache and drink a Dogfish 120 Minute IPA… for research of course.
I think you’ve got a great topic here with several interesting cultural artifacts to boot. I am glad that you’re (potentially) going to be discussing gluten-free foods and gluten intolerance. While some people are actually unable to process gluten, there are a lot of people who consume gluten-free products because it seems to be hip, or they self-diagnose. There is also something to be said about alcohol-based snobbishness. I have found that there is a touch of elitism when it comes to craft beers, and is certainly a lot you can write about regarding microbreweries.
I really like the artifacts that you chose, I also really like how you ended the bit with questions, because it made me think. Before I never thought about beards, gluten intolerance, and beer too much, but the questions really did make me think. I think the gluten intolerance is especially important now that I think about it, the restaurant that I work at (Flashback Diner) we offer gluten free choices for most menu items. Usually it pertains to sandwiches and the sandwiches don’t come on a bun (that’s the gluten free option) and I have quite a few number of customers ask for the gluten free option. Of course, they tell me that they can’t have gluten but I never question it as a fashion trend or maybe just a healthier way of eating. Interesting. I also want to give a big LOL to the pumpkin spice frappuccino’s and new age music regarding hipsters because it’s SO true!