This is a Modern World

Sub Cultures and Sub Genres: Make your library

service truly multicultural

Lets Identify a Subculture

Come

together, on a local and national

level to socialize and skill share.
Create their own publications and
organizations.
Are constantly struggling to re identify
themselves and find their relevance in
the world.
Have created their own social hierarchy.

LIBRARIANS

While we are a profession,

much of our behavior
mimics that of a subculture.

Under Your Influence

Librarians
involvement in a
subcultures may
explain their choice
in the profession
(Geek is now thought
of as a subculture).
Many changes in our
profession can be
attributed to the
influence of
subcultures and
countercultures.

Beyond Race and Class

In the (post) modern world
we are all looking for our
place. We can no longer
rely on our ethnicity and
ancestry for identity.
As librarians we are
challenged by a society
becoming fragmented and
increasingly complex.
We can resign ourselves to
serving a increasingly
smaller norm or we can
learn to embrace diversity
outside of class and race.

Subculture
Counterculture
Youth

Culture
Urban Tribes
Enthusiast
Scene

What Is A Subculture
In Sociology and
Cultural Studies it is
Defined as
A group of people with
a culture (whether
distinct or hidden)
which differentiates
them from the larger
culture to which
they belong.

Sociology and Subcultures

The Chicago School is best

known for its analysis of
how the urban environment
affects human behavior. Its
members studied social
structures and physical
environmental factors,
rather than genetic and
personal characteristics, in
the development of human
interaction.

Identification of a Subculture

Distinctive use of
aesthetics.
A symbolic use of style
which can be interpreted by
other members of the same
culture.
Affinity to a particular type
of music, physical activity
(sport), style of art, or
geographic territory.
An often antagonistic view
of normal society and social
conformity.

The Urban Tribe

The urban tribe is a

microgroup of people
who share common
interests in metropolitan
areas. The members of
these relatively small
groups tend to have
similar worldviews,
dress styles and
behavioral patterns.
Defined by French
sociologist Michel
Maffesoli, 1985.

Types of Subcultures?

Punks
Goths
Gammers
Techies
Beats
Hippies
Ravers
Mods
Metalheads
Urban Primitives
Furries
Sukebans

There the are sub- subcultures

punk is the base of several.
Skinheads, hipsters, artpunks,
hardcore kids, straight edge and
many others are rooted in punk.
Some embrace their subculture,
others see it as a stereotype.

Subcultures in the Library

Teen

Services
Childrens
Services/Parents
Collection development
Programming
Adult instruction
Non traditional library
services

Sub Cultures
and Emerging
Genres
Punk

is now added to anything outside the

norm Cyber Punk, Steam Punk, and Horror
Punk (just saw that one the other day).
Urban Fiction is very much a part of the
street lifestyle, which can be defined as a
subculture.
Modern art, music, and literature is often
influenced by sub/counterculture.

Not Judging a Book By Its

Cover
Some

subcultures have similar aesthetics,

but vastly different tastes and values.
Members of a subculture are not always
comfortable being identified by it,
especially by outsiders.
You may find that many of these groups
may become library advocates.
Nothing is more D.I.Y. than the library.

In Closing
We need to rethink how we
categorize our collections and
the people we serve. While
subcultures are a small
segment of the population,
they need to be taken into
consideration when tooling
our library services. They
could make strong advocates
for your organization.