The views of the Japanese subculture are so unusual and diverse that in our time they attract a large number of followers around the world. A lot of them are in Russia. This article contains information on several of the most common types, their characteristics and adherents.
Western influence
Considering the essence of Japanese subcultures, it is worth noting the significant influence of the West on them. The roots of all the phenomena and trends that you can meet in this Asian country, in fact, come from Western society.
Interestingly, initially the inhabitants of Japan were extremely negative towards Europeans. For example, the Portuguese, who landed on the shores of this country in 1543, almost immediately received the nickname "southern barbarians". The appearance and clothing of Europeans for a long time was perceived by the Japanese as devoid of elementary beauty, in every possible way ridiculed. And when Tokugawa took power, most Europeans were simply expelled from the country.
Second Wave of Westernization
A new wave of influence of European society on the Japanese has been observed since the late XIX - early XX centuries, when the Meiji Restoration took place in the country. Now European clothing is increasingly replacing the Japanese. It looked fashionable and prestigious even then to look western.
In the 1920s, young women began to appear who listened to jazz and ignored the traditional rules of conduct for Japanese women. After the defeat in World War II, the Americans settled an entire Tokyo area called Hirojuku. Japanese youth increasingly began to be there to join Western culture. In the 1950s, Hirojuku began to be considered a symbol of Western culture, it is from here that some subcultures of Japan come from.
Already at that time, young Japanese women were fond of tanning beds to get dark skin, and the guys wanted to be like hip-hop artists from the USA. To be like foreigners, many begin to lighten their hair.
Denial of tradition
According to researchers, many subcultures of Japan are based on the denial of ancient traditions that for centuries have determined the mentality of the inhabitants of this country. Unacceptable was always considered a public expression of their feelings, excessive emotionality.
Some trends, of course, persisted. For example, the Japanese today put work for the good of the team higher than their own ambitions and the desire to move up the career ladder. These traditions can be traced in modern etiquette.
At the same time, a departure from the established rules can be traced in the Japanese subculture among girls. Now the idea of Japanese women is completely opposite to what existed a couple of decades ago.
Japanese girls
It is girls who often become the main representatives of the Japanese subculture. If before the Japanese woman was supposed to be necessarily silent, meek and obedient, then they began to dress strikingly and defiantly, emphasizing their sexuality. In addition, they behaved intentionally cheekily.
Over time, the notion that the fairer sex has the full moral right to dress as she wants to demonstrate to all those without exception an inner correspondence to her clothing style has spread throughout Japanese society.
Protest against traditional lifestyles is unusually popular among modern youth; it is clearly traced in some types of Japanese subculture. For example, Japanese television is still forbidden to talk about the life of sex minorities, and when in 2006 for the first time in the history of local television a documentary film about lesbians and gays was shown, then for the vast majority of residents this was a truly revolutionary event. At the same time, musicians of fashionable Japanese groups wear stylized women's clothing, play love affairs between men during their performances only in order to demonstrate their aesthetic ideals, shock and attract new fans.
Denial of traditional ideals often reaches the point of absurdity. For example, on the streets of the Harajuku district, which is still one of the most fashionable, you can meet men in skirts who are not representatives of sex minorities, and wear women's clothing to demonstrate their protest against society.
Victorian style
“Lolita” is a Japanese subculture that is based on wearing costumes of the Rococo era and the times of the English Queen Victoria. Recently, gothic fashion is gaining popularity. Today it is one of the most popular subcultures in Japan. Many people like the fashion that needs to be consistent in order to rank themselves among it.
The classic Lolita costume, which can be found today on the streets of Tokyo and other major Japanese cities, consists of a dress or skirt knee-deep, a blouse, a headdress, high heeled shoes (or shoes on an impressive platform).
This style appeared in the late 1970s, when several major labels began to sell such clothes. In the 1990s, the popularity of this subculture in Japan (the photo of which you will find in this article) was added by the gothic rock band Malice Mizer.
Interestingly, the name Lolita in the name of the subculture itself is not directly related to the novel of the same name by Nobel laureate Vladimir Nabokov. Representatives of this movement got such a name thanks to their costumes and style, which resembles dresses for children. Moreover, no emphasis is placed on their lifestyle and sexual preferences.
Types of "Lolit"
Now on the streets of this Asian country you can find several types of "Lolit". Classical is the most mature example; in clothes it is oriented to the Baroque style. It is most often considered as a mature and complex style due to the use of intricate patterns, fabric of muted colors. The makeup of such girls is rarely catchy, the emphasis is on the natural look.
Initially, "Gothic Lolita" became extremely popular. It arose as a social protest against the careless and excessively bright gyaru, which will be discussed in more detail later. This type is characterized by gloomy clothes and make-up. Black eyeliner around the eyes, bright red lipstick - the main elements. As a rule, clothes are black. In extreme cases, white, dark red or purple. Popular jewelry inherent in the European Goths. Gothic-style wallets and bags with bats, coffins and crosses are also common.
"Sweet Lolita" came from Victorian England and the Rococo era. Everything here is focused on the children's aspect of the character. The costume is based on clothes of cheerful bright colors, which are also called "candy". Cosmetics emphasize a natural look to preserve a child's face. For such a Lolita, an emphasis on infantility is important. Indispensable attributes of a costume are lace, an umbrella, bows, ribbons. Often you can see references to Alice from Wonderland, classic tales, sweets and fruits.
Punk Lolita combines elegance with punk aggression. A popular costume consists of a skirt and a T-shirt (or blouse). On the feet most often are shoes or boots with double soles.
"I can not live without men"
This advertising slogan of European jeans of the 1970s became the motto for young girls who consider themselves to be a Japanese subculture of gyaru. Her name comes from the English distorted word girl, which translates as "girl".
Modern representatives of this movement have earned the epithets "degenerative schoolgirls" and "making parents cry." So they are evaluated because of the desire to violate the taboos traditional for this country, for excessive enthusiasm for Western values.
Classical gyaru stand out for their frankly frivolous behavior, a passion for fashionable and vibrant clothes, positive thinking in any situation, their own ideas about the ideals of beauty. It is noteworthy that men can belong to this Japanese subculture (the photo of which you can see in this article). In this case, they are called gyaru. When they appeared, they quickly became one of the key elements of street fashion.
Popularity growth
In the 1970s, their popularity was primarily due to the release of large print runs of Pop-teen magazine, which became a style icon for many Japanese women. Thanks to him, they learned to be sexy. In the future, many more gyaru publications appeared, and their publishers often came from the porn industry.
In the 1980s, the so-called cogar joined the gyar, who were expelled from schools for refusing to wear the traditional uniform. They did this because of the desire to appear as adults, to demonstrate their independence to others.
In the 1990s, many foreign journalists began to talk about the cigar, noting that they practice the activities of "paid dates." After such fame, many of them began to be directly associated with prostitutes. In the mid-1990s, documentaries were released in which representatives of this subculture were described as young girls who are engaged in prostitution for expensive accessories and fashionable clothes.
A kind of gyaru
Over time, various directions began to stand out from the sub-culture of the gyaru. The most famous of them is the Japanese subculture of the ganguro.
Representatives of this style appeared in the 1990s, immediately starting to distance themselves from the classical views on the fairer sex in the country. Their key features were elements such as a conspicuous tan, heavily bleached hair and bright clothes. High-heeled or double-soled shoes are also popular with them.
It is worth noting that the style itself is considered budgetary; clothes that are preferred by the ganguro are not expensive. In this case, the main costs are solarium and cosmetics. This style owes its popularity to pop singer Namie Amuro. It was she who introduced the fashion for bleached hair, a tan and a style that combines a skirt with boots.
Many researchers note that in the essence of this subculture lies the denial of classical ideas about female beauty in Japan, in addition, this is a kind of response to social isolation in which the country has been for many years, and conservatism, which is still present in most schools. The popularity of the style is also explained by the fact that young Japanese women dreamed of being like California girls who were seen in films and TV shows in the 1990s.
In the media, you can often find negative assessments about this subculture. It is believed that her representatives are illegible in sexual relations.
Tan
Love for tanning beds distinguishes representatives of the ganguro from other Japanese subcultures. Often their tan is so strong that girls become like mulattos.
Among the ganguros, there are several radical movements, which are commonly called iamba. They are distinguished by even deeper makeup, and hair can be of the most radical colors.
Animation
One of the most popular Japanese subcultures is anime, or otaku. Moreover, she gained fame not only in Japan itself, but also far beyond its borders, including in Russia.
The main difference between Japanese animation is that it is not intended primarily for children, but for teens and adults. Due to this, it is so popular. Anime is characterized by a characteristic image of backgrounds and characters, is released in the format of feature films and television series.
Sources for anime are most often comics, light novels, and computer games. Sometimes anime is drawn on the basis of works of classical literature (for example, the series “Classical stories”).
Festivals
Festivals and gatherings of fans of this subculture take place around the world. This is usually an event that lasts several days. Often festivals become a popular venue for advertisers. The largest are invited famous figures who have become famous in the field of anime.
Festivals are always accompanied by cosplay, that is, dressing up in their favorite characters.
