Media Discourse Stereotypes of American Subcultures

Abstract

Abstract. The purpose of the article is to present the study of media discourse stereotypes of American subcultures in chronology of their appearance and typological features, that include behavioral, linguistic and fashion peculiarities of subcultural groups.

Methods. To establish the descriptive characteristics of stereotypes of American youth subcultures of media discourse, linguocultural analysis and media monitoring method were applied in the work. Received language material was interpretated  in connection with extralinguistic information.

Results.  A subculture is defined as community of people whose values, attitudes, interests, and ways of social and linguistic behavior, though related to dominant culture, are different from the latter. Subcultural attributes and rituals, generally hidden from the public, constitute the essential content of a subcultural group.  The emergence of the most youth subcultures is associated with a particular music style, that is consistent with the group ideology. Media discourse replicates stereotyped images of subcultures, schematically representing the verbal and non-verbal features of them. In terms of appearance, activity and cultural attitudes, subcultures are divided into types. The article presents the types of American subcultures that have emerged since the 1950s and still exist in the US culture.  They include romantic-escapist (e.g, emo), anarcho-nihilistic (e.g, punk, hip-hop), criminal (bandit subcultures), hedonistic-entertaining (e.g, hipster) subcultures. A characteristic feature of subcultures is their slang, which is well known to the public through music and films that function as means of stereotypization of subcultural groups.

Conclusions. Subculture is a unique example of the historical variability of cultural and linguistic systems that fully depend on socio-economic and cultural context. Each subsequent decade of the 20th century after the Second World War in the United States was marked by the emergence of new subcultures that challenged recognized social and cultural standards. The linguistic and stylistic differences of subcultures determine the difference in outlook and values, and lead to their gradations and varieties of them. Appropriated by the dominant culture, subcultural attributes and values have been spread throughout the world through the mass media.