Unfortunately, my usual source for pop-culture definitions, the urban dictionary, had too much to say about the subject. I like using the urban dictionary to define stuff, because it's usually so concise, accurate, and witty at the same time. Not so with hipsters. It seems the writers of urban dictionary.com are very passionate about how they feel about hipsters. So, in lieu of the urban dictionary, i will attempt to define hipsters by myself.
A hipster is one who thinks they are above it all. they usually wear clothes with lots of stripes. if you're a guy, you dress like a girl (tight jeans, v-neck, messenger bag, 60s-style haircut) and if you're a girl you dress like a guy (short hair, general "i-don't-care-about-how-i-look" kind of feel to your appearance). These guidelines are not set in stone, but are a good place to start. hipster-ism is not only a fashonista type thing, but also a state of mind. but you probably haven't heard of that state of mind before. it's kind of obscure. A big part of being a hipster is the rejection of any and all mainstream pop culture, except for the fact that by being a hipster you are lumped into today's pop culture. Hipsters, above all else, HATE being called hipsters, because it puts them in a category with everyone else, and they all deem themselves as socially "unclassifiable." It's kind of like having an anarchists' assembly. The whole point of anarchy is to not have an organization, so the anarchists' assembly defeats that. (stole that from Stranger than fiction).
Hipsters are also very sensitive about what music they do and do not listen to. Music hipsters don't listen to: John Mayer, Taylor Swift, Any sort of rap/pop/R&B. music hipsters do listen to: anything that sounds like it was recorded in someone's basement because it's "so raw and authentic, dude," Classical music, because nobody listens to that and it makes them seem artistic. Being a hipster entails a sort of snobbish attitude, but not in a way that would be readily noticeable. Here's a conversation between a normal person and a hipster:
Hipster chick: "dude, i just watched (insert obscure film from the 40s-60s era). So deep. really enjoyed the multi-leveled symbolism and the struggle the protagonist had internally about love, lust, and his role as a father.
Normal guy: (grunts in pain) "yeah...can't say i've seen that one."
Hipster chick: "You've got to be kidding. you haven't seen that movie? people this days just don't understand culture like i do. it's a good thing i'm getting a major in art history because it needs to be re-written for all these dumb-wads on this earth today."
And there you have it.
Drugs may or may not be a part of the hipster's life, but they most likely are. Marijuana (because hipsters don't have enough money for heroin), cigarettes, and cheap wines are probably the most common, the last especially, because nothing says dead poets' society more than a glass of cheap wine, your favorite rocking chair, and a small fire in your wood-burning stove. Hipsters enjoy witty banter. stimulating conversation ranks higher on their list of fun things to do than something like rappelling down a waterfall. Being a hipster is like being the opening page of dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times....etc." as soon as someone says something, a hipster will contradict it. If you say "man, inception was such a great movie. i mean, like it blew my mind!" a hipster will reply with "eh. it was ok. but not as good as (insert obscure film here that was shot in someone's backyard.) hipsters probably like Mumblecore (click on the link to read about that.....and i did just link you to my blog. winning.). urban dictionary uses the phrase "urban bohemian" to describe the look of a hipster. Hipsters enjoy "breaking social norms," not only because it makes them different from everyone, but because it gives them a sense of fulfillment. be it taking a george foreman into the library and grilling chicken or carrying a plastic skeleton around campus, hipsters will go to great lengths to try and rattle people's cages. What they don't realize is that the rest of the world is not in shock by their actions, but rather wonders how many times they were dropped on their heads as children, and are just too polite to laugh. breaking a social norm is nothing anyone cares about. if hipsters were so bad, they'd break the law. but wait, that would make them go to jail, which would put them in the criminal demographic, which means they'd be categorized. and the collective consciousness of the hipster-nation cannot be compromised.
I would put a picture up but hipsters are too obscure for google images. figures.
Lastly, hipsters liked everything they like "waaaaay before everyone else did and made it mainstream." to quote Dom, they "like things that nobody likes, don't like things that everybody likes, and re-like things that people no longer like." community college. having a crappy alt-rock/experimental band. small dogs. knowing things you don't. french literature/poetry. open mic nights. pretending they're hemmingway. Art museums. Pretending to like and understand modern art.
Hipsters.
"It's alright if you didn't understand. I didn't expect you to. (I just had to say everything to prove my superiority)." -If Jacob were a hipster.
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