Steampunk

[helwen]

There's a convention happening this weekend (started yesterday) on Steampunk, which of course I won't be at, but they have an interesting essay on Steampunk, written by Bruce Sterling (co-author of _The Difference Engine_) here.

The top of the page is a general description written by someone else, and then Sterling's post is below that. He's a little off on the age part I think, although probably the majority of interested persons may be in the teens-20s age range, there are definitely other interested parties ;)

One thing I especially appreciated was his definition of 'punk'. In this particular context it is the tech side of steampunk and/or the DIY part of it (since sewing your own clothing might not be considered tech by some folks, even though it is -- there is even math involved as the pattern-makers know).

[EDIT] Forgot to say that I got the link from someone's post on the LJ community Steamfashion.

Comments

[danabren.livejournal.com]

His description is a bit laissez-faire and insulting, I think.

"If you like to play dress-up, good for you. You're probably young, and, being young, you have some identity issues. So while pretending to be a fireman, or a doctor, or a lawyer, or whatever your parents want you to be, you should be sure to try on a few identities that are totally impossible. Steampunk will help you, because you cannot, ever, be an authentic denizen of the 19th century. You will meet interesting people your own age who share your vague discontent with today's status quo. Clutch them to your velvet-frilled bosom, because you will learn more from them than you ever will from your teachers."

I mean really. That could be applied to any re-enactor or subculture that identifies through clothing, even gangs.

[helwen.livejournal.com]

Oh, definitely the clothing part can apply to many groups. But I thought some other parts were interesting, like his comments on how one might use the thinking out-of-the-box one needs for costuming and making stuff to become more adaptable to a changing world. Eh, YMMV.

His major problem seems to be that he thinks he's going to be addressing mostly teens-20s (and early 20s at that), _some_ of whom do seem to be rather wrapped up in appearances and rebellion for the sake of rebellion (without a cause vs. with a cause).