Kevin Graveman

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BA3 Gender Dynamics in Contemporary Japanese Society (I)

Mw. Dr. A. Ezawa

Research paper

Wordcount: 2789 words

Semester 1 2010/2011

Cultural Substance of the Gyaru Subculture

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Introduction

The issue I want to take up in this paper is that of resistance, namely, of Japanese youth
subculture against the male dominated mainstream culture, in which industriousness is a
central element (Yamane, cited by Kinsella 2005, 151). I will use subcultural theory and apply it
to gyaru, a Japanese youth subculture recognizable by their energetic and extreme fashion
sense, subculture to see how this subculture resists the mainstream culture.
I will first review the definition of subculture. I will base my exploration of the definition
of subculture mainly on the theory proposed by Hodkinson (2004). The reason for this is that
his theory avoids over-emphasizing internal movement (fluidity) of social groupings (for ease I
will refer to "social groupings" by using the term subculture), but at the same time avoids
binding explicit values and beliefs to such a group. However, I will also justify why the
subcultural theory as defined by the Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies
(CCCS) is less suitable for analyzing gyaru subculture by summarizing criticisms on the CCCS.
Finally I will explore how gyaru subculture can be analyzed by applying the theory Hodkinson
has suggested (2004).

Subcultural theory

Subculture is a term which is commonly used both in academic works as well as in the media. It
is used to refer to social groupings, who share certain values or practices, such as music,
dressing style or resistance against normative values. However, defining a subculture by
describing characteristics which are prevalent at a specific moment in time has its drawbacks.
Hodkinson notes that a subculture consists of identities which change with relative ease due to
the supply of various items and behavioral patterns, which also change over time (2004, 140).
This means that the characteristics which are ascribed to a subculture, are fluid. According to
Hodkinson this notion of (cultural) fluidity is taken up by those who suggest the abandonment
of "subculture" (2004, 136).
Before reviewing the notion of fluidity, as described by Hodkinson, I will first summarize
the critique on the CCCS's subcultural theory, which has led to the proposition of the

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abandonment of the term "subculture" altogether. Hodkinson notes that subculture as defined
by the CCCS received criticism which can be classified in two ways (2004, 135). Firstly that the
fundamental theory had defects, secondly that it was too bounded to the period in time it was
created in, meaning that it no longer functions in the contemporary analysis of subcultures due
to the prevalence of media and commerce. The central limitation of the theory is most likely
the focus on social class, and in particular working class (Bennett et al. 2004, 7). This was
combined with the assumption that new forms of consumerism were a symbolic form of
resistance, instead of, as Bennett suggests, simply a way to explore their identities in new ways
(Bennett 1999 cited by Bennet et al. 2004, 7). So working-class youth dressing up in expensive
brand clothes and driving motor scooters might just as well have been a reaction to new
opportunities to explore and express their identity, instead of only resisting their parent's
relatively modest way of living.
The theory thus also becomes incompatible with contemporary subcultures, as they can
be comprised of youths from various origins. Even more so, Bennet et al. note that
contemporary subcultures are no longer confined to just youths (2004, 10-11). However, the
CCCS did only focus on youths, meaning an explicit age range, instead of allowing the notion of
youth to also include individuals who feel, and act as if they still belong to the same group as
they did when they belonged to that specific age range. This implies that the feelings of
belonging by individuals to a certain group are important to consider. Limiting a subculture to a
certain age range as the CCCS did might have worked for subcultures such as the Mods or the
punk movements in the 1960's and 1970's respectively, however for contemporary analysis this
would often imply cutting off an essential part of individuals belonging to a subculture.
CCCS's theory would clearly not be applicable to gyaru on the basis of this point alone,
as the gyaru subculture moves beyond CCCS's age bound definition of youth into the gyaru-
mama subculture, mothers who feel they belong to the gyaru subculture, with members
exceeding the age of 21. However, another point is that the CCCS only focused on male
subcultures and completely ignores the role girls might play in subcultures (McRobbie and
Garber 1976 cited by Bennett et al 2004, 7). The reason for this is twofold. Firstly because
subcultures seemed to be dominated by male youth. Therefore the CCCS excluded the role girls

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might have had in subcultures, because their presence was not perceived as significant enough.
Secondly, in the 1970s it was popular to study society by analyzing youth resistance, however
studies from the perspective of the family were avoided. The family, or domestic sphere is
exactly where girls' subculture presided. The reason for this is that girls, certainly in the 1970s,
had relatively less freedom when compared to boys. This sense of freedom mainly implies that
boys were able to go to places outside the home to express their identity, while girls were
largely confined to their homes and schools. However, just like boys were able to create
subcultures by expressing themselves through adopting a style, girls essentially did the same by
hanging up posters of pop idols in the bedroom and listening to music at home with friends.
The notion of subculture here clearly is bound to style. A final relevant critique on the
CCCS's theory relates directly to this. Lewis (1992 cited by Bennett et al. 2004, 10), argues that
groupings which are discernable mainly on the basis of the music they listen to and the style
they adopt could be better defined as 'taste-cultures', instead of subcultures. Two critical points
can be noted here. One is that of cultural substance, a notion coined by Hodkinson which I will
further explain below, as it tries to redefine the notion of subculture outright (2004). The other
is that of direction. Bennett et al. note the importance of the point that music and style are not
what creates a subculture, but instead are signifiers of a subculture (2004, 10). What is implied
here is that the resources through which individuals belonging to subculture express
themselves are less important than 'the underlying thought', which brought a subculture
together in the first place. The problem, it seems, has been defining what 'the underlying
thought' actually implies.

Hodkinson's Cultural Substance

One approach to defining what constitutes a subculture is that by Hodkinson (2004). His
approach is based on the notion of cultural substance, which can be found by analyzing four
indicators: "group distinctiveness, identity, commitment and autonomy." (Hodkinson 2002
cited by Hodkinson 2004, 136). The difference with other approaches, however, is that
Hodkinson does not emphasize cultural fluidity. The notion of cultural fluidity in itself is used to

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avoid the deficiencies of the CCCS's theory, namely by taking into account that identities can be
formed by a wide variety of influences.
Hodkinson notes that since the critique on the CCCS, the term subculture was found to
be used rather ambiguously (2004, 140). However, terms which were used as a substitute for
the term subculture also have their drawbacks . According to Hodkinson, these alternative
terms were also ambiguous, since their definitions did not clearly portray what the differences
between the terms were. Furthermore, he notes that there is a considerable amount of overlap
between the terms (Ibid., 141). Despite these problems, it seems terms such as lifestyle and
scene have become useful in describing 'subcultures' as they commonly appear in
contemporary media. To quickly exemplify this: a search on Google.com returned well over 235
billion hits for both scene and lifestyle, compared to not even five million for 'subculture'. Even
though this does not directly provide evidence for the use of these terms to describe
subcultures, it does provide evidence that these terms have become successful as is displayed
by their popularity.
However, Hodkinson notes another drawback with the alternative terms. While they
may provide a more compatible method to describe contemporary subcultures using their
emphasis on fluidity, this is also where the drawback stems from, according to Hodkinson (Ibid.).
Due to their emphasis on fluidity as well as the notion that subcultures influence and borrow
from one another, which Hodkinson coins 'cross-fertilization', some subcultures might be
misrepresented or might even not be analyzed because it does not show any signs of being
'fluid'.
Despite the validity of Hodkinson's argument here, I find it difficult to provide an
example of a subculture which does not borrow any feature belonging to another subculture.
The LAN-gaming subculture might seem to fit at first glance, since it is an unique form of social
gathering not based on any fashion style or music and it certainly does not portray a clear
message of resistance. However, individuals belonging to that subculture might and have added
in elements from other subcultures ranging from Japan/anime-fan subcultures to movie
fanatics subcultures. The former can be exemplified with LAN-gamers talking about and sharing

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anime during LAN events, the latter with movies continuously being shown on a large projector
screen during a LAN event.
None the less, even if there is no such subculture, Hodkinson's subcultural theory is
useful for describing subcultures in which cultural substance can tell us more about a
subculture than their reasons for being fluid.
Hodkinson uses four indicators (Ibid., 141-2), noted above, to assess cultural substance.
The difference with the more fixed method of the CCCS is that Hodkinson uses these indicators
to provide relative qualities of a subculture, rather than qualities that simply belong to a
subculture because these are characteristic of that subculture. This means that Hodkinson's
theory can be applied to any kind of social group, rather than a social group that has given itself
away with a display of deviant style.

The Gyaru Subculture

Even though gyaru do express themselves with a unique visual style, I have outlined above why
CCCS's theory is not compatible with an analysis of the gyaru subculture. The use of the notion
fluidity to analyze gyaru does seem feasible. Gagné indicates this fluidity by stating for the
Gothic/Lolita subculture the ease with which individuals can change to what subculture they
belong, as well as "how closely these subcultures are intertwined." (2008, 138). In his example
he indicates an individual belonging to the gyaru subculture switching over to the Gothic/Lolita
subculture (Ibid.). Furthermore, gyaru subculture borrows heavily from other subcultures. The
music they listen to varies greatly, in fact, there are sub-styles such as b-gals who primarily
relate to Hip-Hop music and style, while other gyaru might prefer listening to dance music or
pop music. This can be exemplified with my own experience in Shibuya's club Atom, which has
three 'floors'. Each floor has its own specific music style and also attracts a different crowd,
however the majority is part of the gyaru subculture. This can be seen from the way they dress
and style their hair, but also from the fact that they are youths involved in the activity of
clubbing, and more specifically clubbing in Shibuya.

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This relates directly to Hodkinson's notion of consistent distinctiveness in that gyaru are
easily recognized (Hodkinson 2004, 143), at least by those familiar with the subculture. Even
though there may be some degree of variation, what makes gyaru stand out is that they change
their appearance in an obvious way, often associated with the notion of "fakeness" (See Miller
2004, 228; Akumax90 2010a).
The second characteristic Hodkinson used was that of shared identity (Hodkinson 2004,
144). Just like the goth scene Hodkinson describes, gyaru also seem to have a strong sense of
shared identity. Firstly, gyaru are able to stay gyaru, while naturally some might stop feeling
part of gyaru subculture, others continue feeling like they belong to the subculture even when
they become mothers. This is exemplified in the interview by Hadfield of a mother who puts
considerable effort in helping those who she feels connected to while also maintaining her
identity as a gyaru (Hadfield 2010). For one she still refers to herself as gyaru and secondly she
stays highly involved by leading a group and organizing events for other gyaru-mama. Secondly
it does not matter if you're a regular in Shibuya, visiting from a different city in Japan or even
from abroad. This can be exemplified by events such as the national parapara championship
event, in which gyaru from all over Japan gather to perform and compete in parapara dancing
(TBS Lincoln 2007). Another example is that foreigners are accepted quite quickly, if they are
dressed like gyaru and of course, speak some Japanese (personal accounts; Akumax90 2010b).
The third characteristic is commitment (Hodkinson 2004, 146). Hodkinson implies with
commitment how much attention an individual spends on objects and behavior which can be
related to the subculture. I feel it is important here to consider that it is impossible to
objectively determine for each object and behavior if it belongs to the subculture, therefore I
agree with the support Hodkinson shows for a somewhat more subjectivist approach
(Hodkinson 2004, 137). Miller notes that there are gyaru who only use the gyaru dressing style
but do not participate in the behavioral patterns of an average gyaru (Miller 2004, 236). This is
an example of low commitment to the subculture, however others might travel from far to
participate in events, as exemplified in the national parapara event (TBS Lincoln 2007).
Furthermore, as already indicated above for shared identity, there is no limitation in age for
gyaru to stay involved in the subculture. Another example of this is the involvement of Ms. Sen

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in coaching for a parapara dance even though she had already retired from the gyaru circle (TBS
Lincoln 2007).
The fourth characteristic is autonomy (Hodkinson 2004, 146). This implies the degree
with which a subculture controls its own objects and events, for example clothes and concerts.
We have seen that gyaru organized their own parapara event and that they organize their own
groups as with the gyaru-mama above, whose group counted 450 members according to the
interview by Hadfield (2010). There are also companies which produce goods specifically for
gyaru and among its employees are also individuals who have been or still are gyaru
themselves (NHK Shibuya Gyaru 2010). Another example of where this is noted in is an
interview with Yasumasa Yonehara in which he states that gyaru can become clerks at Shibuya
109, which is Shibuya's department store which main target group are gyaru. Yonehara states
that girls are able to create their own economic network which stands free of dominant male
culture (Marx 2009).

Resistance

As Hodkinson demonstrated for the goth subculture, gyaru subculture is also consistent with
the notion of cultural substance he proposed. His theory also allows us to comment on forms of
resistance from the subculture. Their appearance, which gives them distinctiveness, sets them
apart from other subcultures and the mainstream culture. This can also give them a form of
protection. Gyaru have received the generalization of being assertive, which might prevent
them from being groped when commuting by train, since men might actually be more afraid of
them.
By showing they are consumerists through their appearance they also distance
themselves from expected Japanese female gender roles, which Kinsella describes as "virginal,
obedient, gentle and maternal" (2005, 144). By showing this identity it can be deduced that
they are separate from mainstream gender roles. This also is visible in terms of high
commitment, since gyaru are able to not conform to the normative path in which they become
responsible adults and give up gyaru characteristics. The same is true for autonomy, since they

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are able to escape the necessity to become good wives according to the gender role by
associating themselves with economically self-dependent gyaru groups.

Conclusion

Subculture is a concept which, even though it seems clear what is referred to when used in
normal conversation, is difficult to define. However, with the theory provided by Hodkinson it is
possible to state that subculture is a useful notion, and should not be abandoned. Furthermore
defining subculture as social groupings which are defined by relative qualities gives us a new
way to understand subculture. Instead of simply describing persistent and notable features,
using Hodkinson's theory it has become possible to comment on the role in society of the gyaru
subculture. Using this approach, however, it was difficult to incorporate the aspect of gyaru's
deviating language use, which might require the approach of this subject by making use of
theories in the field of dialectology instead.

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References
Akumax90, 2010a. Fakeness of Gyaru. Youtube clip, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-
uOErHdhPw, accessed on 12 December 2010.
Akumax90, 2010b. Clubbing for Gyaru (part 02). Youtube clip,
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Bennett, Andy and Keith Kahn-Harris. 2004. "Introduction" Pp. 1-18 in After Subculture: Critical
Studies in Contemporary Youth Culture, edited by Andy Bennett and Keith Kahn-Harris.
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Gagné, Isaac. 2008. "Urban Princesses: Performance and "women's Language" in Japan's
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