The one thing in the natural world that I think most embodies coolness is the ebola virus (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/Spb/mnpages/dispages/ebola/qa.htm). Both spread from person to person through interaction (although coolness also has the remarkable ability to travel through cables and in radio waves while ebola is bound to waterborn transmission), and both are doomed to one day perish. In the case of the virus, it will either will either fail to find a new host to support its relentless exponential growth, or perish from exhausting its pool of suitable hosts by destroying them too quickly. Coolness is quite the same way. If a cool thing/entity/subculture/movement/etc. ends up being a failure, as thousands inevitably will, it will simply never be known to the masses. However, if it is successful, it will spread like a wildfire and, just like ebola, overexploit its host. In doing so, it will lose the very essence of cool that it once embodied, and will be recognized by the masses as yet another uncool subculture mass marketed by corporate America to rake in cash.
-Bryce Cody
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
That's a great, although depressing, analogy, Bryce. Due to it's depressing side, I feel the need to point out the positive side to coolness and to America having a culture, contrary to what Dr. B told us. The Ebola virus on the other hand has no positive side.
ReplyDelete~Becca
However, unlike the ebola virus, the face of cool is ever changing. As people adopt the latest styles and trends, some down the line may tweak them to personalize their "cool". In this way, wouldn't coolness be more like a mutating virus, like the flu? There exists no permanent cure because the target is ever elusively shifting its nature.
ReplyDeleteI have no comment other than I am extremely fond of this analogy.
ReplyDelete--Colin
I don't think the flu would be an accurate description because you can get a flu vaccine for prevention, but there's nothing to prevent coolness since we can only see hindsight and all. And this analogy really is excellent.
ReplyDelete-- tori
I probably should have said that a "cool movement" is like an ebola virus, not just coolness itself. My word choice was clearly an epic fail. I agree, though, that coolness itself is like the flu, in that it is constantly mutating.
ReplyDelete-Bryce Cody
In response to what Tori said, coolness can only be studied in hindsight, but those in the movement can tell you what is cool in the present (for example I can say "The Office" is a cool show now). Much as people try to prevent the flu, several also try to prevent being swept into the tide of coolness (such as the followers of the Insane Clown Posse). Despite their efforts, they have much less success than the flu vaccine. These rebels often get swept into the mainstream and become part of the cool movement, often without realizing it.
ReplyDelete~Becca
Becca-- True, you can say what's cool in the present, but that's because it's already established; e.g. you can't say The Office is cool until you've seen the newest episode. It's present to an extent. I'm trying (not exactly succeeding) to say that even while you may be watching The Office right at the moment it is aired on TV, you can say "This is cool." But you still have had to see it, think about it, then process your opinion of coolness.
ReplyDeleteWow could you understand that?
-- tori
I think I understood that. I actually haven't seen the newest episode. And I realized it was cool before I had seen a single episode, because a lot of the people I knew watched it. I would agree that something has to become cool before people realize it is, but as more of a simultaneous thing, than hindsight.
ReplyDelete~Becca