Neki socijalni aspekti heavy metal supkulture

Horvat, Helena. (2018). Neki socijalni aspekti heavy metal supkulture. Diploma Thesis. Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Department of Sociology. [mentor Žažar, Krešimir].

Preview

PDF (Croatian) Download (1MB) | Preview

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the heavy metal subculture. The first part deals with theory and discusses the notions of subculture, counterculture, youth culture, heavy metal music and its subculture, history, mythology, social symbolism and dominant moral principles. Furthermore, there is an overview of certain research studies which focused on heavy metal music and its subculture. The main part of the paper focuses on the empirical research we conducted. Our research study consisted of two parts, qualitative (21 interviews) and quantitative (online survey, 190 participants), which gave as an insight into the heavy metal population, i.e. its sociodemographic, socioeconomic and sociopolitical profile (level of education, political views etc.), its social practices, attitudes and moral principles. The study also examined the basis of prejudice and stereotypes heavy metal music fans had faced with, e.g. the idea that they were Satanists, drug addicts or uneducated. Our results showed that heavy metal music fans were mostly young male adolescents (20 – 29 years old) who spent most of their lives in bigger, urban settings or counties with larger regional centers and the biggest cities in Croatia (Zagreb, Split, Rijeka). In addition to that, most of the participants were employed or college students. Our participants were not religious or supporters of any political parties and they ranked their economic status as average. They said the most important characteristic of belonging to the subculture was listening to heavy metal music and most of them claimed that it was important to financially support the artists by going to concerts and participating in various dialogues about the topic, e.g. discography and band members. Most heavy metal fans wore black clothes and jeans. However, a majority of them never wear jacket patches, rivets and distinctive jewelry. Even though many superstitions and prejudice about the heavy metal population were shown to be false, some of them do show a tendency towards alcohol, tobacco and marijuana consummation.

Actions (login required)

View Item