The term “hipster” has multiple meanings, including its origins in the jazz movement and the more modern use. Early hipsters were interested in jazz and promoted a counterculture lifestyle, while modern hipsters are often upper middle class and interested in alternative movements. Some criticize the modern movement as inauthentic, but many hipsters have genuine beliefs that inform their decisions.
Hipster can be a confusing term, since it has several meanings when discussing counterculture trends. One meaning relates back to the jazz movement of the 1940s through the early 1960s and before the term hippie was popularized. Another definition refers to a more modern use of the term hipster, as it might be used in common parlance today.
Initially the words hipster, hip, hep and hepster may all have been used to describe certain people who emulated a certain type of lifestyle, particularly related to jazz music and the musicians who played it. Special kinds of slang were used, and people who described themselves as hipsters tended to be sexually promiscuous, interested in marijuana use, and generally promote a lifestyle that was easy, relaxed, and unrelated to the mainstream culture. It is therefore considered a counterculture movement.
Some hipsters were specifically interested in jazz, but another definition was added with the writings of Beat Poets. In particular, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road can be seen as a representation of many who have lived this type of lifestyle. To some extent, this form of hipster may be less interested in jazz, even though the music may be important. More importantly, Kerouac’s novel emphasizes some of the language and attitudes of a vibrant counterculture.
These early definitions are in great contrast to how the term is currently used, although some attitudes remain similar. Since the 1990s, the hipster, who can also be referred to as a screenwriter, is potentially upper middle class with an interest in a variety of countercultures or alternative movements. These can include vegetarianism, extremely pro-environmental policies, and post-punk and alternative music. Today’s hipsters could be classified as interested in things that are definitely not traditional or mainstream.
Some call the modern movement specifically inauthentic. Fashion trends, for example, may dictate looking for retro or thrift clothes, but hipsters may be able to afford new clothes given middle or upper class status. Some people argue that lifestyle comes not from a real belief but from a desire to identify with what is commonly different in that moment, and this makes hipsters quite predictable in what they will embrace.
No doubt many people who identify with this movement might disagree with this assessment. The charge that a modern hipster stands on the shoulders of counterculture giants like the hippies or early hipsters and lacks firm convictions is also under scrutiny. Many hipsters have found logical and spiritual homes in past counterculture movements. They may choose a lifestyle that is specifically different since it makes sense to avoid eating meat or riding a bike instead of using gas to get to work. It would be a mistake to say that all people who today could be classified as hipsters don’t have serious beliefs that inform their decisions.
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