Born out of the smoke of the East End of
London the Mods, short for modernists, were a largely working-class subculture
who emerged in seaside towns mainly in the southeast of England. Known for
their dress sense, derived from Italian and French influences, their love of
jazz and soul music and their iconic Vespa scooters, this youth movement was made
even more famous for there ferocious, amphetamine fueled, clashes with the “Rockers”
a juxtaposing subculture, in seaside towns such as Brighton and Margate.
The Mod’s were hugely constructed by the
era they were born from. The post war economic boom and easy access to credit
allowed these young people to purchase expensive continental clothing and
scooters, of which generations prior would most definitely not be able to
afford.
This new identify allowed these working
class subcultures to escape the harsh realities of the lives they lived. The
more liberal attitude of the sixties gave these young people the ability to
explore who they were, unlike their parents who more then likely was taking up
war time responsibilities and conforming to the social norms of society. They were able to express themselves, not only
as individuals but as a social movement of people. It allowed for the breakaway
from the “boring” lives they experienced in London, to become celebrities due
to the mass media attention many of the Mods received as a result of their
fights with the Rockers[2].
The “Mod epidemic” fit the description of
Stanley Cohen’s idea of a moral panic. The fighting depicted by the mass media
of which described the Mods as “Scum, hoodlums and vermin”[3]
created huge resentment by the public towards them. The fighting, drug taking
and unconventional fashion caused huge anxiety and fear with wider society, of who’s
highly conservative attitudes towards young people, mainly as a result of their
upbringing during World War II, would have created direct hostility towards the
actions of these now deemed “folk devils”.
Were the Mod’s really that bad? Arguably,
fighting in front of families whilst high on amphetamines is not the best way
to create a positive view on yourself as a group of people. However, that was
the beauty of this subculture, they simply didn’t want to conform. They wanted
to break away from convention and join those from a likeminded background, who
also wanted to an end to the monotonous life of a working class Londoner.
[1] https://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/dynamic/130/590x/17f32mods1-476488.jpg
[2] Jobling,
Paul and David Crowley, Graphic Design: Reproduction and Representation
Since 1800(Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996) ISBN 0-7190-4467-7, ISBN 978-0-7190-4467-0, p. 213
[3] Cohen, Stanley (2002). Folk
devils and moral panics: the creation of the Mods and Rockers. London New
York: Routledge. ISBN 9780415267120.
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