This is the page of what it means to me to be a goth. It's much easier to start by defining what it is not. Goth does not mean that one is (a):

†  Satanist
†  Atheist
†  Homosexual
†  Bisexual
†  Suicidal
†  Depressed
†  Only dresses in Black
†  Only listens to the Cure
†  Is into vampirism
†  Is into bondage
†  Violent
†  Hateful

...you get the idea. The myths that exist about goths and their reasons for being involved in the goth subculture are many and most of them unfounded and quite ridiculous. Society tends to criticize and fear that which is different, according to their definition of normal or acceptable. This weakness exists in every culture, society religion and lifestyle; the only cure is knowledge.

Some of defining qualities of a goth are that they have:
†  An almost obsessed drive towards creativity sometimes bypassing that which most people may consider acceptable, ranging from the subtle to the horrific.
†  Tolerance and respect of all peoples(except hypocrites and hate mongers), which is why that those in goth circles tend not to belong to an organized mainstream religion. Many, such as myself, do not even believe in or have a need for a god. That position alone easily earns the label "Satanic" by many.
†  Tends to find beauty in the things that may from outward appearances be considered ugly by the mainstream, which could be the result of looking for inner beauty in people, staying consistant in being tolerant.
†  A diversity of taste with regards to entertainment. We don't all like the same music or other expressions of art, but generally speaking the more "moody" the art in question is, the more goths tend to be drawn to it; primarily because it reflects our own feelings and emotions. Some of the most beautiful songs are also the most mornful and sad.
†  Seems to be unbalanced emotionally; as the darkness that exists in all of us, whether it is the result of a tragic experience or just an underlying constant feeling is revealed and brought to light, many people become uncomfortable. This does not mean however that goths sit in a blackened room all day, rocking back and forth, contemplating suicide. It just means that goths tend to be very open and honest with their feelings, and that we are not used to burying them deep down until we feel nothing.

And now a detailed and well written historial perspective by Azhrarn, at Origins. Great site!

Goth, as we currently know it, has its roots in Western Europe and North America during the late seventies and early eighties. The counterculture was, and still is, dominated by dissatisfied youth hailing from the middle classes, which were at that time just entering a new period of prosperous stability. The children of these newly wealthy were left, unlike their parents, with a strong feeling of instability and lack of identity. They were unable to reconcile the new values their society was trying to impress upon them with their newly fragile sense of self. The tightening lines of social restructure were separating them from their accustomed peers in both the upper and lower classes. 

Responding to the confusion and theft of identity, a few of the brightest and most creative children of these newly prosperous families began to create their own social structure. It was a counter culture based on a synthesis of historical elements, leaning heavily on dramatic traditions, philosophies, and schools of thought such as were popular in Byronic England, World War Two Germany, and American Beat. After spending some time with no real name for themselves many dubbed themselves New Romantics while others just called themselves Deathers then swiftly settled on Gothic as the counter culture grew and became more stable. 

Always more than a little bipolar in nature, Goth split into two distinct factions, one Appolonian and the other Dionysan in its approach, by 1981 when it had reached its peak. Each faction was a personification of the mixed fear and fascination the Goths felt for the darker side of their parents' legacy of materialism, elitism, and false sense of moral superiority. The difference lay in their ways of expressing their sense of alienation and abandonment. 

The more Appolonian faction were mainly concerned with the artistic and philosophical facets of Goth. They were, for the most part, fairly non confrontational in their means of self-expression. They were in most cases all but obsessed with the act of creation and the appreciation of literature, art and music. A number of them attempted to legitimize their subculture in the eyes of the parent culture with very little success. Because they were regarded as harmless, if morbid dreamers, they were tolerated. 

The more Dionysan faction of Goth passionately embraced the more hedonistic and sometimes self-destructive facets of the movement. Their contributions to Goth were more ephemeral and less easy to define in traditional terms as creativity, but still were vibrant with the haunted, dark spirit of the counter culture. Some of the more prominent Goth musicians and thinkers belonged to this faction. Being more confrontational in their self-expression, they were regarded by the parent culture as dangerous and undesirable.  The modern stereotype of Goth is a twisted caricature of the more Dionysan faction that captures its decadence and tendency towards self-destruction while entirely missing its subtle artistry and depth, not to mention the entire point of Goth as a whole. By 1987, both factions of Goth had almost completely vanished, absorbed back into the parent culture as their members were forced to accept conformity to ensure individual survival as adults. A marginal percentage of the original Goth community were able to adapt to adult life remaining essentially and visibly true to themselves, while still managing to keep the income necessary to maintain the rising price of living in the style to which they had become accustomed. By this time, the new generation of disaffected youth had already begun to imitate what they perceived of the Dionysan Goths. They had embraced the dark and dangerous style of dress and felt that the lonely, arrogant music was written just for them. The stereotypical lifestyle was adventurous and daring enough to spark their already bored and world-weary imaginations. By the nineties, the artistry and philosophy that drove the Goth culture had been by and large replaced with attitude, posturing and dress code. The few remaining Olde School Goths and their protégés had gone underground and were not a part of the new rise of Goth, refusing to have much to do with what they considered shallow, inarticulate upstarts that paid to much attention to what the media thought was Goth. They saw the new Goth as little more than a group of image driven drug addicts that had nothing better to offer than a dress code and a bad attitude. The New School's opinions of the originals wasn't much better. 

That was so well written, that i had to put it here. Within these two distinct types are subdivisions, such as Romantic/Victorian, Bondage/S&M, etc. Some goths will shun other goths if they wear clothing that they object to based on their belifs of what a "true" goth is, and as a result there exists in the gothic community (if there is such a thing) a great deal of pretentiousness and arrogance. For this reason and others, I feel it's important to have a sense of humor about ourselves. If you spend anytime at all in the company of goths, it is hard not to laugh! Many give themselves names such as Wraith, Raven, Shadow etc and I realize that this can be theraputic, as a means of escapism and as long as you don't take yourself so seriously then it's tolerable to most people.

One of the most defining mediums that most goths use to express themselves with, is poetry. It's easy to do, free and very expressive. The writings that I have on this site and other's I've written are not as eloquent as most are used to, but I sacificed technique for art...I only write when I'm moved to, when I want to release something. As a result the poetry is quite raw, often violent and profane. Obviously, that's because that's how I felt at the time that I wrote it, and it has always been theraputic. There are a handful of poems that I cannot read, because I was in such a dark place at the time that they were written and I do not care to visit that place again. If you'd like to submit any poetry, send it here.