Cool (aesthetic)
For other uses of cool, see Cool (disambiguation).Cool, in popular culture, is an
aesthetic of attitude, behaviour, appearance and style. Because of the varied and changing connotations of
cool, as well its subjective nature, the word has no one meaning. It has associations of composure and self-control (cf. the
OED definition) and is very frequently used as an expression of admiration or approval. A great deal of literature has been committed to understanding the concept of cool in society.[
1]
The word
cool is of Germanic origin, represented in Middle English by
cole and in Old English by
col.[
2]The vernacular, or
slang, use of
cool, defined as an inner attitude of tranquility, calm, self-control and composure , arose independently in different places.
Dick Pountain and
David Robins suggest that attitudes similar to modern cool have existed for centuries in several cultures, and trace modern cool back to the "
machismo" of Hispanic cultures, the ethic of the Samurai caste in Japan, the warrior castes of India and East Asia, to the "Aristocratic cool" (
sprezzatura) in Europe, and to the "Anatolian smile" of Turkey used to mask emotions . Others trace pop culture use of the word
cool to
African American slang, the
black jazz scene and its
beatnik groupies in the early part of the twentieth century. Scholar
Robert Farris Thompson traces the roots of modern "cool" beyond African American culture to its earlier beginnings in the spiritual concept of "Itutu" in traditional
Yoruba culture, and describes cool as a "spiritual cool that freezes your face up".[
3]. He acknowledges similarities between African and European cool:
"Africa and Europe share notions of self-control and imperturbability, expressed under a metaphysical rubric of coolness, viz, notions of sang-froid and coolheadedness" (African Art in Motion, 1979, New York, p. 43)
While slang terms are usually comprised of short-lived coinages and figures of speech, 'cool' is an especially ubiquitous slang word, especially among young people; it was ranked number one on the Top Ten Word Lists of California Youthspeak in 2003. As well as being understood throughout the English-speaking world, the word has even entered the vocabulary of several languages other than English.
The use of "cool" is usually derived as a general positive epithet or interjection which has a range of related adjectival
meanings. Among other things, it can mean
calm,
stoic,
impressive,
intriguing, or
superlative.
Cool can also be used to describe a general state of well-being and harmony, composure and absence of excitement in a person, especially in times of stress; it implies an absence of
conflict and can refer to something that is simply aesthetically appealing. Cool can also indicate agreement or assent.
Cool as social distinction
According to this theory, cool is a
zero sum game, in which cool exists only in comparison with things considered less cool. Illustrated in the book
The Rebel Sell, cool is created out of a need for status and distinction. This creates a situation analogous to an
arms race, in which cool is perpetuated by a
collective action problem in society.
Cool as an elusive essence
According to this theory, cool is a real, but unknowable property. Cool, like "good", is a property that exists, but can only be sought after. In the
New Yorker article, "The coolhunt"[
4], cool is given 3 properties:
*"The act of discovering what's cool is what causes cool to move on"
*"Cool cannot be manufactured, only observed"
*"[Cool] can only be observed by those who are themselves cool"
Cool as a fictional concept
According to this theory, cool is an empty idea, manufactured
top-down by the "Merchants of cool". An artificial cycle of "cooling" and "uncooling" creates false needs in consumers, and stimulates the economy. "Cool has become the central ideology of consumer capitalism".
Cool is "a heavily manipulative corporate ethos". -
Kalle LasnSupporters of this theory avoid the pursuit of cool. They are also likely to resent
planned obsolescence, and
globalisation .
:"Cool is a knowledge, a way of life." (Lewis Macadams, author of Birth of The Cool [
5])
"Coolness is the proper way you represent yourself to a human being." (Robert Farris Thompson , Flash of the Spirit, New York: Vintage Books, 1983, p. 13)
"Cool is an age-specific phenomenon, defined as the central behavioural trait of teenagerhood." (Marcel Tadesi, Cool: the signs and meanings of adolescence, p. 1)
*
Cool jazz*
Lame (slang)*
Square (slang)*
itutu*
Charisma*
The coolhunt -
New Yorker article
*
Merchants of cool -
PBS documentary
* Heath, Joseph and Potter, Andrew.
The Rebel Sell. Harper Perennial, 2004.
* Dick Pountain and David Robins, Anatomy of an Attitude, Reaktion Books Ltd., 2000
*
"Cool" entry in Urban Dictionary
