The Death of Cool

[Michael]

The Death of the Cool

By Robert McHenry

Cool was once associated with reticence, savoir-faire, and irony, none of which is much practiced or regarded these days.

Article (http://www.american.com/archive/2009/november/the-death-of-the-cool)

I basically quoted the only part of the article that I agree with. The author seems like he's lost in nostalgia for days long past - defining cool as belonging to a generation that died off more than a generation ago - and striking off from the list one of the greatest exemplars of cool that ever walked the earth (James Dean). I can only surmise that the author is well past the half-century mark in age and has issues with youth (given his examples).

Anyway, this thread is not about 'who is cool' and 'who is not' (since that's just pop-culture subjectivity). This thread is more about the idea of cool.

Ten or twenty years ago, everyone knew what the term meant. I respectfully submit that now, if you ask a dozen people what is cool, you will get a dozen highly subjective answers.

And no matter how hard Hollywood tries, I can't imagine applying the label of "cool" to any actor or product of Hollywood any more. Hollywood strikes me as the very definition of 'uncool' (bloated corporate-capitalist top-down organization with zero creativity).

[Americano]

Cool is simply.....cool. It needs no definition.

[Michael]

Cool is simply.....cool. It needs no definition.
Really?

Thirty-five years ago, 'The Fonz' was the definition of cool. Now he most certainly is not. Ergo, his coolness either evaporated, slipped away or was replaced by something else.

The author of the article seems to think that Jazz possesses some special kind of cool. I think Jazz is annoying and there is nothing cool about overweight black men playing the sax. :shrug:

Cool certainly has a definition, though I don't claim to know what it is.

(I suspect that "cool" is right up there with obscenity and art - it can only be defined subjectively and even then, only by pointing at examples - and of course, subjective definitions are no definition at all)

[Donkey]

Cool is a quality, not an aspect.

[Michael]

Cool is a quality, not an aspect.

What's the difference between a quality and an aspect? They seem one and the same to me.

[Lily]

Steve Earle is cool. Roadtrips are cool. MerleFest is cool. Clyde Butcher's photography is cool. Rattlesnake Crafts out near Tombstone, AZ is cool. Kenny Drew, Jr. is cool. The Florida Folk Festival is cool. Driving the Tail of the Dragon is cool. Reading is cool. Terrence Malick movies are cool. Camping in the Juniper Springs Wilderness is cool. London is cool. Levi jean jackets are cool.

Cool has to be subjective.

[Donkey]

What's the difference between a quality and an aspect? They seem one and the same to me.
Cool is something you sort of possess, not a characteristic that you can point out.

At any rate, it is incredibly subjective, so any serious attempt at analyzing what it is would be, well... uncool.

[Americano]

Really?

Thirty-five years ago, 'The Fonz' was the definition of cool. Now he most certainly is not. Ergo, his coolness either evaporated, slipped away or was replaced by something else.

He was not the definition of cool to me. Cool is not a 5' 3" tall television series actor in a motorcycle jacket playing a character. That was cool manufactured for the masses. Most in that group are not cool. My wife knew Henry socially and thinks he's personally a cool guy but that's as far from the Fonz character as it gets.

The author of the article seems to think that Jazz possesses some special kind of cool. I think Jazz is annoying and there is nothing cool about overweight black men playing the sax. :shrug:

Cool certainly has a definition, though I don't claim to know what it is.

(I suspect that "cool" is right up there with obscenity and art - it can only be defined subjectively and even then, only by pointing at examples - and of course, subjective definitions are no definition at all)

[The Drunk Girl]

Cool to me is just another way to say "alright"

-You want to go eat Mexican today?
-Yeah, that sounds cool.

-Want to come over?
-That's cool. Be there in a few.

-What do you think about Jim?
-He seems pretty cool.

If something or someone is better than just cool or alright, I'll add an explicit in front of it or I won't use the word at all. I prefer "bad-ass" or "kick-ass" then :lol:. I mean c'mon...saying Zeppelin is "cool" just doesn't cut it (and in their case their music is fucking beautiful).

[Zarquon]

I don't ever use that ridiculously generic term, it doesn't mean anything to me.
I think its rather juvenile and inarticulate to label things 'cool'.

[Donkey]

I don't ever use that ridiculously generic term, it doesn't mean anything to me.
I think its rather juvenile and inarticulate to label things 'cool'.
Yeah. It's the kid version of "nice."

[Michael]

I think you are all getting hung up on the generational fad of using particular words.

The OP addressed the concept that the idea of cool itself is dead. Doesn't really matter what word you use to substitute for the term of 'cool' - it is the concept that has died. I find that concept very interesting - it says a lot about our celebrity and pop-culture worshipping society. Irony is completely dead (to be cool was to be ironic and detached). Thus, the very idea of being cool is now impossible.

[Lily]

I think you are all getting hung up on the generational fad of using particular words.

The OP addressed the concept that the idea of cool itself is dead. Doesn't really matter what word you use to substitute for the term of 'cool' - it is the concept that has died. I find that concept very interesting - it says a lot about our celebrity and pop-culture worshipping society. Irony is completely dead (to be cool was to be ironic).

I don't think irony is dead. Well, I think people still recognize irony. I do, I think. And that recognition definitely plays into my definition of "cool." For example, I love camping in the Juniper Springs Wilderness, but I find it ironic that many campers like it because it's a protected wilderness. One has to hike in. But it's not protected for people, it's protected for the black bears. The height of camping season for me is also the time when the black bears retreat into the area to escape the hunters. It's funny to me and makes the experience of camping there very cool.

I love to reassure nervous campers, too. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about bears. This is a protected area." Heh heh.

[Michael]

I love to reassure nervous campers, too. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about bears. This is a protected area." Heh heh.

Now that is cool! ;)

Part of the concept of 'cool' is keeping cool and detached under pressure when others are freaking out or afraid of everything. That's a big part of the idea of cool.

And pop-culture has never been able to package cool very well - but that's because if you have to buy it, you aren't cool.