Punk Movement and Fanzines in the United Kingdom Research Paper

The aim of the current study is concerned with contextualizing and recovering the politics behind the creation of punk fanzines, or ‘Zines, produced in the 1970s in the United Kingdom. ‘Zines, and the youth culture in general, aimed to provide a context for the young people within a culture to express their opinions, ideas, and anxieties about the sociopolitical climate¹. The fanzines could be used as historical portals into different periods of socioeconomic, political, and cultural developments². With the emergence of the punk movement, which was heavily ignored by the mainstream media, fanzines became essential forms of cultural communication among young people who aimed to challenge the established social norms³.

The focus on the British context as related to the impact of ‘Zines was chosen as the country was the home to the punk movement ⁴. Such publications as Sniffin’ Glue, Reason to Believe, Suspect Device, Dunk and Piss, and many others promoted an opposition toward the political climate in the countries, facilitating a conversation about real-life experiences⁵. Fanzines could be regarded as graphic methods for the youth’s resistance⁶. They were promoting the politics and music of the punk subculture and underground activity.⁷ Thus, while offering alternative cultural narratives to the accounts of the punk context in the mainstream media, fanzines can be used to allow a look at the radical ideas held by the youthful milieu as related to expressing opinions about the political context⁸. The topic bears importance because it allows to determine how the networks of young punk activists were established in developing recognizable anti-governmental politics⁹. The visual aspect of punk ‘Zines will also allow to comment on the social narratives, relevant news of that time, gossip, as well as subculture events within the punk rock scene¹⁰.

References

Lahusen, Christian. “The Aesthetic of Radicalism: The Relationship between Punk and the Patriotic Nationalist Movement of the Basque Country.” Popular Music 12, no. 3 (1993): 263-280.

Leishman, Kirsty. “Explainer: Zines.”The Conversation. n.d. Web.

Melin, Daniel. “The Rise and Fall of Zines.” Split Magazine. n.d. Web.

Moran, Ian. “Punk: The Do-It-Yourself Subculture.” Social Sciences Journal 10, no. 1 (2010): 58-65.

Savage, Jon. “Fanzines: The Purest Explosion of British Punk.”The Guardian. n.d. Web.

Schmidt, Christian. “Meanings of Fanzines in the Beginning of Punk in the GDR and FRG.” La Presse Musicale Alternative 5, no. 1 (2006): 47-72.

Triggs, Teal. “Scissors and Glue: Punk Fanzines and the Creation of a DIY Aesthetic.” Journal of Design History 19, no. 1 (2006): 69-83.

Tschida, Anne. “Zines, Where Words and Visuals Collide.”Knight Foundation. n.d. Web.

Wilson, Brian. “Ethnography, the Internet, and Youth Culture: Strategies for Examining Social Resistance and “Online-Offline” Relationships.” Canadian Journal of Education 29, no. 1 (2006): 307-328.

Worley, Matthew. “Punk, Politics and British (fan)zines, 1976-84: ‘While the World Was Dying, Did You Wonder Why?’” History Workshop Journal 79, no. 1 (2015): 76-106.

Footnotes

1. Ian Moran, “Punk: The Do-It-Yourself Subculture,” Social Sciences Journal 10, no. 1 (2010): 58.
2. Matthew Worley, “Punk, Politics and British (fan)zines, 1976-84: ‘While the World Was Dying, Did You Wonder Why?’” History Workshop Journal 79, no. 1 (2015): 76.
3. Daniel Melin, “The Rise and Fall of Zines,” Split Magazine. n.d. Web.
4. Jon Savage, “Fanzines: The Purest Explosion of British Punk,” The Guardian. n.d. Web.
5. Christian Schmidt, “Meanings of Fanzines in the Beginning of Punk in the GDR and FRG,” La Presse Musicale Alternative 5, no. 1 (2006): 48.
6. Brian Wilson, “Ethnography, the Internet, and Youth Culture: Strategies for Examining Social Resistance and “Online-Offline” Relationships.” Canadian Journal of Education 29, no. 1 (2006): 307-328.
7. Teal Triggs, “Scissors and Glue: Punk Fanzines and the Creation of a DIY Aesthetic,” Journal of Design History 19, no. 1 (2006): 69.
8. Kirsty Leishman, “Explainer: Zines.” The Conversation. n.d. Web.
9. Christian Lahusen, “The Aesthetic of Radicalism: The Relationship Between Punk and the Patriotic Nationalist Movement of the Basque Country,” Popular Music 12, no. 3 (1993): 264.
10. Anne Tschida, “Zines, Where Words and Visuals Collide,” Knight Foundation. n.d. Web.