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(I want some) demystification: Deconstructing punk

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What does ‘punk scholarship’ mean in practice? This is a question that many of us wrangle with on a personal as well as a critical, academic level. How can punk be academicized? What is gained – and what is lost – in that process? Why does punk need to be studied? In relation to which fields of enquiry, which bodies of knowledge could, or should, it be examined? What kinds of people undertake such study, and what motivates them to do it? What is their connection to the subculture itself, as observers, analysts or contributors? What constitutes a critical study of punk in any case – many punk followers are interested in the history of the subculture, sometimes to the tiniest detail, but does that make them ‘scholars’ or merely active participants (or punk nerds)?

Keywords: criticism; history; politics; punk; scholarship; subculture

Document Type: Research Article

Affiliations: Punk Scholars Network and London College of Communication

Publication date: September 1, 2015

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  • Punk & Post-Punk is a journal for academics, artists, journalists and the wider cultural industries. Placing punk and its progeny at the heart of inter-disciplinary investigation, it is the first forum of its kind to explore this rich and influential topic in both historical and critical theoretical terms.
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