In this chapter Hodkinson focuses mainly on the intranational connections among goths. Whereas other musical youth cultures may not feel any connection to a similar culture in another locale, or even feel hostility towards them (remember the East Coast vs. West Coast hip hop rivalry), the British goths he researched seemed to feel some type of comradeship with goths from other communities and even other countries. However, this is not to say that they didn't feel isolated in some way. Hodkinson writes, "...goths perceived that they had more in common with other goths hundreds or thousands of miles away than they did with most nonaffiliated members of their immediate locality" (134). Because they couldn't feel a connection to their physical location, they associated with this national/international community, fostered by early new media technology. Because of such mentalities, many goths traveled to other places, which Hodkinson believes contributed to the "cross-fertilization" of various elements of goth culture and created an overall consistency.
Discussion: Are there any other youth cultures today in which we can see this willingness to travel and meet similar people from other areas? Are members of youth cultures replacing physical movement with travel via the Internet, connecting through discussion boards, blogs, etc.?
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