Japanese su, and bouchet (2016), choosing a

Japanesestreet fashion thrived in this modern world; however, this aesthetics cannot becomea mainstream in society.

This subculture has been discussed by several scholarsand media internationally and constantly comes under fire domestically. Due to thisphenomenon, one of the street fashion styles, Kogyaru and Lolita, will bediscussed.                 The meaning of fashion is not only anexpression of aesthetics but also a symbol which is carrying people’s notionsand identities (Kawamura, 2006). “ A fragmented, heterogeneous andindividualistic stylistic identification” and the freedom of self-expression(Muggleton, 2002), the messages, which are expressed by the raging fanatics ofsubculture, also exists in street fashion because it is one of the subcultures. According to Badaoui, Lebrun, Su, and Bouchet (2016), choosing a suitablefashion style for themselves is a process of self-categorization. People willtry to identify which style and notions are suitable to their values andidentities, then try to adopt it. Through those symbols, people can find out thepeers who have close perspectives and sense of fashion. They separated theirfashion style from others, create their group identity, have a sense ofbelonging and collective esteem (Schiele, Venkatesh, Alladi, Graham, John,& Lau-Gesk, Loraine, 2012).

Kogyaruis a generation identity (Jiratanatiteenun, Mizutani, Kitaguchi, Sato , 2012). In the mid-1960s, the female fashion sense was not categorizedby class or age, but in the 1990s, Kogyaru wanted to rebel against the parentculture, distinguish themselves from the seniors. Thus, they established theirown fashion style to separate the age groups. Those high school girlsdiscovered the sailor-style school uniform, which means Seifuku, is symbolic ofadolescent girls. So, they usually wore the short skirts which are similar toschool uniform, “ loose socks” to show that they are different from adult women. In Japan, adulthood is representing a lifestyle of hardworking, having aresponsibility and duty to society (Hinton, 2013).

The Japanese adolescents arehaving a negative notion of being an adult. When teenage girls dress up asKogyaru, they may create a self-esteem, because they are not belonging to theadult age group who are loathed by teenagers. Since Kogyaru is representing asense of trendy and fashionable (Jiratanatiteenun el at.

, 2012), which is the” individualistic” and “ stylistic” identification, being a Kogyaru may alsogenerate a collective esteem.          Kogyaru is usually hanging out atShibuya station (Jiratanatiteenun el at., 2012), the clothing style is a symbolof Kogyaru’s group identity. They can easily find the like-minded person andhave a social interaction. Through the uniqueness of fashion style, theself-worth and collective esteem may be enhanced. Since they are different fromthe ordinary citizens, they may feel they are special and attractive.

Yet theymay not satisfy with the dissimilar appearance; therefore, Kogyaru created aunique language and called “ Gyaru Moji” (Miller, 2004). For instance, “?????”, means extremely cute, in Gyaru Moji became “??????”. These linguisticforms are constructing their individualism and the sense of belonging, sincetheir languages are uniqueness and not understandable to society, just for theKogyaru’s group. This language reinforces the group identity of Kogyaru and thecollective esteem.         Lolita, another street fashion in Japan, is a traditional feminine identity and a liberation. The appearance of Lolitais dressing up like a Victorian doll, with pale skin, knee length dress, knee-high socks, and blouse. Lolita should be cute, elegant, and exquisite. According to Kawamura’s (2012) interview, one of the Lolita said that when shedresses Lolita, she feels like a princess and treated like a true lady.

Thisdialog reveals that Lolita is a symbol of femininity. Also, other intervieweesdescribe that when she wears Lolita, she feels free and is expressing herreal-self, another contends that although her parents and boyfriend do not likeLolita, she still dressing up. The revelation of these conversations is anoccurrence of liberation. Muggleton (2002) demonstrate the definition ofliberation, a freedom to express oneself when the habit or behavior isprohibited by social norm.

They do not care others’ perspectives, just expresstheir desire of pursuing own aesthetics. Theadolescent girls in Lolita usually hang out with their peers on the bridge nearHarajuku Station, where is the territory of subcultural groups, they may meetothers with the same interest and form a group. They have their own websiteforum, like “ Komica”, to discuss the brands, style, and events, provide a placefor them to communicate with a group of people who are having the same idea andthought, enhance their self-worth. In addition, they created some short formscombined with English and Japanese, such as “?? JSK”, “ NOP” and “ BL”, which are changeable jumperskirt, no sleeve one piece and blouse respectively.

The uniqueness of languageused is also helping to construct a stronger group identity. When they usetheir own language to communicate with others’ Lolita, the individualism willbe echoing them and build up a sense of belonging and reinforce their socialidentity.          To be concluded, fashion is a symbol forsubculturalists to identify the like-minded people and establish their owncultural groups, by holding the creations of unique languages and forums toreinforce the group identity.