January 31st, 2025

'Gothicana Pentagram Hoodie' By EMP. 

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For this short essay, I have been given the task to pick, analyse and assess a piece of clothing from my own wardrobe in the form of an essay. My clothing item of choice is a gothic, pentagram-themed hoodie from the online clothing brand; Gothicana. The main reason I had chosen this particular item from my already expansive collection from clothing brands like Gothicana, was because it sticks out with its own unique design quirks and material textures that I find very interesting and worth discussing. 

Firstly, it’s important to keep in mind where, why and who this particular piece of clothing is for, and what subculture and group of people that this might belong to; a group I would consider myself a part of. This subculture would be the infamous ‘Gothic Subculture’ that rose to popularity in the 1980s and 90s, with its musical influence heavily informing the style the hoodie adopts. The gothic subculture is often associated with, but not heavily tied down to, the supernatural, horror, and dark beauty. This imagery can be visualised as roses, skulls, bats, crows, spiders, gravestones, etc. The imagery and generalised idea of the subculture is to be an evolution of the punk-rock scene that came before in the late 70s. In the same sense, goth shares the same views in being anti-establishment and encourages freedom of expression. This same freedom of expression, through this subcultures deathly themes, is further expressed in its clothing.  

When first analysing the hoodie, what is most apparent to the eye’s vision is its an all-black garment. Most of gothic wear tends to be black, but it isn’t exclusive to it. It’s other decorative elements are metallic rings that are studded onto and across the arms, hood and a pentagram-styled zipper that is chained onto the zipper itself. And has a back detail with a white, spray-painted texture printed onto the back of the hoodie itself. ​

As for the texture of the fabric itself, it is a soft-cotton material, with some stitched details and a rope weaved into the hood as a traditional hoodie would have. It also features pockets on either side and fits very snugly around my torso when I wear it. The only issues that I feel that it may have, is that it might be a bit too tight in the upper back/shoulders area at points when I move. As well as the fact that its pockets aren’t very big and hang loosely inside of the hoodie’s span. These two problems aren’t enough to ruin the clothing item entirely and can be avoided by simply just using another pocket on my coat or jeans I usually wear. The general form and function of this hoodie is balanced out well, and doesn’t tend to sacrifice one or the other, as it still feels very comfortable and durable. 

In conclusion, The Gothicana pentagram hoodie is one of my personal favourite items of clothing I own, simply because of its style and how it makes me feel when wearing it. Clothing should be empowering, and I would say as a goth, I find the style and general looks I get from people in public to be mostly positive and help make me feel more like an individual person to other people and what they might wear in contrast.  

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