Whats "Cool?" Got a Definition?

Business Forum

Startup Business Basics

Selecting a Business for Yourself

What’s "Cool?" Got a Definition?

New Topic

Post Reply

Follow Topic

« Prev Page of 2

Author
Message

idahobob

posts: 48

Feb 24, 2009 10:47 PM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

well, I was thinking to describe it more like love, hate, admiration... than the list started growing nd pretty soon, I came up with an answer... cool is subjective and being subjective it get`s a "free pass" to not having to explain it`self... .:)

What is beauty, what is gaudy, what isn`t "cool" to some people? same thing... it`s subjective. And tha`ts what "cool" about subjectivity.

Anything can be cool at any given time depending on the wind a moth produces by fluttering it`s wings in africa and the eyes of the beholder and the ambient light that it is being seen with..

But... I may be wrong... I have a suspicion that you really know the answer and your waiting for the proper moment to spring it on us...??

-------------------------

Bob

CraigL

posts: 9051

Feb 24, 2009 10:48 PM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

Actually, I don`t know the answer. Like so many other empty concepts, we all just use it, never thinking at all about what it means. We just "somehow" know what we guess it may mean.

No word gets a free pass. No word can just "exist" for no reason, being entirely subjective. That`s the lazy way of modern linguistics and what`s called "deconstructionism." It`s part of why we`re in the mess we`re in.

All words have definitions. If we don`t know the definition, we presumably shouldn`t use the word. But an empty concept offers people the opportunity to use words and not to know what they mean. So we have people using words like "economics," "budget deficit," "education," and lots of other words.

A purely subjective event is pain or pleasure. Only we can feel those sensations. Nobody else can feel what we feel. So would we say, therefore that the word "pain" or "pleasure" has no definition? It can be whatever anyone wants it to be?

:-) No, we wouldn`t. Same with "cool."

MattTurpin

posts: 249

Feb 25, 2009 12:55 AM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

I found some interesting snippets of cool by Googling "cool" and clicking the wiki result.

Cool as social distinction

According to this theory, cool is a zero sum game, in which cool exists only in comparison with things considered less cool. Illustrated in the book The Rebel Sell, cool is created out of a need for status and distinction. This creates a situation analogous to an arms race, in which cool is perpetuated by a collective action problem in society.^[41]

[edit]Cool as an elusive essence

According to this theory, cool is a real, but unknowable property. Cool, like "Good", is a property that exists, but can only be sought after.^[6] In the New Yorker article, "The Coolhunt",^[42] cool is given three characteristics:

"The act of discovering what`s cool is what causes cool to move on"
"Cool cannot be manufactured, only observed"
"[Cool] can only be observed by those who are themselves cool".

Cool as a marketing device

“	[Cool is] a heavily manipulative corporate ethos.	”
—Kalle Lasn

See also: Planned obsolescence, Cultural appropriation, and CoolBrands (branding initiative)

“	Over the past decade, young black men in American inner cities have been the market most aggressively mined by brandmasters as a source of borrowed `meaning` and identity...The truth is that the `got to be cool` rhetoric of the global brands is, more often than not, an indirect way of saying `got to be black.`	”
—Designer Christian Lacroix^[43]

According to this theory, cool can be exploited as a manufactured and empty idea imposed on the culture at large through a top-down process by the "Merchants of Cool".^[44] An artificial cycle of "cooling" and "uncooling" creates false needs in consumers, and stimulates the economy. "Cool has become the central ideology of consumer capitalism".^[41] Supporters of this theory avoid the pursuit of cool.

The concept of cool was used in this way to market menthol cigarettes to African Americans in the 1960s. In 2004 over 70% of African American smokers preferred menthol cigarettes, compared with 30% of white smokers. This unique social phenomenon was principally occasioned by the tobacco industry`s manipulation of the burgeoning black, urban, segregated, consumer market in cities at that time.^[45]According to Fast Company some large companies have started `outsourcing cool.` They are paying other "smaller, more-limber, closer-to-the-ground outsider" companies to help them keep up with customers` rapidly changing tastes and demands.^[46]

[edit]Cool defined

"Cool is a knowledge, a way of life."^[47] -- Lewis Macadams
"Cool is an age-specific phenomenon, defined as the central behavioural trait of teenagerhood."^[48]
"Coolness is the proper way you represent yourself to a human being."^[49] -- Robert Farris Thompson
In the novel Spook Country by William Gibson one character equates cool with a sense of exclusivity: "Secrets," said the Bigendbeside her, "are the very root of cool."^[50]
In the novel Lords and Ladies by Terry Pratchett the Monks of Cool are mentioned. In their passing-out test a novice must select the coolest garment from a room full of clothes. The correct answer is "Hey, whatever I select", suggesting that cool is primarily an attitude of self-assurance.^[51]

-------------------------

Making limitless possibilities much more limited.

CraigL

posts: 9051

Feb 25, 2009 2:44 AM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

Definitely interesting info, Matt! :-) One thing that bothers me, though, is this:

"According to this theory, cool is a real, but unknowable property. Cool, like "Good", is a property that exists, but can only be sought after."

"Cool cannot be manufactured, only observed"

300 years of philosophy, and we`ve reached the point where nothing is knowable, nobody can determine anything, and the mind is useless. That`s where our "intelligentsia," elites, and academic philosophers have brought us.

Words have meanings, and actions have consequences. Meaning requires definition.

We`re agreed that cool is perceived, which is why it seems to be a subjective thing. But if cool can`t be manufactured, then I guess Guy Kawasaki pretty much is useless, and can`t succeed, right? Not!

What about two little boys who capture a frog. To them, it`s the coolest thing in the world! Then they show it to their teacher, and she about has a heart attack! Definitely not cool..!

But is the "coolness" an attribute of the frog? No, it`s an attribute assigned through the boys` perception of the frog. So it`s a subjective assignment, but that doesn`t mean it also isn`t "knowable."

Otherwise, how come both boys equally agree that the frog is cool?

MattTurpin

posts: 249

Feb 25, 2009 3:01 AM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

It`s a very Far Eastern way of thinking we`re doing here. The idea that everything can be defined, labeled and categorized is a Western concept. What we`ll end up settling for is simply coming to an understanding of the concept of cool, and accepting that there are things that can`t be defined specifically. We`ve got a boxing match between Confucius and Descartes, and I`m thinking Confucius has the upper hand.

-------------------------

Making limitless possibilities much more limited.

CraigL

posts: 9051

Feb 25, 2009 7:46 PM ET Quote Report Abuse

Points: 0 Vote

I woke up today with a possible definition. If not, then at least a way to narrow the definition to "pretty close."

Thinking about the two boys and the frog, I see that particular example as one category. The other is the CD player or the alignment of the pyramids. To join them, it looks like this:

"Cool" represents a clever solution to a problem, with a result that demonstrates competence.

The overall set is "problem solving" (and action). The unique identifier(s) is "clever." I`m still working on how clever can be combined with competent.

The boys and the frog:

It isn`t the frog that`s cool, it`s that the boys have cleverly solved the problem of catching a frog, and then demonstrate their competence as hunters.

The CD player:

The digital sound of CD is better than record players and vinyl, and the player makes for smaller, lighter, more easily transported, and fewer breakable parts. The competence is the level of error-free music, and the device used to play that audio.

Additionally, the elegance of the digital disk solution is higher than the best-quality phonograph.

The pyramids:

Given primitive technology, the emergence and development of astronomy and the desire for an alignment was the "problem." To move such massive buildings into such precise alignment took exceptional cleverness. The result demonstrated a level of competence that remains a mystery even today.

"Why do you think that`s cool?"

"Because I can relate to a problem I`m having, and this is a very clever solution to that problem. It`s efficient, graceful, elegant, and high-quality. It solves the problem with no wasted effort, and looks good on top of solving something. The result demonstrates excellent competence in the particular problem area.

Why is John or Sally "cool" in school?

Teens enter into the turmoil of hormones and awareness of themselves through external perspective. The level of confusion is higher than at any other time, and the uncertainty level is to the point of chaos.

John or Sally represent a peer-level person with certainty, decisiveness, and apparently no confusion. They`ve cleverly solved the problem using something (cultural, artistic, commodity, behavior), which, if copied, will represent competence in the kid who desires to be "cool."

« Prev Page of 2

Post Reply

Keep the Community Clean!

StartupNation forums should be used as a platform to learn, educate others, share stories, tips & tricks and to provide constructive feedback.
Please do not use the Forums for advertising & blatant self-promotion.
Please be respectful to other members and refrain from personal attacks and vulgar language.
StartupNation reserves the right to delete any message, reply, and/or member who violates our terms of use.

Read full terms of use

Contact Us Privacy Terms of Use Become a Marketplace Provider Advertise Local Guides Site Map Home Business Start a Business

Business Forum

Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

What’s "Cool?" Got a Definition?

Cool as social distinction

[edit]Cool as an elusive essence

Cool as a marketing device

[edit]Cool defined

Keep the Community Clean!