“Hipsters” are people who try to set themselves apart from what's “common”, no? But pretty much everyone does this to some degree or another. The idea of conformity, being a mindless drone who copies everyone else, makes one sound like an idiot. No one would admit to being this way. So instead we all tend to look for things that can set us apart from one other; a element of distinction-seeking, a way to assert our own individuality, even though we know this will be shared by a certain number of people (but not by everyone). We choose certain tastes that are in direct opposition to other tastes. I'm trying to get through Pierre Bourdieu's classic, 'Distinction' at the moment, which is all about this kind of thing.
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