Geek Culture UK: Evolution from Niche to Mainstream
Back in 2010, Mark Zuckerberg won TIME magazine’s “Person of the Year” award. This was a moral, and mainstream victory for traditionalist geeks all over the world.
The man who founded Facebook in 2004 whilst studying at Harvard had always been “different.” He wasn’t a “jock,” and he didn’t want to fit into any clique – he had an idea which stemmed from a deep knowledge of computing and he stuck to it. He truly is the “Geek God of Social Media.”
Defining ‘Geek’: What Does It Really Mean?
There are many different interpretations of what a geek is. The traditional image might be of a schoolboy with his top button firmly tightened and perhaps braces. Nowadays, “being a geek” can almost be taken as a compliment. If you are a geek, you are knowledgeable about a particular subject, which gives you openings in the world that may not have been possible before. This, in turn, means mainstream media and citizens of Earth are starting to accept ‘them’. Understandably, the society we live in could not thrive without geeks.
The always-amusing Urban Dictionary defines a geek as “somebody you pick on at high school, but end up working for”, which sums it up perfectly; geeks often endure teasing but laugh loudest in their later years. All you have to do is think of the most influential ‘geeky’ people throughout history – Darwin, Einstein, Hawking, Jobs, Gates, Zuckerberg – and you can spot their importance to how we live today from miles off.
The Modern Definition of a Geek
The modern-day definition of the word geek is quite nuanced. It can still be used as a derogatory term, meaning “foolish or clumsy”, but this is becoming increasingly rare. Its main usage today would be aimed towards “experts” or “enthusiasts” of a certain study (whether it be computing, painting, gaming, or even obscure hobbies) and is generally received in a positive manner.
