Lizzie Swanson ‘28
Staff Writer
You have to rally tonight. There are only so many weekends you’ll have in college. ***** house is throwing, c’mon. You’ll never be this young again.
“Going out” culture has permeated its way into almost every college campus, with the obvious exceptions of the BYU types. Even then, however, I wonder how many secret Kool Aid parties they throw when the Big man upstairs isn’t looking. College partying is not a new phenomenon nor am I the first to write about it. College is often the first step of freedom young adults receive, leaving home for the first time in their lives. The way you party, where you go, what you say, wear, and drink are all often a new and different kind of opportunity for young people to express themselves. This in and of itself is appealing, and the novelty often does not wear off quickly due to the spontaneous nature of going out – that’s part of the fun. However, I am under the impression that no one knows how to go out, especially yours truly. And if anyone tells you otherwise, they’re lying.
There’s this sense of knowledge around party culture that I’ve always found strange. There’s a peculiar prestige around “knowing how to get in” somewhere or being “on the inside.” We can treat having a friend on a sports team as granted access and as soon as 9pm on a weekend rolls around, you’re listing them and kids from your Montserrat to try and get in the door. Don’t even get me started on the door men. This might be Holy Cross’ frattiest practice. For a school that lacks Greek life, we try to emulate the same brotherhood in many ways, just exemplified on that evil hill—you know the one. There’s always a sense of confusion about going out, where we’re going, who’s going to be there, what’s going to happen. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that: I think that’s one of the biggest draw-ins. But the notion that anyone really knows the answer to these questions defeats the whole purpose of going out in the first place. I tend to wonder how this “knowledge” can be described. Is it insecure, pretentious, or boastful? Or does everyone really know exactly what’s going on? It’s where high school interpersonal dynamics are emulated the most, I have found. It’s all about who “knows” and who doesn’t. Since moving abroad to Dublin for the year, I’ve found all these conceptions of going out to be the same. No one knows what they’re doing, but we’re all pretending like we do. This issue, I would argue, is not just prevalent on college campuses, but is a phenomenon young people are experiencing, therefore bringing it to college.
I’ve discussed this topic with a number of friends and everyone’s answer is different when I ask “What does your ideal night out look like?” For some, it’s cramped basements with strangers and a bass you feel coursing throughout your body. For many, it’s live music that gets them out and dancing with friends. It can also be the opportunity to make a romantic move, or experiment with different levels of consciousness. And for others, their ideal night ends with a bedtime before midnight. I believe that we go out to express ourselves in ways that are deemed socially unacceptable in normal environments. Behavior is often excused because everyone is under the same impression that – well this is just what happens. These types of confessions, conversations, or actions can either go very well or very poorly quickly. The stakes seem lower, but are often much higher. How much Dad and Mom lore are we trying to collect? How much of going out is about being perceived? While party culture is marketed as social, I would argue it can also be incredibly personal. How are you interacting with the people and environment around you? What motivates you to act this way? What are your preconceived notions about going out culture and how does that affect your behavior?
Another beautiful thing about the culture is that you don’t have to ask yourself any of this! If you want to take a sociological approach to going out and human interaction, this is one of the best environments to do so. And if you’d rather just go out and experience college life, nothing is stopping you. However, I would argue that thinking more about “What it means to go out” outside of the environment itself can clarify your subconscious motivations around your participation in party culture. Having these conversations can change these dynamics. Party culture is being examined on a mass scale in our nation right now. Being a part of this conversation can prompt better understandings of campus safety, wellbeing, and the psychological and physical effects going out culture introduces. This article does not intend to indicate whether the culture is positive or negative, but instead prompts a conversation about going out and the effect it has on all of us, because whether we like it or not, it does.
Copy edited by Kimberly Von Randow ’28
Featured image courtesy of iStock
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