This woman's black hair, black dress, and dark makeup are representative of the goth culture. Photograph by Jonathan Torgovnik. Corbis Corporation. Reproduced by permission.

In the late 1800s, the word "gothic" was used to describe a popular type of novel, mysterious and romantic, filled with dark foreboding and supernatural occurrences. Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley (1797–1851) and published in 1818, is an example of a gothic novel. In the 1980s, a youthful subculture emerged that used the word "gothic" or "goth" to describe itself. Dressed in black, often with hair dyed black against pale skin, these modern goths shared the dark, brooding tone of the gothic novels of the nineteenth century. Young people usually become goths because they feel alienated, or separate, from mainstream society. They are often rejected or ridiculed by their more "normal" peers for one reason or another. Goths embraced that rejection by dressing and...