“Scallies and Scouse Prins”: Social inequality and the need for identity in Liverpool

In the previous blog, discussions of the city’s hardship were discussed concerning its profound impact upon the creation of scouse exceptionalism. As previously mentioned, the concept of scouse exceptionalism manifests itself in many ways, the primary example being style.

However, to date there is yet to be a study that connects the dots between the prevalence of fashion in Liverpool, women’s style specifically, to the city’s history of deprivation and stigmatisation.

The “Poor” Complex

Partially due to The Sun newspaper’s discriminative headlines, in the past, a false narrative has been sold to outsiders which pictures Liverpool as a rough area where the people are poor and thieves. Despite the company since apologising for their wrongful accusations, the stigma following Liverpool and scousers remains – and so does its complex.

Similar to the traveller community, who have also been marginalised merely for being perceived as poor and lower class, many scousers feel the need to prove themselves and their wallets by appearing wealthy. The pressure to purchase the latest car or smartphone, look pristine and dress well, are all expressions of such complex.

This unspoken requirement is so embedded within the British culture generally that you’re likely to find many council estate kids sporting the newest Alexander McQueen or Valentino shoes – there is an innate urge to conform to societal standards and appear better-off, regardless of social class. This topic is widely discussed within the fashion community, where the concept of designer clothes doesn’t resemble wealth but the desire to appear wealthy.

Experts have since referred to this as ‘performative identity’, by which people (often those who feel pressure to conform within society) exercise their desire to create a social identity for themselves through displaying themselves in a particular way.

Performative Identities in Liverpool

In today’s social media era, performative identities are increasingly common as we learn to compartmentalise certain aspects of our lives depending on our audience. Often, this process goes unnoticed as it is believed to be somewhat normal to alter our personalities to our environment; almost like a chameleon, our characters at work, on social media, or when interacting with different people or environments will all be inherently diverse.

However, due to its history of stigmatisation, this need for performative identity is arguably more evident within Liverpool than anywhere else in the UK; almost like a defence mechanism, the performative identity acts as a barrier between scousers and their stigma.

In terms of personifying the scouse identity, to be “scouse” and to identify as a “scouser” are two very different labels. Unlike the first, which is merely a label for those born in Liverpool, the latter involves embodying the title, stereotype, and often style which comes with being scouse.

In his study of the formation of local identity in Liverpool, Bolard discusses what it means to identify as a “scouser”, and mentions the following attributes:

• Conforming to the scouse exceptionalism and “us vs. them” mentality.

• Reinforcing the scouse identity through sound, i.e. the scouse dialect and use of common lingo.

• Participating in ritual practices or acts, e.g. dressing up, going to certain popular places and participating in certain activities.

• Replicating and celebrating the unique, distinctive spirit of the “scouser” personification, i.e. of humour, character, and wit.

Such urge to conform to the scouse identity stretches even further than Liverpool, but to across other Merseyside towns and the Wirral. Although they must indefinitely defend their non-scouse title to avoid being labelled a “wool”, the outskirt areas of Liverpool are also subject to the standards which come with the scouse association.

Cooper and Lampropoulou’s research into school-aged girls across the Wirral found that whether one conforms to the “scouse” title is dependent on their solidarity and acceptance of both the positive and negative repertoires which come with the label; the positive associations being cool, friendly, and stylish, and the negative being associated with a lower-class social identity – yet both encompass being distinctive to outsiders.

Many people may mistake this performative identity as human nature, but it appears much more prominent across Liverpool; the desire for status, whether that be classed as “our kid”, “scouse prin” or a “scally” (the least desirable), all have their needs for upkeeping a certain standard or perception of self.

However, the most demanding example of performative identity is indefinitely the newly acclaimed title of being a “scouse prin”.

The concept of being a so-called scouse prin can be easily described as a mirroring of Barbie and her dreamworld lifestyle. Being a scouse prin isn’t just a look, it’s a way of life for many Liverpudlian women. Associated with being relatively high-maintenance in regards to sustaining one’s glamourous external appearance by being pampered, but also upkeeping the exclusive, “it girl” persona of being somewhat off-limits to scallies and other low-calibre men.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUEAV3FhZEg

Despite being slightly outdated, the clip above accurately represents the level of standard set amongst scouse girls in regards to performative identity; the big hair, lots of makeup, scouse brows, dramatic clothing, and the need to be looking stylish.

Wilkinson's study on 'scouse brows', a staple look for the girls, gays and theys of Liverpool, contends that the need for eyebrow grooming is a prime manifestation of scouse performative identity. The study also suggests that such dramatised style is purely a creative outlet for Liverpudlian women. Unlike other, more developed cities, scouse girls often express their creativity through fashion, makeup and other feminine pursuits; however, it's questionable whether such creativity would be expressed within more productive, commodified outlets if Liverpool had the opportunities available?

For scouse lads, performative identity is often associated with keeping up with general laddish culture, being interested in masculine activities, in addition to maintaining a pristine external image. Similar to scouse women, there is also an expectation for the men to be dressed in designer (Lanvin and Missoni appear to be a city favourite) or branded sports gear, often high street brands like Nike, Montierx, Berghaus, and North Face. Such style which makes them so distinctive, as proven in the tweet below.

One aspect that is subconsciously influential on this part is the power of Liverpool’s only luxury fashion store, Cricket. As the city’s only high-fashion store, within an area that thrives on performative identity, Cricket is renowned across Liverpool for being the monopoly of designer shopping. Their discounted prices make designer clothing more accessible to lower-income individuals, yet as a result, the standard of fashion within Liverpool are subconsciously set by the store’s buyers as their merchandise becomes the city’s trend; essentially worsening the issue of needing a performative identity.