Nativism, Fedoras, and the 'Hipster' Takeover of Montauk
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Montauk is the final town on Long island (known as the End, for this reason) and the subject of many a Billy Joel song; where deadlocked land meets the Atlantic, and the sunset line replaces your peripheral. The quiet beach town sits just far enough off the edge of the Hampton Bays, separated only by the thin stretch of road known as the Montauk Highway. This isolated location gives the natives a sense of authenticity and, as a result, anger toward visitors. And in Rutenberg's words, these people were suffering from a heavy dose of "hipster fatigue."
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You can kind of see where this is going.
Well, I have been going to Montauk every summer since I was an infant. My parents loved the town for all the reasons mentioned above: It had the beautiful sights of the Hamptons, minus the hustle and bustle of Hollywood chauvinism. My mother would always talk about seeing Richard Dreyfuss at the local deli and how he was just another "townie," not some pretentious douche bag from the Strip, in town for the weekend to host another A-list shindig on his yacht.
Well, I have been going to Montauk every summer since I was an infant. My parents loved the town for all the reasons mentioned above: It had the beautiful sights of the Hamptons, minus the hustle and bustle of Hollywood chauvinism. My mother would always talk about seeing Richard Dreyfuss at the local deli and how he was just another "townie," not some pretentious douche bag from the Strip, in town for the weekend to host another A-list shindig on his yacht.
Unfortunately, in a cynical sense, my family and I were visitors as well, reserving our trips strictly for the early days of August. And now, years later, my status as a New Yorker has given me an additional yet senselessly derogatory title to the residents of a town I'll always love. I am a culture-destroying "hipster."
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