The street heroin subculture and the blunts subculture have many aspects in common. They both apply the use of argot, a specialized language that is not used by the larger population. The blunts subculture and the street heroin subculture also have a normative code of behavior and use boundary-maintenance mechanisms. Although these characteristics do exist, they are implemented for slightly different reasons.
The street heroin subculture faces extreme scrutiny from society, and heroin users are often stigmatized as “street junkies.” They implement argot to exclude members of the general public who do not participate in their subculture’s activities. The argot of street heroin users also eases communication between members of the group.
The street heroin subculture faces extreme scrutiny from society, and heroin users are often stigmatized as “street junkies.” They implement argot to exclude members of the general public who do not participate in their subculture’s activities. The argot of street heroin users also eases communication between members of the group.