Outlaw Motorcyclists

These following paragraphs make a summary I wrote for myself after reading an article from my sociology class called “Outlaw Motorcyclists.”

In the essay, “Outlaw Motorcyclists,” J. Mark Watson, a university professor, studied four groups of outlaw motorcyclists. To collect enough valuable information for his report, he did three years of participant observation in the subculture of outlaw bikers. Watson’s purpose on doing this research was to gain more information and understand the value system and characteristics of these adult outlaw bikers.
Watson studied and interviewed four groups. The Brothers and The Good Old Boys were two small local groups from the middle Tennessee. The Bar Hoppers were members of a regional group from North Carolina. Finally, the Convicts were the largest regional and national group of outlaw motorcyclists observed and studied.
While collecting his information, Watson found out that most of these bikers used certain objects symbolizing their lifestyle. Some of these symbols are tattooing, beard, dirty jeans, earrings, cut off jackets, knives, guns, chains, and their Harley-Davidson V-twin Motorcycle. Another of the bikers’ characteristics is that among them they are all considered brothers.