Blog – Engaging the Text #4 on p. 608
When Yoshino says that "the mainstream is a myth" he means that the term "mainstream" describes nobody. He proves this based on his own experience: that when he speaks in public, there will always be a white man who will raise his hand and say that they, too, have to cover. He gives examples of what a white male may have to cover: "depression, obesity, alcoholism, shyness, a working-class background, or a nameless anomie". To this, Yoshino says, he agrees. He has observed that people hold many identities, and nobody's identities all fall within the box of "mainstream". He concludes that, "It is not normal to be completely normal". I agree with Yoshino that mainstream does not really apply to anybody. Certainly you can call an object mainstream - "Twilight" and "Party In The USA" are two examples. But defining people as mainstream is erroneous and impossible.
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I found the wording that "mainstream" describes no one to be slightly awkward, because it isn't that it means to describe no one, but rather that people do not fall into all the mainstream characteristics. However, someone's different characteristics can fall into mainstream like "straight" or "white." Other than that I really liked the blog and thought the real life examples at the end served to reinforce your points.
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