About tattoos and why do people get them?

Question

I have a thesis I have to turn in soon about tattoos. I need some peoples perspective on it.I never had recive one, and pretty much not going to ever do to my religon. But i am facinated about them,,sooooo if you have a tattoo, what is the tattoo, and why did you get it? And do you think you will ever regret it?? Thanks a bunch

Answer 1

the first tattoo in 2006 that i got is a koi. i'm asian so i decided to go with that theme. i had wanted one for probably three years or more. they symbolize good luck. they struggle up the waterfall of life and once they reach the top (heaven) they turn into a dragon. lotus flowers also are considered to be lucky and they also struggle up from the bottom to surface in the water and are so beautiful once they emerge.
after getting that completed i got a sea turtle to make a full back piece. to me they represent wisdom and grace.


i got a skull on the top of my right foot, not to be morbid or "trendy" but because it conveys the raw emotion that i felt when my coach in high school was murdered. and also when a friend in college died in a car wreck. i never got to really say goodbye to either of those people. so the skull is a memorial to them and it is to remind me that death is just around the corner and i should make every minute count.


my newest tattoo is on top of my left foot. it is in honor of my family heritage. my mom was born in korea but never knew her birth mother because of... racism basically. so i got a takeout box with traditional korean art on and around it. and i got a fortune cookie because i love them so much. this tattoo means the world to me because it is a part of me, my mother and my grandmother whom i have never met.

Answer 2

If you have time to do some reading, there's an interesting book by Margot Mifflin called "Bodies of Subversion," which is about women and tattoos. There's a fair amount of material there about why women get tattoos -- often to commemorate some event in their lives, good or bad -- and how they feel about it.

I don't anticipate regretting mine, because I took several years deciding what I wanted, and it was a deeply personal custom design. My first is a black and turquoise design of swimming seals, an image taken from a visualization in a writing workshop I was taking. The second, a gingko leaf, has less symbolism but I love gingko trees.

Answer 3

Tattoos are a personal preference and usually have some meaning for the wearer. They run from the simple and mundane to the extravagent. Many are works of arts. Some of the larger ones are done over a period of years. Others are done as memorials to a loved one. A number of people have tattoos that cover most of their body. In some countries they are a symbol of adulthood, religion and/or standing in society. Do I have one? No and most likely will never get one. Many people have regretted getting a tattoo. Thanks to laser beam, they can now be removed with minimal scaring.

Answer 4

its a statement of individuality, morals, religion, some people get one when they were going through hard times so they wont forget what they went through and have something to look back on some people just think they are cool sometimes friends get them instead the normal friendship bracelet some do it as a statement for the the ones they love where it be a family member a deceased loved one or a signifigant other

Answer 5

I have three, and the reason is always different, but personal. They mark events and philosphies in my life. I think of them as telling a story about my life and who I am.

I have yet to regret any of my tattoos, nor do I suspect I ever will. They are a part of me.

Answer 6

i have several, i got them because i like them. i have one that could be considered rude so its in a spot where no one else can see it. they are all in color, none are very big, i do try to be discreet due to business but i have tweety bird, betty boop, flowers, little pink pigs, my birth country's flag, sylvester the cat is coming soon!
there is no profound reason for any of them. i just saw them and thought i could live with that!
i don't think i will ever regret them - they are part of me now.
lots of people think they are tacky and trashy, but they are another form of art and i enjoy works of art.
to each his own i always say!

Answer 7

I have a tattoo on my foot that symbolizes a number of things
Love and Hope
and Strength and Warrior.

you gotta be strong to love deeply....

And it was part of my spiritual beliefs....
it was about endurance and faith after the deepest pain of my life....
Got it twenty years ago - do I regret it, nah, I dont even give it much thought.

Answer 8

I have a small shamrock tat on my right foot and my best friends both have the same thing, but on different spots on their feet. We got ours as a way to remember a fantastic trip we took together a few years back. We each have a little Irish in us, too, so it seemed fitting, but we mostly did it as a symbol of friendship and adventure.

Answer 9

Tatoo's, piercings, clothing, hair, and much more are all just about making yourself expressive. I don't have a tatoo yet but I have a gauged ear and another piercing on top of it and i have long hair. Its all about making yourself feel good and expressing how you feel. people do it for different reasons. Some do it for a memory if someone dies, some do it for stupid reasons which i wont name, some do it as a form of art. everyone just has their own reason for doing it. Some even do it just to have one.

Answer 10

i have 2 tattoos and i like them both. one is a naked devil on my shoulder the other is a beta fish. there's actually a reason for the beta but the devil lady i just like.

people tend over think tattoos. sometimes it's just about having something cool on you skin.