According to Todd Pezzuti, Caleb Warren and Jinjie Chen in their study Cool People , the earliest roots of cool lie in the African diaspora, in West African ideas like itutu (Yoruba for “coolness”), which refers to a state of spiritual composure and grace under pressure. Confronting the brutal realities of slavery and Jim Crow, African Americans... See more

“rebel instinct”, an aversion to subordination so strong it appears even in other primates. Where the status instinct climbs, the rebel instinct sidesteps the ladder entirely - sometimes inventing new measures of worth altogether.