Do Clothes Really Make the Man - Essay Example

Do Clothes Really Make the Man? Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence in society. Mark Twain In the contemporary society most people pay lots of attention to their outfits. Some a disturbed by the question whether the tone of their tie suits with the color of their shirt, for others the presence of the designers label is a matter of concern, and some women spend long hours in front of their mirrors deciding which make will in the same time emphasize the merits of their figure and cover the flaws. Generally speaking people nowadays care a lot about what they are wearing and how they look like. From the ancient times clothes have been serving the indicator of the social and financial status of their bearer. Clothes have always been the most apparent way to display the financial and social well-being of the person who wears them, and theyve been used in these purposes for thousands of years already. Since the beginning of the history of humanity clothes have been the indicator that helped to create an image of the persons status, occupation, and even intelligence and preferred lifestyle without speaking a word to him or her. Up to our times the representatives of some professions can be distinguished from the crowd by their outfit. Clothes are the best way to transfer the desired message to the outer world. Its the great instrument that allows changing social masks as frequently, as it is needed. There is a job interview awaiting you tomorrow, and you want to look like a trusted and qualified professional? Business suit is what you need. A beautiful girl or a handsome man has invited you for a date? Than wear something cute for to create the atmosphere of romance. Pretty skirts or fashionable jeans are the best choice for the party with friends, while the plain sweater and jeans are preferable for the usual day at school, college or at the work place, unless you employer demands some other form of clothing. Clothes are just the instrument that helps you to create this or that impression on people that surround you, and they should be used only for this purpose. Caring too much about clothing is equally unwise as paying no attention to what you are wearing. Like most of the things that exist in our world clothes are nor good neither bad, they can either earn great benefits for the person wearing them or hurt his/her reputation and image in the eyes of his/her surroundings. As youve probably already noticed, there are people in our society who pay lots of attention to their outfits. They spend loads of time for to find and choose the specific items they want to wear and loads of money for to buy them. For those people the brand label on their coat or dress is the indicator of well-being and high social status, thus they are ready to refuse oneselves lots of things just to buy Gucci shoes or Versace dress. This obsession with closes is supported and enhanced by the editors of the fashion magazines and the clothes manufacturers. In fact, those are the people who create the fashion on the specific brand, paying the celebrities and their youth consultants for to wear this or that brand and tell everyone about it. Fashion is profitable, and this is one of the main reasons of its existence in the contemporary world. It is just the way to make people buy the clothes they wouldve never purchased if they weren’t "the newest trend" for the price that is much higher than the actual cost of the materials and labor inserted for to produce this or that item. The ones who are obsessed by the branded and most fashionable clothes judge their surroundings by the cost of outfit they wear, and the taste in combining clothing items. For those people clothes really make the man. For some members of our society, especially teenagers, the style of closing that is different from theirs becomes the reason for to ignore and sometimes even bully its bearer. Thanks to the fashion magazines, TV shows, movies and fashion shows, clothes have become the main issue of concern and the favorite topic of conversation for many girls and young women. The music and movie stars together with the heroes of the youth TV shows become the target social group for the youngsters, the group they would like to belong to. Thus they try to imitate their idols, at least their outfit. It creates numerous problems, as its obvious that the earnings of the actors, pop or rock stars are much higher than those of the average American, and most people cannot allow themselves the outfits the representatives of their target group are enjoying. One more negative aspect of the clothing mania that has been spreading in the U.S for the past 50 years, is that the fashion conscious people often judge new people around them by the appearance only, forgetting about the inner qualities that are vital for establishing good relationship. People who do not correspond to their vision of the fashionable person are filtered so they do not enter the circle of close acquaintances and friends. Thos people often deprive themselves of the chance to establish good relationship with the person if he/she is not a "fashion chick". Fashion is not in any case bad, and dressing fashionably is not a wretched thing altogether. In the long run clothing is a hobby no worse and no better than collecting the stamps or role-play games. It is just important to remember that there are things in the world except for the Dior purses and D&G accessories, and that the fact that one is wearing shabby jeans or the blouse that was in vogue two seasons ago doesnt mean that person is stupid or freak, it is just that they have some other hobbies and life priorities. There is the other extremity in the attitude towards fashion and clothing in our society. Still there are people, mostly man, who pay very little attention to what is put on them as long as it covers their body and doesnt prevent them to move. Those people are usually noticeable in the crowd due to the exceptionally shabby jeans or sweaters that seem to have had their best times when Elvis Presley was still on the peak of his popularity. Those people usually have problems getting the job and a girlfriend or a boyfriend due to the negative impression they create. The items of outfit of those people usually are in dissonance with each other so that the image created is incomplete and annoying. Our clothes-conscious society seems to be an inappropriate place for them, as they are unaware of the secret language of outfits, they cant read the messages that the surroundings are sending them by choosing this or that style or color. Those teens are usually the social outcasts in most of the groups in their living space, as the youngsters, who know the language of clothes, perceive their outfits as the signs of being "losers", or "freaks". When he/she becomes older, the outfit is still a problem for him/her, as their surroundings perceive shabby or dissonant clothes as the sign of belonging to the lower layers of society. Unfortunately, our society still judges a person according to the clothes he/she wears, thats why the people who are unable to choose the decent outfit have to turn for help to someone who is capable of it. Dressing properly is one of the key elements to living in harmony with the surrounding world. Outfit is one of the easiest things to change, and, in the same time, one of the most influential ones. The attitude towards clothing should be well-thought-out and mature. Clothing shouldnt become the life purpose, and, in the same time, it shouldnt be ignored. It is useful to remember that while clothes do not really make the man, they create the impression of the man that the others are guided by when communicating with him/her. Clothing is a useful instrument, accessible and easy to use, and in the same time very effective, as with the help of it you can create the impression you want to create without putting too much time and effort on it. Works Cited 1. Twain, M. The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain: A Book of Quotations. Dover Publications, 1999 Read More