Switching Roles

I thought it was interesting how Silvia brought up the fact that before the eighteenth century male dress had been much more extravagant as a reflection of class economic standings. This made me think about animals in nature and their relation to beauty. For many species of birds, such as the peacocks, the male is the bird that we find aesthetically beautiful with vibrantly colored feathers, while the females are plain. It is more ordinary in nature for the males to be decorative unlike in modern culture where social constructs have determined women to be more ornate than men. Now women, such as trophy wives, are responsible to make the man look good through her expensive clothing and accessories which is inherantly unnatural.

male female

Silvia also pointed out the fascination men have with women's clothing. It is not uncommon for men to dress up as women for comedic relief. At my high school, boys were always eager and willing to dress up as the opposite sex. My high school had an annual fundraiser called powderpuff where the boys dress up as girls to cheerlead while the girls take on the "male" role of playing football. The boys would always go all out with their costumes unlike the girls who made sure to look "sexy" with their tight jerseys and shorts, refusing to cross the social normalities of female fashion.

- Mandi Brooksbank