“Just as the average English-speaking person knows many more words than he or she will ever use in conversation, so all of us are able to understand the meaning of styles we will never wear.”
Meaning Behind Fashion
Alison Lurie, author of “The Language of Clothing”, reminds us of how clothing speaks to us on a day-to-day basis. Clothing is not only what you wear, but also who you are. Whether it be to show emotion, confidence, or to simply stand out, we decide what we wear every day depending on how a certain outfit makes us feel and how we want it to make others feel. Alison Lurie emphasizes the difference between looking and understanding. Lurie writes of the importance of understanding clothing rather than just merely looking. Although we all have our own views on what an outfit says about the person who is wearing it, the importance of understanding the true meaning behind the outfit is crucial to becoming more insightful within the fashion world. However, it is important to note that “just because someone is wearing clothing, does not necessarily mean that they are wearing fashion” (Clinton O’Dell, Associate Director at Wheaton College MA).
Telling Lies Through Fashion
Although Alison Lurie explains how there is a deeper meaning behind clothing and how people can portray how they are feeling by what they choose to wear on a given day, Lurie also builds on the ideas of people being able to tell lies with, or hide behind their style choices. In other words, fashion gives us the ability to play with our outfit choices in order to craft exactly what we want people to think or know about us when we wear a certain piece.
The next time you go out, think about Alison Lurie. Understand the different array of fashion choices around you and consider the meaning behind those choices.