Fragments of a Fashionable Discourse

Reading Kara Silverman’s Fragments of a Fashionable Discourse I found the concept of “The Great Masculine Renunciation” intriguing. It is interesting to think about why men decided to change their fashion from “voluminous clothing and elaborate wigs” to the modern suit and tie. The article mostly discusses the idea men are somehow less fashionable after this transformation than women. I do not believe you can make this claim however. Fashion is a very personal idea, everyone has their own interpretations. As well it is impossible to compare the fashion of women and men. A nice suit and watch are the pinnacle of men’s fashion. No one can say this outfit is any less fashionable than a dress and jewelry on a woman. You cannot compare apples and oranges. Just because men no longer wear wigs and elaborate outfits does not mean they are less fashionable, it is just a style and preference that changed over the years. In fact, to compare the two means Silverman believed the two fashions were similar, or more importantly should be the same. It is possible she believes in the idea of eliminating gender norms in fashion. At the end of the article Silverman talks about how feminists almost wish to imitate male dress.

Despite the similarities in the arguments, Silverman did not agree. She believed women should wear retro clothing. The reason for this is retro clothing allows people to make decisions for themselves. Today’s fashion involves reacting to what is popular and always trying to be up to date. This means people are imitating what they believe is cool and never make decisions for themselves. Retro clothing allows people to be independent. What this should mean is Silverman does not believe in fashion at all. Therefore, why does it matter whether men or women are more fashionable and what the consequences of changing popular fashion are? While her arguments are interesting, Silverman’s ideas just did not seem to add up.