“Heatstroke,” by Calvin Harris starts blaring as my alarm goes off promptly at 6:15 a.m. as I get up to greet the day. I wonder what I will wear as I head down the hall to shower, what message do I want to send? When I return to my room, I have already decided mid-shower that I want to wear the shirt I had been sewing for the past two days along with my Calvin Klein jeans. Why the hell wouldn’t I show off something I created? Eclectic yet inventive, I walk out of my room feeling confident and proud of the feelings I will evoke with today’s clothing choices. Fashion is something which the normal person may think affects their lives minutely, almost as if it isn’t there. However, this is a common misconception about just how far the fashion industry influences and penetrates our culture to the core of its being. Fashion is a far-reaching practice which often defines different cultures in several distinct ways. For instance, at the most basic level it dictates how we view a culture based on what they wear. But, if one just looks a little deeper, it is evident how much the norms, values, and ideals affect the cultural practice of considering fashion when one dresses themselves for the day. Personally, I find incredible satisfaction and happiness in cultivating my own sense of style from the things that influence me every day. These practices inhabit and inform my everyday life, and I wouldn’t be the same person without them. Through the cultural practice of fashion, I will show how clothes and dressing are always changing to fit the rhetorical situation which they inhabit, as well as creating worlds within our own by fusing cultures and challenging the norms and values we hold in society.

To begin the conversation about fashion as a cultural practice, first one must look at the extensive history which helps one to arrive at the most current views, trends and producers of fashion. At the most basic level, we as human beings have always felt the need to cover ourselves in various materials for a multitude of different reasons. Whether it be to protect from the sun, the wind, or the rain this concept has persisted through time. Possessing the creative brain which we do, it is inevitable we would take these garments and use them as a means of expressing our uniqueness outside of our larger cultural identity. However, one cannot just view our choices and the purchasing of them as the sole steps of fashion. It is an elaborate process which envelopes concepts of design, trends, trade, advertising, publicity, and at the root is the actual production of the clothing itself. American fashion has evolved from a vast combination of different styles and cultures largely due to the vast amount of people who immigrate here. There are a multitude of things which influence stylistic choices, such as life experiences, art, race, gender, ethnicity, and much more. As is evident, the American style and sense of fashion is a uniquely personal mix of different cultures and generations coming together to form what we have currently.

I find that as man in the world, there are certain expectations about how I should and shouldn’t dress when going out in public. Whether I am going to work, going for a run, or simply strolling downtown, there are assumptions about what I should put on and when. However, fashion exists as a form of expression through what we wear, and it can either reflect the values of the society which it inhabits, or completely rebuke them. We have the choice of whether to conform to the values of our societies or to ignore them with what we put on in the morning. This can be a choice to put on something that is not normally tailored for the person wearing it, choosing an odd colored article of clothing, or even going without a specific article which one would normally not forget. But, there are many expectations which must be met unless one wishes to face scrutiny or even suffer because of their choice. Examples of this are things like dress codes for one’s job, as well as laws which govern dress. However, this doesn’t completely cut us off from stylistic freedom as we may dress how we like outside of work. This creates worlds within mainstream society which express themselves through different styles and ways of dressing. These style subcultures are a community for the individual to find comfort and solidarity within as much as they are an affirmation of their style and choices. Therefore, it is evident (that) fashion and how we dress only embody the values with which we place on them. Whether it be dressing properly for work, or slipping into something a little more fun for the weekend, the only identifiable is freedom.

My identity within American culture certainly complicates my views and opinions when it comes to fashion. Getting ready in the morning is a process where I decide what impression I want to make to the people who I interact with. This entails being a student at a university who must go from class to class, a man who is expected to have an endless supply of chinos and straight-legged jeans, and an artist who wishes to explore the more unique ideas which I foster about the clothes I wear. These identities which I embody make navigating the world of garments more difficult and cluttered, however they also expand it. They show me the different universes which fashion can exist in, and how they come together to form new trends, styles, and failures. Learning how to dress is a constantly changing process which adapts to my changing tastes as well as the trends which dominate the industry. I can decide to put on whatever I want in the morning, but I must also accept that I will be viewed and judged according to the identities which I inhabit. The ways in which I have been socialized lead me to expect criticism for wearing things which seem “out there,” or “dated,” in western culture. However, just the same I might find the traditional garments of indigenous peoples to be strange as well. It is all about finding what makes you most comfortable, and true to yourself. Not everything will resonate with people as stylish or cool, but that is not a reason to not wear it. The rhetoric of fashion is to stand out and express yourself through what you adorn yourself with, and there is no reason to sacrifice it for someone else’s sake.

Dressing in the morning involves multiple modes and literacies to successfully and honestly carry out this task. To begin, I must utilize visual and tactile modes to physically decide what I want to put on in the morning. Looking at my closet to decide what kind of message I want to deliver with my “fit” on any given day can be quite a time-consuming process. This is made especially difficult if I’m feeling rather uninspired or boring at that time. Going further, often I must feel what I am thinking about to see if I want to have that article of clothing on me all day. I find myself wondering, if it doesn’t feel good, then why would someone consent to having it on their body for more than a few seconds. Delving deeper into this practice, it is the literacies which one possesses which complicate the matter of picking an outfit. If you are a student such as I am, then there is a lot of freedom in getting dressed as we are not at a point where anything near a suit is necessary to walk to class in. However, if you are a member of a professional community or cultural group, there may exist different rules or values which limit the choices of what one can wear. So, it comes as no surprise when we decide to express ourselves however we can through the clothes we wear. This can be showcased by wearing unique styles, expressing cultural identities through traditional garments, and even altering required garments for a given literacy to better express oneself. There is also the literacy of being able to see what does and doesn’t work or match, which also affects how what I and others wear is perceived by others. All these things come together to prove that fashion and clothes are always changing and adapting to whatever rhetorical situation we wish to put them in. Whether one chooses to conform or not, this choice only further proves the ever-changing state of fashion and how it condemns or backs up existing norms and values.

I have shown you the ways in which the persistence of the fashion world defies as well as conforms to the rhetorical situations which it inhabits. Dressing and style never come to a stand-still, which gives me the ability to continually redefine what the act of dressing and developing style mean to me and the people around me. Through the intersections of culture, gender, and different literacies, one may cultivate and express their own personal style. It is this ability to display uniqueness which most attracts me to the cultural practices of fashion and clothing, and the myriad choices it entails.