Identity Inside and out

Identity inside and out

An Abercrombie and Fitch sweatshirt-$128.00, a pair of Target sunglasses-$15.00, having your own identity-priceless! To most people the clothing they wear can only be name brand or highly overpriced, they have to wear the in styles and get it before anyone else has the chance. Does having an article of cloth that covers your body help portray who you really are? Isn’t it crazy that we wear and what style we like can tell someone so much about us? The clothing that you wear does affect your identity and the choices that you make, being persuaded or dictated, however, affects the kind of clothes that you wear. Ever wonder how these name brands became so popular, just look at the vicious circle people go through when it comes to fashion.

When seeing a person dressed in all black with chains hanging down and thick black eyeliner on you automatically assume the label or their identity as gothic. There are many different labels for people based on the way they dress and look. The way you choose to dress reflects upon who you are as a person which related to your identity. Choosing to wear all expensive clothes that are name brand is a choice that you make about what you want to look like and how much money you are willing to spend. We make big choices everyday and in many ways it relates to our identity. Clothes are a big part of how and where everyone fits in, in the world. They reflect your personality, your judgments of not only yourself but others as well, and how you see yourself. All these things make in some way a connection to your identity. If you have a lot of money and want people to notice in the world then you’ll wear the rich fancy name brand clothes. If you’re not a big spender then you’d prefer bargain shopping for what’s cute and still looks good at an affordable price. What you choose to wear should express yourself as an individual. You are choosing what you wear whether it be Abercrombie and Fitch or Value Village that’s your choice. Then again a lot of us wear what we see other’s wearing or what the media tells us to wear. Then you have to ask yourself am I dressing in what I really want to wear or what I’m being told to wear.

Everyone has a fashion style that they go by, whether it is their own or a trend they’re following. So why would they want to change what makes a big part of them and what they like and feel comfortable with. People who really want to fit in to another group or category will change everything about their style just to fit in. I think that changing your style completely would change your identity and the way you think of your values, obviously you go through a change to just completely want to change your whole appearance. What people wear is dictated a lot be social status. Yeah, gender and age have a small part to do with it but it’s mostly who the people look up to and want to be like. At high school if you’re popular then almost everyone wants to be like you, so they dress the same and do everything that’s possible to try and fit in with you. There’s a lot of fashion trends started in magazines that everyone reads. People want to dress like the stars or try at least so they try to copy what they’re wearing and how they do their hair. Having choices be dictated by what you wear happens everywhere. It’s obvious that its essential to fit into the right group or with the right people or just to fit in, in general, and having this longing only persuades people to change their choices to be like someone else’s.

After trying to express your own individuality and identity while being dictated with the choices you make on what clothes or styles you should go with, you then have to deal with the media. Which is also another form of dictation, but how do you think that clothing brands and articles get so popular. From people advertising their logos or brands on themselves, others see that style of clothing and it passes down from one set of eyes to another. If there’s the right influence in the specific target marketing group then business will be booming for that company. That’s how a lot of clothing brands plan it out; they pick a specific target market that they know will get their attention and attract them to their clothes and all of the sudden it’s a hit. From selling so much product they can afford to raise their prices, which is why the clothes today are so pricy and expensive for a lot of people. From businesses becoming so popular it starts the huge chain of affecting different groups by the styles traveling fast, spending all your money on the one outfit that is have to have, and the next day having a new style that is out and even pricier. The vicious circle of fashion can affect everyone especially their wallets!