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Maria Fernandez Ms. Gardner English 10 2nd period 21 October 2013 What to Wear Every morning we wake up, and we have to make many decisions. One of those many decisions is what to wear. You may already have an idea in mind; maybe it is your favorite shirt, but the pants that match that shirt may be in the wash or have a stain. Any other pair of pants or skirt is not acceptable because its not accepted. Not accepted by fashion rules, not accepted by your peers, not accepted by society. Decisions can be influenced by what colors go together, the weather, your mood, available accessories, condition of clothing, and what others will think. The fashion choices we make about what to wear are influenced by what is and is not accepted. Ultimately, it should be your choice. Often when shopping, our selections are limited because of what is considered to be in style. You may not be able to easily find a shirt in your favorite color because it is not the current trend, or maybe you wanted a collared shirt but you know they are out of style. Retailers limit your personal choices by putting what is considered popular on the rack. These decisions you make should ultimately be your choice and not based on the limitations of current trends. These choices should come from a personal view, rather than a political one. What we wear is our personality through clothes. In order to express your individuality, you should not let the decisions or opinions of others influence what you want to wear. One important factor that influences what we wear is the season. For example, if it is the middle of winter you may not want to wear a skirt or shorts and just blame it on that rain, just the same, you may not want to wear a heavy winter coat in the summer. Although these factors are 3

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not necessarily bad influences on what you choose to wear, they still affect the decisions you make. There are some choices where the options are less extreme. When the seasons are changing from winter to spring, and spring to summer, you may make the decision to wear shorts when it may be too cold or a winter coat when it could be considered too warm for one. It is still ultimately your decision and your choice. There are certain times in our lives where we may not have a choice. For example, certain restaurants require certain dress codes in order to be admitted; some schools require a uniform in order to attend. Some restaurants have rules of what to wear that are less extreme than others such as: No shoes. No shirt. No service. Other restaurants have a more specific dress code requiring things such as a coat and tie. While it is reasonable to ask for a shirt and shoes, it may not be as reasonable to ask for a coat and tie because some people may not own one and it limits others ability to express themselves. The tyranny of not being accepted for what a person wears is not only a recent issue. In the past, women could not wear pants because it was not socially acceptable. This resulted in many women appearing the same and not being able to express themselves through their fashion choices because everyone dressed the same. A rule commonly heard of is that one should not wear white after Labor Day. Interestingly, the history of this rule was also a way to separate class; white was considered for the upper class. Later Labor Day was considered to be the end of summer so if a person were to wear white after Labor Day it would mean that they did not have the money to get a new fall wardrobe. Although now most people have just heard of the rule, it was once used as a way to separate people of higher, middle or lower class. In order to begin an end to this tyranny, I challenge you to wear the color you want, wear that collared shirt that could supposedly be out of style, and more importantly, do not judge the choices of others and accept them for who they are and who they want to be. Currently, there

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already is the beginning of a change to this but we need to continue with its progression. Will you wear what you want? And so with this I challenge you to: wear what you like, and like what you wear.