Issue date: 11/10/04 Section: Opinion

Clothes don't make the man. Or so they like to say. However, sometimes something as simple as a T-shirt changes how people view you.

Let's face it, there are various groups of people that make up the Suffolk Community as a whole. These groups always seem to dress alike or similar.

I don't think I am fully qualified to go in-depth on the subject of human interactions and clothing, but I'll try anyways.

These divisions of clothing can be seen right out side Donahue. Generally, as I stroll down Temple Street I make several observations. Girls dressed in Ugg boot and Gucci clothes all seem to talk and mull around together.

Kids dressed in tight black hoodies and Converse seem to all hang out and talk together in groups. People dressed in Armani Exchange shirts and Abercrombie jeans all seem to chatter together. I can keep this up ad-nausea, but I think I've made my point. I wonder, sometimes, if this happens on purpose.

Are people naturally inclined to make friends with and talk to people dressed as they are? Is it a small bit of a comfort in what sometimes can be a very uncomfortable world?

This seems to be a bit prevalent in some of Suffolk's clubs and activities. I don't see many hockey players sporting Sex Pistols shirts or dressing in an "alternative" manner. On the other hand I have not seen many members of SUSPJ wearing FCUK shirts.

I often wonder why this happens. Do fans of punk rock music just not like playing hockey? Is some one not able to both wear the latest club-wear and champion various political and social causes?

No, it does not mean any of that. It just means we more often then not make the wrong assumption based on someone's appearance. We embrace stereotypes by looking at the most superficial thing we can find - what we are wearing.

I too am guilty of all this. I walk into an Abercrombie and Fitch store and complain about the high prices and supposed general fakeness of the people there. Yet I can walk into a Newbury Comics and think to myself, "That $20 AC/DC shirt rocks."

I have a pre-determined stereotype of Abercrombie and Fitch so I am more apt to make wrong assumptions regarding people who wear that clothing.

Clothes really don't matter. They do not rate your intelligence level, or show how great of a person you might be. All they do is give ammunition for people to judge you.
Just by looking at me, for example, you might be able tell I am a big fan of Rock and Roll. But can you also guess I have been to the Matrix, Embassy or Vision? Probably not.

Something as important as this topic cannot be done justice by me or this column, but if you take anything away from this, let it be that stereotypes suck.

Are clothes really that important to us? Are they really a billboard for or personalities and likes and dislikes?

No they are not. Clothes are just what they are, material that covers our bodies.

Some people just like different material.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools