Cultural Expression through Clothing

Through clothing, people are able to express both their own personal identity, as well as their cultural identity. On a micro level, fashion choices communicate individual identity. On a macro level, clothing is a means of representing social and cultural groups. Around the world, cultural groups associate with different articles of clothing in order to develop connections and distinguish themselves. This idea can be illustrated through African fashion and cultural identity.

Traditionally, Africans used clothing to depict tribes and celebrate various spiritual events. Often, African clothing is vibrantly colored, dyed and made from cotton fabrics. Colors such as yellow and gold represent wealth and fertility, and colors including blue and green represent peace and prosperity. These unique characteristics represent the idea of using appearance as a way to represent cultural identity. Here is an example of a traditional African fashion:

This picture shows the bright colors commonly represented in African fashion. 

The significance of African appearance and aesthetics is closely related to my current curriculum in English class with the novel, Poisonwood Bible, which is the story of a missionary family who travels to the Congo and undergoes a multitude of tumultuous experiences while attempting to both adopt and change the African culture. In the novel, the character Ruth May illustrates how clothing is used to shape identity through her narration of the differences between herself and the Congolese people in terms of appearance. On page 153, Ruth May states, "...That's all the clothes he has. Everybody here has just one clothes...The girls don't ever, ever wear pants." Ruth May's recognition of the differences in clothing between Americans and the Congolese ultimately show the broader idea that cultural differences can be shown through pieces such as clothing.

It is interesting to examine the importance of appearance and identity through different lenses, such as the African culture, because it helps me (and hopefully my readers) to recognize the significance of cultural influences on identity and therefore help us to better understand why certain cultures act in certain ways. After this post, I hope my readers will ponder the following questions:

• How does our appearance define who we are? How others view us?
• What impact does our culture have on our appearance?
• Does our culture determine our appearance, or does or appearance determine our culture?

Fashion Police: Religion and Turkey's Government

Thanks to my classmate Julia, I recently read an article from National Geographic explaining Turkey's lift on its ban of the Islamic headscarf, formally known as the hijab, for women who work in government or civil service jobs. The article discusses both the past and present regulations relating to the hijab and explains why such restrictions were enforced in the first place. While the ban on the Islamic headscarf was created in order to separate religion from the government and create a modern, secular state, recent changes illustrate a shift in political mindset. Such government choices, however, have sparked debate and represent the challenges of appropriately balancing religion, politics and appearance.

While some are fearful that this recent legislation demonstrates a shift towards an Islamic state, others view it as a necessary reform for human rights. These actions show how prevalent appearance is in our world today, as well as the political implications that go hand-in-hand with this meaningful and significant religious item. As a reader, this article challenged me to question the line between the religious significance of the hijab and the political implications that come with the implementation of or restriction from the Islamic headscarf. I believe that this challenge in thinking relates to my own identity and perspective of appearance, since I have never had to deal with the idea of the government playing such a large role in the determination of what I am allowed to wear.

Ultimately, I have come to the conclusion that the best way to fully experience and know one's self is through freedom of choice. I believe that it is difficult to fully understand who you are without having the choice of how to express yourself. Through such freedom, important ideas including acceptance can be illuminated. While I recognize the opposite side in the argument and other's fear that allowing headscarves will disrupt the secular nation of the state, I believe that appearance is a subject that everyone should have the choice in constructing for themselves in order to truly understand one's identity.

As a blogger, I hope that this post provoked thoughts and challenged you to question how dress defines who we are, as well as allowed you to think more deeply and develop newer perspectives on the religious and political ramifications of appearance. I welcome you to share your opinions and ideas!