Lauren McDonald
Prof. Weaver
CTAC 260
October 25, 2017
Fashion meets Masculinity
Topic/Research Question
The focus of this research paper is on fashion and masculinity. Whether it’s at the workplace, schools or personal lives, fashion plays a huge role on how a person is perceived and for a lot of men they have the need to conform to society’s standards when it comes to apparel to protect their masculinity. This paper will speak on how society’s norms of what masculinity is and freedom of expression are in direct conflict with each other and how men of this day and age are gradually changing the norms and redefining masculinity. This topic first started to interest me when I started watching the evening news with my mom.
If one turns on any news channel you will notice a very obvious difference between the men and women on screen by just focusing on the garments that they are dressed in. Women’s clothing are a reflection of who she is, watching the news viewers will notice the different outfits women are wearing everyday. On the other hand men are more restricted. They sport suits that are very similar in style and color and if you watched the same news channel throughout a week you might see a man that could wear the same outfit or style of clothing everyday for a whole month and think nothing of it. Also, he outfit probably looks very similar to every other man on the news.
For the longest time, men have been deprived of the most used forms of self expression: fashion. Our society is a curious one; it is where men make up a large percent of the top designers in the world and have held top rank in the fashion industry but yet for the past decades often times men were the ones that would rather camouflage themselves in society with their choice in dress than stand out and show their personality through their clothing. As of late, males especially the younger generation (millennials) are finding their own voice and changing what is considered masculine and deciding for themselves what clothes would fit with their personal style instead of worrying on whether they fit in or not.
Other reasons I find this topic interesting is because I pursuing a bachelor's degree in apparel, textiles and merchandising with a minor in marketing with dreams of becoming a fashion designer later in life; I find it really important to understand who you are designing for which includes taking time to do research on the society in which your target market lives in. Knowing what type of clothes men are buying and why, will help my future apparel brand become successful.
I also have two younger brothers who have a very defined sense of style that shows exactly who they are. I find it interesting that while men in my age group mimicked each other’s wardrobe, currently, teen males are starting to branch out and figure out who they are and show it through their clothing.
Information gathered
From extensive research on this subject I have found that men are slowly but surely evolving when it comes to fashion. In the 21st century according to designers masculinity all depends on who the man is (moving further into his career, interest and personalities). Designers are pushing a more versatile male image to reach more customers. As Conway from Timberland stated, “The macho-man approach feels outdated to me. There are so many more dimensions to men today, and emotions that you can tap into,” (Retailers embrace changing notions of masculinity 2017). This portion of the article will cover how men dress and why, masculinity vs. fashion (society standards), how masculinity is evolving and how these changes affect men.
Why men dress with or without personal style
To start off every state, country, region etc. has a different code of dress, different standards that hypothetically, their people are supposed to live up to. For years men have been taught that their garments were more for function than fashion and when thinking about their clothes from a fashion stand point, the way they dress themselves are supposed to accentuate their masculinity. Also, in the past men dressed to show their social state in society. To further explain this point men had and currently tend to dress or aspire to dress a certain way to be a part of or look like they are a part of a certain class. Currently, we refer to this as lifestyle. It’s become a trend in the past few years, especially among millennials, to aspire to become apart of a certain type group of people (usually the high class) especially through the uses of social media people have a space to show off in a sense their lifestyle whether it is accurate or pretense. Sometimes, people are found dressing a certain way and posting pictures of themselves in these clothes to make it seem that they are apart of a certain lifestyle and those that fall into the category of that lifestyle often do the same.
On another note, these same occurrences happened in the past as well. Men that “dressed well” were most likely of a higher class and were businessmen. This led to some men saving their money to buy clothes that would make them look like where they wanted to be in life, instead of where they actually were . A big part of dressing the part helped them move up in the social ladder. Throughout the past and present-day usually men dress according to what they do.If they work in an office as an accountant they won’t be often seen in jeans and hiking boots, the same way a construction worker won’t wear a three-piece suit on a everyday basis.
This phenomenon continues even down to their grooming habits. A male's occupation might change society's views on his masculinity “ements of metro sexuality that may be considered affected in other men. Soccer players groom, take care of their skin, pluck their eyebrows, and wear fashionable and designer clothes,” (Blanco F. 2014). While this is the norm for soccer players, men outside this industry could find this emasculating. The male side of the apparel industry, while being small in comparison to the women’s section is quite complex. “Fashion is indeed important in the performance of identity and masculinity as rooted in social relations and the need to comply with or challenge dress code,” (Blanco F., 2014). Given these rules and standards and lifestyles, it gives very little room to bring creativity and personality.
However, in today’s world there is more chances and societal changes that makes it easier for men to express themselves through their clothing. In an article by Dapper Dudes, it was mentioned that, “Some men that dress against the grain want to put their own personal touch on the things they wear as to set themselves apart from the crowd/mainstream of people and show a bit of who they are with their clothing choices,”(Ben and Martin, 2015). Concurrently, men are often gaining inspiration for how they dress from celebrities. When men see their favorite celebrities being creative with how they dress instead of conforming to the norms they feel like they have someone to look up to. Men like Lebron James, Donald Glover and Cam Newton show men that they can be traditionally masculine, strong and successful and dress well and with their own personal style.
Trends in how men dress
Trends come and go as often as seasons but they are a big part of how men dress themselves. Without the use of trends, a lot of men would just wear the same type of clothing throughout the years. Trends often show what way men’s fashion is turning toward. Currently, men’s apparel has been using trends like the rose gold/pale pink color which is a shock to the conservative and traditional dressers. Usually, according to social norms the only time men wore pink was to support breast cancer but now the color has become fashionable for men from sweatshirts to even cellphones and cellphone cases pink has become popular. Despite this, there is still the society standards that state that how men dress has an affect on their masculinity. Which is probably linked to the reason why most pink garments and accessories available for men are a deeper shade more like mauve or a richer hue like rose gold.
Men’s fashion is very limited in general, while women have a large range of silhouettes, prints, colors etc. to choose from. So, it makes sense when there is more trends and fads to follow in the women’s apparel industry than the men’s. Nevertheless, men are deciding to borrow some of the trends from the women’s fashion like floral, large prints and bold colors and abstract art. It’s also become popular for men and women to do some searching in the other sex’s closets. For example, a woman might borrow her brother’s button up shirt while her boyfriend might buy things for himself that is based on his girlfriend’s style. “Heterosexual men explained that the fashion items that appealed to their girlfriends also appealed to them,” (Ben and Martin 2015).
On another note, “Every brand has their own image of their ideal person. Brands like Gucci and Dolce and Gabbana have their own ideas on masculinity,” (Martin 2017). This is because when creating their brand, they have to choose a certain target market that they wish to sell to. So even though society says what masculinity should look like, designers have the power to change this by creating what they would like men to look like and selling those garments for the public.
Recently there have been a lot more male fashion blogs, micro blogs and websites. Many men are focusing on trends, what they wear and the current styles because above all men want to look nice. Especially this new generation (boys that are currently in high school/2000 babies). A lot of them that are interested in how they are dressed spend time reading men fashion blogs for clothing, shoes and store magazines for new trends so they can stay up to date with the current styles.
Masculinity vs. Fashion (Society Standards) Being a man, or trying to live up to society standards of what a man should be is practically impossible and can have negative effects on how a man’s emotional well being, let alone creativity when expressing themselves through fashion, speech, etc. “The traditional views of how men should act hinder their clothing choices on how to further express themselves: “traditional view was that by Brannon and David (1976), who listed four categories: (1) a preoccupation with competition, achievement, and success; (2) an emphasis on physical toughness and emotional stoicism; (3) homophobia and an avoidance of all things feminine; and (4) an emphasis on being aggressive and forceful.,”” (Gupta and Gentry 2016). As you see society brings a lot of pressure on men to live up to these various standards. The pressure is usually enforced by media, families, and peers. Men are constantly told to act like a man which includes how he conducts himself, speaks and dresses. Keeping in mind that as previously stated, Masculinity depends on culture. What is viewed as masculine in the United States is different from masculinity standards in other countries. When it comes to clothing men have tended to conform to society because in a way it just made life easier not to stand out from the crowd. Especially in the workplace. Businesses are still very regulated with past expressions of masculinity particularly in environments that are less creative than others. For instance, male artists (vocal or other) might have their nails polished and actors, dancers, models and singers might wear makeup while it might not be seen acceptable for other men to do so.
Men are taught what is masculinity (based on their culture) from a very young age, they are taught to refrain from acting, speaking or dressing in any way that is feminine, which includes showing emotion or expressing themselves in a non-dominant manner. So, by the time they reach adulthood they are basically programmed to follow these set standards. For example, in Costa Rica, using umbrellas is seen as a feminine action, but since it is practical thing to do men needed to find a way to use an umbrella without diminishing their masculinity. This led to them using one single color umbrella and creating another word for it. “The word sombrilla has a feminine connotation and describes umbrellas used by women which are often colorful or incorporate patterns while the word paraguas has a masculine connotation and refers specifically to black umbrellas—often long with a wooden handle—used by men,”(Blanco F. 2014 )Which creates an internal and sometimes external conflict if they decide they want to stray away from what is the norm and do their own thing and express themselves in any way they see fit.
Moving forward, society standards are changing and people are becoming more lenient to what is acceptable and what is still too much but regardless of this progress some traditional people are not on board with these ideas. The workplace is still very regulated with past expressions of masculinity. Men that dress differently at work are looked at as unprofessional. “For these men, clothing was essential to their sense of self: It was how they expressed their identities, beliefs, and personalities,” (Berry 2017). However sometimes men have to let that go to be taken seriously. Some men that dress traditionally are just dressing for function and to fit in with the crowd. In many cultures, to be a wallflower is ideal. It is looked upon highly if a man shows who he is through his actions instead of his clothing and simultaneously he needs to not be too out there. People in society that are traditional and a bit conservative find it is important for them to conform to the past standards of masculinity.
How masculinity is evolving (Freedom of expression) Despite all the factors that are trying to hold men back from further exploring the realms of the fashion world and expressing themselves as they see fit. Masculinity is evolving especially in an apparel context. “Because of changing male views about their own masculinity, men are now increasingly engaging in consumption behaviors that were traditionally considered off-limits. Because of this change in mainstream masculinity, men are spending time and money on their appearance and are now more involved in shopping for products that were once seen as female oriented: apparel, cosmetics, and skincare,” (Dholakia, 1999; Otnes and McGrath, 2001; Bakewell and Mitchell, 2004; Tuncay and Otnes, 2008; Ross, 2012). This resulted in the fashion market for men expanding and designers are starting to take these consumers more seriously. They are spending close to or as much time they spend on marketing toward female consumers. “Fashion companies are making significant investments in luring male shoppers,” (Stock, 2014). In the past years the range of clothing and beauty items were simplified and didn’t have a lot going into them but now they have a lot more clothing options to choose from as men are becoming more fashion conscience. Regardless, when it comes to masculinity, it is still an ongoing process. While men are evolving their views on masculinity and changing how they shop for clothes (they spend a lot of time caring about their appearance now more than ever) they still look for ways to do it in a more masculine way. “While shifts in menswear and culture have inspired them to participate in fashion, social norms continue to prevent men from fully experimenting with dress,” (Ben and Martin 2015). While it might take several years before the majority of men around the world feel comfortable wearing what makes them happy and allows them to expresses who they really are, the world is currently moving in that direction.
How does balancing fashion and maintaining their masculinity affect men? Although the progress of expanding what is seen acceptable for how men dress themselves is a positive thing and should be celebrated, there are some drawbacks from this change in society. For starters, sense men are still being taught from the time they are children how they should act “to be a man”, these personality traits are taking effect when it comes to clothing especially when it comes to competition. This is most prominent in junior high and high schools where boys are competing with their peers over who has the best style, clothes and shoes. There have been many cases of bullying when someone comes to school in clothes that aren’t name brand or are knock offs. Also, this puts stress on parents when their children are always wanting the most popular style in clothes and shoes which often are expensive. Secondly, many men are still having to tone down the way they dress themselves for fear of criticism from their peers and families who aren’t in agreement or used to the changes. Many conservative families have a hard time accepting the new norms in clothing.
Occasionally, men that still live with their families keep their new fashion choices private. In a study that Ben and Martin conducted for their article a participant explained his situation that pertains to this point, “I tend to hide certain purchases from my parents, since they are super conservative … Especially my more interesting stuff like my fur coat and high platform creepers … My traditional parents still have an influence on me and my clothes, being a student and living at home,” (Ben and Martin 2015). Basically, this will be an ongoing struggle while the world is slowly accepting the changes in masculinity and how men are starting to dress themselves. Their masculinity and sexuality can be and are often challenged when they stray away from the norms but if men can endure this and more men decide it is socially acceptable to dress to express themselves freely then the future generations of men won’t be given such a hard time.
What did I learn
Before conducting this research, I thought it wouldn’t be as big of an issue as it is and that there probably wouldn’t be a lot of research and information on it online. I found that it is a very timely issue in today's society and that a lot of people have done research and wrote articles on this topic recently. From researching this topic, I have learned many things about how our society’s standard really limits men from moving forward emotionally. Until recently, men haven’t been encouraged to express themselves freely through their clothing choices. As much as the media points out that women are restricted from moving forward in society, men have their own set of problem they must face that isn’t addressed as much. When comparing the scholarly journals to the articles found online, the information was mostly similar. However, the online articles did focus a bit more on how the world is progressing while the scholarly journals focused more on what has happened years ago. All in all, the message that I got from conducting this research was that men really need to be encouraged to be themselves and find peace in expressing themselves through clothing without worrying about what the world will think about them. Also, as a designer it brings a sense of responsibility to promote this change. While the target market I am focused on right now is based toward women, I believe if/when I do expand and start designing for men as well, I will look to see how I can promote change and provide more options of clothing for men to wear including an array of silhouettes, colors and prints for men to choose from.
Conclusion
To conclude, men in the fashion world are slowly evolving. They are pushing limits and finally deciding for themselves what is and isn’t masculine. This is an outlet for men to express who they are and even who they want to be in the future. While this has been a big change for society, it is just getting started, because even though men are starting to focus more on fashion not everyone is comfortable with the change of events which lead to people staying with the norms already set in place. Not that there's anything wrong with these norm, it’s just that for men that feel like they are being restrained by societies rules and standards when it comes to their own masculinity and fashion choices, there shouldn’t be limitations set in place against them. Moving on from this topic there could be future research done to expand on this topic. For example, doing research on one country and focusing on how their fashion industry is evolving when concerning men and how men are being affected by societal rules. Another research question would be how the fashion industry has been dealing with these changes of events and how it has affected individual companies, whether it was hard for them to transition and focus more of their marketing and design on their male customers. How do they manage to balance men and women seeing that the men’s portion is almost as large as the women’s market?
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