I am interested in this research question because fashion has always interested me and is an industry where my career will likely take me. I believe that fashion is not just the material consumption of clothing, but is deeply rooted in cultures across the globe and is a reflection of their times and contexts. Fashion is used to represent history, morals, goals, character, occupation, religions, laws, self-understanding, and all forms of expression; and there are a lot of evolving cultural factors that affect it, especially gender. The way that gender barriers are perceived change over time as various social and political norms and events take their course. As far as values go it is a topic that is important for not only myself to understand, but a topic that society in general should pay attention to because it relates to cultural purpose and how we, as humans, identify and regard one another. Fashion manifests itself in everyone, intentionally or unintentionally, and is the result of choices that we make in how we want to present ourselves and be visually understood by anyone we may encounter. People judge other people, to some degree this is inevitable, so it is key to at least understand the basis of ideas on which people develop style and select fashion as it relates to who they are and what they stand for. I have always used clothing as a way to express myself in who I am, who I want to become, and what is important to me. I know that while it may not be important to all people, I have seen conflict arise from misunderstandings of someone's identity based on their appearance. I have an occupational, personal, and academic background in this topic that evolves within society every day.

The latest collection released by luxury brand John Galliano under the designer Bill Gaytten in Paris Men's Fashion Week was laced with inspiration from the re-acclimation of soldiers struggling back into civilian life. The garments in this collection use traditional, military colors with an interpretation of camouflage and contrasted with peaceful, floral appliques and patterns.


This photo is a look from White Mountaineering's Fall 2016 Menswear show in Paris. It features a male model in a print top with small animals on it, dark khaki pants, athletic sneakers, and a brown jacket with a matching brown, knee-length skirt worn over the pants. It was taken during Paris Men's Fashion week on their blank, all white runway.

The evolution of fashion has opened up many new avenues for expression in modern culture. Throughout time, dress has been used to represent political support or resistance, as well as display identity and group affiliations. Key to these characteristics is the role that celebrities and media play in our adoption of fashions and how magazines shape our cultural views of what is or is not acceptable.

The major values at stake in this article are the conflicts between peace and war as well as the socio-political topic of the mental health of veterans returning to mundane normalcy. This is a cultural issue across borders that affects the designer making a statement, and how viewers receive the statement, as well as the soldiers being represented.

The major value and interest to this photo is that it boldly crosses traditional gender barriers. It features a man modeling a design of a skirt; a staple garment in womenswear. Although the skirt is pretty basic, it is still an uncommon style to see on a man. The designer has a major stake in how this design is received by the public, as are other designers and consumers as it may or may not develop into a trend.

The values and interests at stake in this article concern how individuals use clothing to represent larger ideas and use them as more than just clothing to cover up. Larger-than-life entities such as governments, cultures, industries, and traditions all influence and are influenced by how members of society choose to dress.

The designers is credible as it is his collection, and his bias only lies in his interpretation of the issue which does not seem like an argument, but rather a flash of awareness and a call to action. The source itself comes from style.com, run by Vogue a well-known, established fashion journalism company.

This photo was published on style.com, run by Vogue an international, well-known fashion press source. The designer and brand are the author of the look and have developed their own original, unbiased design. Actually, it is so unbiased that it disregards pre-existing biases that define female and male styles.

The author, Leitch, is a professor at Purdue University and has had several books published. Those credentials make this a credible source and there is little bias as the author references many sides of the topic and refers to other published works as well.

This research question is more exploratory and explanatory than it is arguable, so in the future I will work on ways to revise the question so that I can make more of an argument about it. In my research I've found evidence and support for my claims and reasons to verify that there is change and reflection in fashion based on socio-political climate and information to support that these changes are evolutionary with culture. They have broadened my perspectives to think about the matter in a more political way than social way, as political changes seem to go hand in hand with social changes. So, fashion becomes a mean for commentary on these topics and serves as a medium for ethical politics manifested in visual expression. Again, I will revise my question to be more argumentative.


