Society Calls It.

Veil, scarf, head tie, whatever you call it are worn by either men or women for several reasons. I grew up having various reasons for wearing scarfs too! I wore the head tie more on Sundays when I went to church although this has changed. Now I only wear head ties if it goes with my outfit. Living in a place with unpredictable weather, scarves come in handy for shielding the neck from treacherous weather conditions and sometimes I use a veil when the weather is milder. The question here is do I really choose to wear these clothing articles this way because I should or do I subconsciously obey a rule placed by society? A trip to a city with mixed races got me interested in some fashion choices of some women. I had questions on why women had scarfs or veils worn in certain ways and on certain weather conditions. In fact, I had seen a woman draped in a veil and almost completely covered from head to toe in the dead of heat. I was  uncomfortable for her. The color was black and we all know how it feels to wear all black in a hot Summer day. But my eyes were opened by answers I got from asking questions from discussions, movies, books, and social media. I got various reasons like culture and tradition, religion, health and livelihood, and fashion. What no one pointed out was that people were behind all these reasons. Who are these people? I know there are no group of law makers gathering somewhere to device fashion rules with meanings. The point is, these decisions come from different people and as long as they agree on something, voila, it becomes a thing! I'll call the invisible rule makers "Society." I wonder if we always decide to obey what society chooses for us or if we choose it for ourselves. What do we have to prove to people when we choose what we wear? I can't claim to know what anyone is thinking when they are dressing up. I can't claim to know the circumstance that  makes them wear what they wear. I think that character should be enough to define somebody, maybe that's why they choose to dress up the way they're dressed. People may interpret dressing skimpily as having low morals; people may define someone who is completely covered as being deeply religious. But then, some of the clothing people wear have meanings. If I wear an outfit with a head tie, I'm probably too dressy for a day at a park. If I wear a veil, I may be a Muslim. If I wear a scarf around my neck, It may be cold outside or I may just be accessorizing my look. All in all, perception wins before the view of the individual. Society still wins. I think it's sad.


(ukoemem - Author; Ola Y - Editor)