week 10 - Narayan

Pryanka Narayan

ASA 141

1 June 2019

The article Afterword: Re-Orienting Fashion Theory is a highly intriguing article as it discusses how the concept of fashion has been entirely been consumed in what is considered western beauty standards, and how Asian dress fits in this notion. For instance, the article states that while each country has had its own definition of fashion, it was technically defined within the western eye and through the concept of Social Dawarnaism. As Asian dress is solely about the relationship between the East and West. Also if any form of clothing does not contain western influence, the reputation of clothing is lowered to the term costume. Currently, there has been a notion to call fashion global, but many argue how can that be so when western influence is still leading the world on fashion standards. This article discusses many vital notions, as I have always been upset growing up, on why concepts and clothing from my culture were not considered within the same category as clothes, as to why it was reduced to the stigmatized notion of costume. I agree with the author that is not enough to just say that fashion is global when evidence and statistics say otherwise, but I do believe that can become a reality. Though together as a community we need to allow ourselves to not reduce concepts that are not a norm to the western influence be   as costumes.