Making The Best Of It

My feng shui isn't right. I know it because others have told me so or, at least, implied that by their questions about it. Theirs is better. But it's my feng shui and I'm happy with it (whatever it is). From what I can learn quickly it somehow relates to my concept of my environment and how it fits into the world around it. Very Chinese – Taoist according to what I've read – but it has created an industry here. It's a twenty-first century fad and all the social climbers, those wishing to appear sophisticated have bought in. And there are advisers and furniture companies to help out. All it takes is money to present yourself as refined and worthy of the admiration of others.

Toward the end of the twentieth century, nouveau cuisine was all the rage. It was a great way for restaurants to charge more for giving you less. Dinner became a visual rather than a gustatory experience, and if you didn't find that satisfying is was clear that you weren't “in” and, if you(r kitchen staff) didn't serve those sparse, but beautiful dishes, you were not among the cognoscenti. You weren't among the initiated – the connoisseurs, the sophisticated. And those you thought were your friends would turn up their noses, and then look down them at you.

That's the drill. Someone, or some company, comes up with the latest thing and it becomes a fad (“the fashion” for those adhering to it) which defines you. There's no denying it. It's always been the case, although changes evolve more quickly than in the past. Publicity, advertising, and “the word” get around faster now. What was once one way is now the only way. At least for the wishful souls among us.

And that doesn't apply only to fashion. An aggressive advertising industry is bent on convincing us that we want whatever is “new” and “improved.” And if the message an packaging are appealing, we'll spend more even if that means that we get less. For some the buzzword s are “trans fat free” or “gluten free,” terms that are used liberally, even on products that never contained fat or gluten to begin with.

But the biggest nowadays is “artisanal.” I'm not quite sure what it means, but I know that at present it's the only thing that the discerning among us will consider; the only thing they'll buy is something that claims to be artisanal – even if there are no particular standards for such a claim. Even if the term is meaningless, it has acquired the patina of excellence that recommends it to anyone sophisticated and in “the know.” In fact, all those who buy into any of these examples of hokum consider themselves to be sophisticated.

Sophisticated. It's understood as a complimentary term. And the sophisticated are those who can more clearly define what is good than the rest of us. It should be noted though that the word derives from the Sophists, an ancient Greek group that espoused a philosophy favoring excellence and virtue, but one whose members were skilled in the art of rhetoric, and who could argue convincingly on either side of an issue.

That has become the meaning in our current usage. A skilled sophist has the ability to convince us of anything. Truth and belief in your arguments are not the issues. Perhaps this means that they understand both (or all) sides of the issues they address, and that's the view of those who believe themselves in this category.

But the sophisticated of our time are frequently the ones who want clothes like the king. They can be convinced of anything. And the “convincers” are those in advertising, and the “trend-setters.” The (pseudo)sophisticated are eager to adopt whatever is newest because they want to be among the trend-setters and those in the know. Some will turn their insecurity into a form of arrogance. They've convinced themselves, and they want to convince you, of their superiority and of their wisdom (sophia in Greek, with the same root as sophist and sophisticated).

The problem is that their sophistication is too often pretended. And their real goal is to convince other pretenders of their qualifications for being in the group. That's where fashions come from. And that's where “sophistication coaches” (“experts,” trainers, advertisers, and other scammers) make their money. The willingness of others to accept and to follow the trends makes them even more fashionable. Fads are more important than facts. Claims best reality. Not just for the fashion leaders, but for all of us. That's why there's so much bragging and advertising in the social media. Most of us buy in. With enough sophistry we can make the best of anything. And I can impose my superior feng shui on others, rather than have them criticize it and pretend theirs is better.








March 30, 2017

Man Makes The Clothes

                                                                                                                                                    

“Who told you you were naked?”ⁱ

No one needed clothes in the Garden of Eden. But Adam and Eve had eaten of the Tree of Knowledge, they had lost their innocence, and had recognized and were embarrassed by their lack of any covering. So when G-d asked him where he was, Adam admitted to hiding and to being afraid “because I am naked.”ⁱⁱ

Adam and Eve were, of course, punished for their sin, but G-d, mercifully, addressed their newly discovered modesty. He “made for Adam and his wife garments of skin, and He clothed them.”ⁱⁱⁱ G-d was the first tailor and clothier.

In reading about history over the past few years I have seen, and been greatly troubled by, photographs from the Holocaust showing naked men, women, and children. They were dead or about to be killed. Naked came they into the world, and naked they would leave it.^iv And their lack of clothing was dehumanizing, as it was meant to be. They lost their clothes and they lost their dignity, even before their lives.

And I have heard, recently, of clothing drives to benefit the victims of “Superstorm” Sandy. Perhaps their need was different from that of the original man and woman because they had whatever clothes they were wearing, so modesty wasn't the primary issue. But while the weather had been ideal in the Garden, and no clothes were needed, there was a great need for warm, dry, clothing for those who had been attacked by the cold, wind, and rain, and garments were also sought to give the victims some sense of dignity. In the Jewish tradition^v we thank G-d every day for clothing the naked, but we recognize our duty to follow His lead. Indeed, it is through us that the needy are aided. Certainly the same injunction applies to food and shelter, but events have led me to give a good deal of thought to clothes

The needs I have raised, modesty and protection, were the earliest justifications for the use of clothing, but a third, identification of something about the wearer, joined them very soon, indeed, it may have been there from the beginning. That is because of a great deal of overlap in these three categories. For example, what we think of in terms of modesty^vi may be overturned and viewed as “style,” and those who are interested in such distinctions may consider nudity and an outfit marked by a high neck, long sleeves, and a long skirt as two ends of a fashion spectrum, and they not be embarrassed by adhering to what to whatever is in “style.” As long as they are viewed as members of the “in” group they don't care what they are wearing.^vii The different outfits have different purposes and send different messages. A Victoria's Secret shopping bag is a green light; a chastity belt tends toward the red.^viii

The use of clothing for some kind of identification is usually more specific however. Royal garb and Indian ("Native American" – although however genteel that may sound it is clearly wrong since  they are certainly not limited to our country) headdresses are easily recognized.  A police or military uniform is unlikely to be misunderstood by anyone, nor is a school uniform or a tee shirt with a written message. Hijab and abaya, habit, collar, kippa, and turban, are dependable guides to religion, as is traditional clothing an indication of ethnicity.^ix And the outfits of a ninja warrior, clown, nurse, and Batman will make their identities immediately apparent. Their outfits provide a message. As do a scarlet A and a yellow star and other stigmas imposed by society on those to be shunned or eliminated.

Less specific, but similarly parts of a uniform, are the conservative gray flannel suit and the casual Friday togs donned every day by the Silicon Valley programmer. Simultaneously we seek to be unique members of society while we are recognizable members of our own group. We want to be different, but also to blend in. And sometimes we don't want to be noticed at all. Then we must be out of uniform – incognito, in mufti, in “civvies” – so as not to be noticed. We may view it as a necessity, but it's really a matter of choice.

But for the needy, those considerations are irrelevant. If they choose a leather jacket,^x it is not a matter of fashion. And if they select modest clothing over what is revealing, we should not think that it indicates a style decision – it is usually because the former is warmer. Those in need are in need. Those who aren't, can only be grateful for the means to survive without help. And we should be thankful for the dignity which our clothing provides. Not everyone is so fortunate.

Perhaps some day we'll all return to an Eden in which all our needs are addressed, but until then we're all our brothers' and sisters' keepers. G-d made the first clothing for mankind, but it now is up to man to make the clothes, and to try to support the poor in other ways as well. We must clothe the naked and feed the hungry. If they have needs, we must help to fill them. The way has been shown us, and we are obligated to follow.

Next episode: “Morons And Oxymorons” -- The talk of the town.

i      Bereishit (Genesis) 3:9

ii     ibid. 3:10

iii    ibid. 3:21

iv     There are many variants of this idea. See especially Job 1:21, Ecclesiastes 5:15, and Timothy 6:7. The original version was “Naked came I from my mother's womb ... ” but in more modern usage the terminology “into the world” is more common.

v      And I assume in most other traditions as well.

vi     And for most societies this is an important issue, even if the definitions are different.

vii    Or not wearing. A Rudi Gernreich monokini was, in its time, very stylish.

viii   In some societies. The taboos observed by some may seem absurd to others.

ix     For example, the outfits of the Amish, Chassidim, African nations, the saffron robes of Buddhists, and similar attire.

x      Assuming they have a choice.