Response may 27

The article Communication and Culture by Barnard argues that fashion has more meaning than people think. It becomes relevant part of community language, culture, traditions and art. The article provides enough examples of importance of fashion as a cultural element which is relevant to study societies which create it. This argument is narrowed by the article by Etcoff’s called Survival of the Prettiest”. In this article, Etcoff examines the connection of fashion and gender representation in different cultures. Other important point to mention is that people use their clothing items to render their power status in their community. These two articles show that any choice of attire sends a message to the community. Even if people try to dress casually or ordinarily, they inform other community members about their attitude, personal traits and references. People can dress up to attract attention; the majority of people still choose some casual clothing to feel included or to be like all other people around. By their clothing, they support community norms and expectations which are common in their society.
Cross-cultural Cross-dressing: Japanese Graphic Novels Perform Gender in U. S. by Kornfield researches the connection of fashion and gender. Almost all world societies require clothing items to reflect certain gendered qualities. For instance, clothes in Manga established strict gender standards concerning femininity and masculinity which are restrictive to sexual minorities. This article contains even more examples which show that the same connection of fashion and gender is common in all Asian cultures. This article can serve as a relevant source of information for further research.