Comments on: Who Am I Wearing? http://harlotofthearts.org/blog/2008/08/01/who-am-i-wearing/ Thu, 05 Aug 2010 06:10:26 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Katie http://harlotofthearts.org/blog/2008/08/01/who-am-i-wearing/comment-page-1/#comment-49 Katie Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:46:28 +0000 http://rhetoricalcommons.org/harlot/?p=126#comment-49 I used to watch this show all the time, and I am still torn between love and fear. On one hand, I love a good makeover. From home decor to makeup to gardening, few things are more satisfying than a good before-and-after. Plus there's always the fantasy of having someone come in and sort me out. But then again, I became increasingly concerned about the generic results of this show. While I admire the intention, which is to incorporate people's personal style identity into a more confident, polished self-presentation, I find the results a little freaky -- it's as though they assume every version of feminine identity can be improved by adhering to the AnnTaylor/BananaRepublic aesthetic, one which erases difference and diversity in favor of conservative conformity. Just what myopic vision of beauty and acceptability are they working with?! Plus, I'm pretty sure they would try to take away my tie-dye (none of which is primary colors; all of which is awesome) and/or collection of Docs ... over my dead (but still performative) body. I used to watch this show all the time, and I am still torn between love and fear. On one hand, I love a good makeover. From home decor to makeup to gardening, few things are more satisfying than a good before-and-after. Plus there’s always the fantasy of having someone come in and sort me out.

But then again, I became increasingly concerned about the generic results of this show. While I admire the intention, which is to incorporate people’s personal style identity into a more confident, polished self-presentation, I find the results a little freaky — it’s as though they assume every version of feminine identity can be improved by adhering to the AnnTaylor/BananaRepublic aesthetic, one which erases difference and diversity in favor of conservative conformity. Just what myopic vision of beauty and acceptability are they working with?!

Plus, I’m pretty sure they would try to take away my tie-dye (none of which is primary colors; all of which is awesome) and/or collection of Docs … over my dead (but still performative) body.

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