Blog 23

According to the recording, The Fashion Laws of Politics, “clothing and style is an important political weapon.” Clothing can be misinterpreted and can be judged. The type of clothing that women lawyers or politicians wear is symbolic. With the first lady Michelle Obama, Obama style is said to be modern and progressive. According to The Fashion Laws of Politics, she wears a lot of dresses and not traditional suits of Washington. Michelle Obama wears a lot of clothing that shows her curves, which is not traditional. One speaker in the recording identified Michelle Obama style with race. Stating that culturally, Michelle Obama is representing the black style of dressing. In the reading, Gender on Trial, women began to “reject” the “faux-male power suits.” Women lawyers, at first, paid close attention to what they wore to work however, now there has been a turning point in style. Casual dress is not as popular as it use to be. Casual dressing caused different perceptions and confusion. In the reading it argues how a women appearance can bring questions. Depending how a women lawyer or politician is dressed questions “reliability” (Gender On Trial, pg. 28). Politicians or lawyers dressing holds a mass variety of risks. Some lawyers do not agree with the new style of dressing women lawyers are undergoing. In the reading, one older lawyer believed that a younger female lawyer was dressed too provocative. More of the older female lawyers are more conservative while the younger lawyers style is more modern or sometimes appear to be “sexy” (Gender on Trial, pg. 30). Women are always under constant watch. A women appearance can project a great amount of assumptions for the watching. Women in power have to pay close watch to their style of dressing such as for Michelle Obama. Michelle has to make sure that she remains professional and not project a threatening appearance.