In Chapter one of Customizing the Body by C.R. Sanders, the author state that “in western societies purposive body alteration has been, and continues to be, primarily a mechanism for demonstrating one’s disaffection from the mainstream”. While I have personally seen members of subcultures defined as deviant use adornments for this purpose in middle and high school, I believe that adornment for the sole purpose of demonstrating deviance is far less prevalent in the setting of college campuses. Despite this, I do admit that I am one of many students that frequently dress in a way that publicly advertises my group affiliation.
As a member of a sorority, Greek Life has had a large impact on my academics, social life, and living arrangements. While those outside of Greek Life are often quick to make jabs about paying for friends or about hazing rituals they saw in Animal House, nearly all of those involved have no qualms about their choice to be a part of Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL). While FSL is a minority on the University of Oregon campus with 14.5% of students holding memberships, those involved tend to be well-represented and quite vocal in philanthropic events, intramural sports, and student government. Like many members of FSL, I own and frequently wear numerous articles of clothing that demonstrate my affiliation. I believe that my involvement has played a tremendous role in my growth as an adult, and because of this I often wear shirts and sweatshirts that publicly advertise that I am proud to be a part of this sometimes marginalized group. I make the choice to advertise my affiliation because I feel that all of those involved have a responsibility to be an example of the positive aspects of our group in order disprove the numerous negative stereotypes that are prevalent amongst the student body as a whole.
Over the years, my thoughts have fluctuated in regards to the way that people dress themselves. When I was younger, I often fascinated about getting adornments that would produce a reaction from my parents, described as ‘the shock factor’ in the Adornment Presentation. This was a common desire amongst the adolescent females that I associated with in middle school and early in high school, and the people that thought this way typically outgrew this phase or ended up institutionalized. Although I don’t personally know the individual that stated that he or she desired this reaction, this parallel makes me think that adults whose primary goal is to shock their parents are quite immature. Despite this, I recognize that there are certain groups that appear to be in existence for ‘shock value’ that perform what I consider to be heroic tasks. One example is the Patriot Guard Riders, an all-volunteer non-profit organization whose members at first glance appear to be heavily tattooed members of biker gangs involved in criminal activities. However, the primary goal of this group is to allow the families of soldiers killed in the line of duty to mourn when their funerals are threatened by hate groups like Westboro Baptist Church (famous for their “God Hates Fags” rhetoric). This makes me realize that there are plenty of people who appear to be part of the “shocking my parents” group, when they actually have a much more important purpose.
Growing up, my parents taught me to dress in a conservative manner that did not show excessive skin, nor did it prompt other parents to make judgments about their ability to raise a child. However, they were not overly strict to the point that made me want to rebel just to spite them. I have seen this firsthand, but it is quite possible that the kids that rebelled would have had an issue with their parents regardless of the way that they were raised. Being an adult, I can now look back and see that my peers and I often expressed our feelings towards our institutional environment through the way that we dressed. I believe that young girls are more prone to peer pressure when it comes to clothing and adornment, but I have talked with numerous men who have stated that the pressures of assimilation or deviation were destructive forces in their formative years. However, the expression of young girls via clothing and adornment seemed to be more indicative of their social trajectory. In my experience, girls that deviated from the norm for a long period of time tended to have a very different future than those who assimilated. I realize that the assimilation or deviation played a significant role in our development as women, and I am personally glad that I did not follow a path that detracted from my life as an adult.
Citation:
Sanders, C. R. (1989). Introduction: Body Alteration, Artistic Production, and the Social World of Tattooing. In Customizing the Body (pp. 1-35). Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.