Sunday 18 January 2015

Western Clothing in Contemporary America


Source: http://www.zappos.com/western

The representation of the Western genre in modern day America is considered to be a symbol of American identity. More specifically, it is a style that reflects upon America's history and heritage. One of the conventional aspects that can be recognised of the style is in the form of clothing. To adopt the Western lifestyle in its aesthetic sense, it involves the 'rugged pair' of Western boots, buckskin shirts, belts and hats that contributes to the vision of the American West.

The website 'Zappos' offers a large selection of Western clothing to adopt the distinguished style. 'Zappos' state: "you don't have to be a Westerner to appreciate the style that defines us as a nation... zappos has what you need to sport that classic Western style that this country knows and loves." This highlights the Western lifestyle as part of America's dominant ideology since there are a set of rules and practices to follow in order to adopt the Western style which most importantly resides in the type of clothing you wear.

On 'Zappos' website, it is noticeable that the retailers offer clothing for both men, women and children, encouraging the lifestyle upon every citizen. This is significant due to the stereotype that 'Westerner's' or cowboys are typically associated with men. Yet this style and trend in contemporary America is now seen as fashionable and is bought and sold as a commodity, whereas from the late nineteenth century it was for practicality. This conveys how the American West is portrayed and marketed today, and is still recognised as part of America's ideal.

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