The new, tighter fashions always made him uncomfortable. Oh, how he longed to sport a mooseknuckle like his hunting companions.
(Carl Friedrich Zimmerman, 1810)
He was not the first to notice.
(Bonifacio Veronese, 1540s)
In truth, her shawl was so last year.
(Domenico Ghirlandio, 1486-90)
Such time-saving tips are useful even today.
(Honoré Daumier, 1860-63)
So she said, but her husband just couldn’t see the need.
(Gerrit Dou, 1658)
Q:I received two very similar jackets for Christmas from my wife and from my mother. They were quite expensive and I'd like to return one, but I'm afraid of offending either of them. What should I do?
Anonymous
As you are no doubt aware, there are two historically divergent paths to follow in this situation.
You may follow what we loosely term a Confucian path to harmony, where the son shall obey parents, and the wife her husband. Or you may tread the Hebrew path, in which a man is instructed to leave his mother, and cleave to his wife.
To find your own way, if you are not already predisposed to one system of beliefs over the other, we advise you to ask your wife which one looks best on you.
—Shallow Sage
Her husband was entirely mystified by her disappointment.
(Pieter Aertsen, 1550)
What a relief. He’d been certain the recliner would clash with his carefully curated living room.
(Huguet, 1459-60)
He had no idea how much work her sweaters actually took.
(Piazzetta, c. 1740)
Q:What do you say about age appropriate dressing? Nothing worse that a middle-aged man in a skull t-shirt, but I don't want to look like Fred Rogers.
Anonymous
For centuries, our clothing has reflected status, not age. It may seem as if we have moved past a class- or occupation-based dress code in our society, but that’s only true for young people, hence your confusion. When adults forget they are fully grown, they often dress inappropriately.
Consider the great Sir Walter Raleigh, whose jewel-encrusted boots had such high heels that he could not walk on cobblestones. Unless you are under 22, such outrageous style is reserved only for the wealthiest English knights, as demonstrated most visibly today by Sir Elton John.
Sir Walter Raleigh, at c.33
A black skull t-shirt is allowed for adults, such as bikers, and many artists and musicians believe it lends them a sort of macho credibility. If you are a banker, engineer, or marketing consultant, however, your days of skull shirts most likely should be behind you.
David Evans, aka The Edge, at 46
To be safe, which is usually easiest, dress like your friends and coworkers (or potential coworkers) and do not deviate from their style. Flatter them by asking where they shop, and give up on being creative. If you have no friends or coworkers, and want to look like you never need to exert yourself, try flip-flops with a polo shirt.
—Shallow Sage
He may have felt foolish, but his decorative breastplate was admired by all.
He wondered if the rest of the team could ever get the steps right.
(Pourbus, 1568)
Near-wisdom from the ages.
Because people never change.
