Bare Ankles

Ever since I did the bit about dress codes for young people at school I have been thinking off and on about women's clothing - or rather how society's standards are transformed, relatively quickly, in terms of what is appropriate to be seen and consequently what is sexually attractive. How those standards evolve is rather extraordinary. The logic as why anyone follows those same standards defeats me. I suspect that they are justified in terms of more freedom and more comfort. I wonder if that is always true.

I can remember the first time I saw a television commercial about bras. My parents, my sister and I were all sitting in our basement "family room" watching some program or another when the commercial came on. I don't think anyone said a word, but I can remember the distinct feeling of discomfort emanating from all of us in the room. In hindsight I think while it was embarrassing for me as a thirteen year old to see a bra on the screen, I am sure it was worse for my older sister. I think however, for my father it was probably more than just a bit embarrassing. I suspect that he more than any of us was not sure where he should or could look. He came from a pre-war culture where one just did not acknowledge such items of clothing. At least not in public.

There was a time when if a slip or bra strap was showing, it was a moment of embarrassment. It was not that one did not know that women wore such items of clothing, they had after all been visible for public consumption for decades in the Eaton's catalogues, it was that people didn't talk about them. Adjusting the strap so that it was back in the right place was a task of some delicacy. In 2015 not only are slip straps for the most part a non-issue because so few wear slips, but bras are now brightly coloured and made to be seen.

I thought of my father last week as I was biking home from the library. Ahead of me on the sidewalk was a young lady walking with I assume her boyfriend (they were holding hands). She was wearing black tights and a short t-shirt. To say that the tights hugged her skin to the point that one could easily tell not only what she was wearing underneath, but also see any marks on her thighs does not do justice to describing how skin tight that garment was. I suspect that if she had used a can of spray paint to cover herself , she would have revealed less. My father would not have had a clue as to where to look - but then one else on the sidewalk or in their cars did either. I can't imagine what my father would say about that young lady or the fact that Victoria Secrets has an annual runway show on mainstream television.

Low scoop t-shirts or blouses where much is shown or tight jeans that leave nothing to the imagination are just the current style. They are part of a fashion continuum that has, ever since the turn of the last century,  shown more and more female flesh. I think the question that someone could ask is - are women more sexually interesting than they were a hundred years. The answer is of course, no. Men in 1915 were just as interested in women as they are in 2015. In fact one has to wonder if life was just that little bit more interesting when seeing a revelled ankle was the highpoint of being with a young lady. There was so much to look forward to. Perhaps one can also wonder when that day comes when there are no more secrets to be viewed - what will be interesting then?