Fashion trends often dictate what we wear and how we act. When one thinks of fashion the idea of trendy clothes come to mind. However this is not the only concept of what constitutes a fashion trend. As an example in the nineteen sixties it was considered fashionable in America for men to wear their hair long, also people spoke in an altogether different manner using a lot of slang expressions such as ‘groovy’ or ‘cool’ to signify that something was agreeable to them.
In present day Singapore we can see that fashion trends have a dominating influence among our teenagers. Most of these trends originate from the West. Bell-bottomed trousers for both sexes once all the rage in the sixties is making a comeback on our shores. Platform shoes although very hard on the feet are very popular too, to complete the look. Perhaps most striking is the way the young people and some older ones have taken to dying their hair blonde, red and even green. Fashion trends in themselves may not be harmful unless taken to extremes, for example, piercing one’s eyebrows or eyelids even. They are often merely a way for teenagers to express their individuality.
What is sometimes insidious about these trends are that they help to promote a strong sense of wanting to belong which can have negative aspects. Peer pressure may be responsible for compelling young people to do things they would otherwise not indulge in if not for the fear of being a ‘fashion outcast’. It is considered fashionable for young people to be seen at trendy night spots just as it is fashionable among some circles to consume the drug ‘Ecstasy’ because of its ability to induce a feeling of non-fatigue.
The important thing to remember is that teenagers are at a very susceptible time in their lives when the wrong influences can easily take root and express themselves as hostile attitudes or rebelliousness. To a large extent we have to depend on teenagers to make the right choices based on the guidance we give them.
Vocabulary
groovy very pleasing, wonderful
all the rage the current or latest fashion
outcast One that has been excluded from a society or system.
