www.wikihow.com/wear-ugg-boots
The Wiki How to "wear your UGG boots" is the optiamy of American Zeitgeist. Often i search the Wiki How site when looking for the answer to a math problem or how to remove stains from my clothes, but never did I imagine a full how to website on how to wear a pair of boots. But whose to say how to wear anything? The data base's introduction traps the reader stating, "You've seen celebrities, fashion icons, models, neighbors, and work colleagues wearing them. Every one's doing it!" This indicates the only reason UGG is giving to wear their boots is that everyone else is doing it and it would be a shame to be left out. Then comes step by step instructions on how to find the best boots to match your body shape and coloring in order to make you look more like the masses. Worst of all, at the end of the article are warnings on how to ensure not standing out in you UGGs. The majority of those who logged on to Wiki How remind you to never wear neon colored boots! The strangest part of the site however was the author not revealing his/her name. This may be an effort to encourage others to edit the site because after all Wiki How is the self proclaimed "how to manual that YOU can edit."
The site is obviously a creation and a product of the desire to have what others have and the desire to fit in. The very fact that a whole website is dedicated to one type of boots is extraordinary, let alone about simply wearing it. The website seems to want to kill creativity while pretending to support it. By giving people the option of editing the page, they are in fact letting people tell others how to wear it, not make suggestions. The "blending in" with the rest of society has taken a new turn in recent years as with updated technology it always does. Whether it be boots, shirts, hats, or perhaps even socks? The want to flood the media with products that "everyone" is using has grown considerably and presents a threat to creativity and intuition.
ReplyDeleteThe Ugg craze is definitely something to talk about in society today. Everywhere I look, there is always a pair of Uggs. I think you really pulled out the important parts of the article. It's kind of scary if you think about it; the article basically explains that one should buy Uggs to conform, one should buy Uggs to be like everyone else. This article does a great job of providing an example of how a 'must have' product really influences society. Products can take over our lives. I never thought about Uggs in such depth, but there are clearly people out there that are going to read things like this and take a lot of it into consideration.
ReplyDeleteUgg's can defiantly be a representation of humanities basic tendency to conform. Everyone claims that Ugg's are comfortable, cozy, and worth even the bland exterior. The real desire comes from the age old "everyones doing it" idea. People naturally want to be accepted and liked. It's natural human instinct to want to fit in, everyone wants to feel apart of something greater than themselves. A common quality creates a parallel and sense of unity that brings comfort and security. Humans will do whatever they can to obtain this security, even if it means buying ugly, expensive, sheepskin boots. When one thinks about it, this power could be used immensely to the manufacturers good, (light-bulb somewhere turns on,) and thus, advertising and mass production is created. Uggs art necessarily taking over the world, but the idea of consumerism is. As Long as humanity remains human, manufacturers will have a market.
ReplyDeleteConformity is the idea that the website pitches. I am still baffled as to why girls chose to wear such ugly shoes (they do call them uggs for a reason). As Jake has said its the idea that "everyone is doing it". That is the only reason why it is popular. There is nothing outstanding that makes this certain shoe something to be worshipped. We chose to conform and never chose to stand out. Conformity gives us security. This product is a way to make girls feel accepted and secure, even though they sacrifice fashion with a hideous boot. The website manages to teach us how to conform, indirectly preaching that it is a good thing to be like everyone else. Being unique should not be feared, but should rather be embraced.
ReplyDeleteThe bland exterior is the selling point. So often are the clothes created today with the mindset of being different and new that they come out over thought and undesirable. The simpleness of Uggs is their attractiveness. Uggs were not conformity but rather quite the opposite. Now that the style has exploded into a worldwide phenomenon (there is even a WikiHow page on how to where them) the novelty has worn out. The small scale that would have constituted these shoes as rebellious and outstanding no longer exists, thus defeating this justification for wearing them. They are a trend.
ReplyDeleteThis post basically sums up consumerism in today's society. I love my Uggs because they are comfortable, not because everybody else has them. It is absurd that there are instructions and classified rules as to how to wear these boots. The article even goes as far as saying, "Winter, fall, and even spring are good times to donn your Uggs. Wearing them in hot summer weather will most certainly be uncomfortable and you might look out of place. Just because something is a fashion trend does not mean that it can be worn at any time or in any way." This statement completely encourages those who wear Uggs to mold themselves to fit into society, not to break away from standards. Who cares if you wear the wrong color boots with the wrong color pants? The fact that there is a whole article dedicated to making sure that we look like we fit in says a lot about how materialistic and obsessed our society has become.
ReplyDelete