Appearance: The Sole Distinguishing Factor of a Woman?

Appearance is one of many factors that make people who they are. Some may consider their appearance very attentively while others may not even care about it at all. Given that appearance is such a crucial element for some, what makes up the appearance of an individual? Their face? Their body shape? Or perhaps their clothing? I would consider all of these important factors in determining appearance, but provided that clothing is the most readily mutable factor, many consider it to be the determining factor to judge one’s appearance on.

For men, clothing is more narrowly spread.  For example, most men wear suits or dress shirts with ties as business attire. For casual wear, men mostly use jeans or khakis and a t-shirt or collared polo. 

On the other hand, women’s clothing is much more varied and diverse. To dress casually, women can pick from various styles such as skirts, leggings, tank tops, or even full-length dresses,  For business attire, they have a myriad of dresses ranging from “man-tailored suits” to “a skirt in neutral colors” to even a “sexy black jumpsuit” (Tannen 522).

Thus, it can be seen that the there is a clear “norm” for men to resort to while there is no such “norm” for women to fall back to due to the vast variety of clothing they have to choose from. Now it is clear why Tannen would remark that “there is no unmasked woman.” No matter how they dress, it is nearly impossible to go unmarked.