Chapter Reflection from Chicana Art : Chapter 2 - Body and Dress

The topic of discussion for this chapter struck me as particularly interesting. I feel that body art, decoration, and dress are all ways in which people express themselves and are ways in which they are marked or unmarked, or ways in which they mark and unmark themselves. I feel that the messages sent from these objects can be implicit or explicit, but they serve as ways in which much can be discerned about the wearer. "The clothing of humanity is full of profound significance, for the human spirit not only builds its own body but also fashions its own dress, even though for the most part it leaves the actual construction to other hands" (52). This passage was interesting to me because aside from its literal implications, it also had a more symbolic one as well, referring to how we construct ourselves and our identities, but not without a significant input or reference from the outside world. In this respect, the construction of ourselves and our garments are very similar and share an intimate connection that many things do not. Our garments, and decorations are more than things we simply do or do not put on. They are both individually, and socially constructed mediums from which we speak to others and to ourselves. They are of significant importance as they represent so many intangible aspects of ones reality. Going one step further beyond the realm of concrete items of dress and decoration, it was noted that "indeed the body itself may be thought of as a social garment" (51). I felt this was a particularly interesting point of thought reflecting the intricate nature of the relationship between things like race, gender, sexual identity, normative values, the expression of each, and just what all of this means.