tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post1521714724149366454..comments2024-03-22T17:05:12.662-06:00Comments on The Closet Historian: Pith Helmets, Khaki, and some Implications to Consider When Wearing Adventure Ready StylesBianca Espositohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-48836467709105278712018-10-05T19:58:30.891-06:002018-10-05T19:58:30.891-06:00People wear Pith Helmets to this day all over the ...People wear Pith Helmets to this day all over the world.<br /><br />Granted: they are usually police or soldiers...<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07583345768419325554noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-26068244119843197192017-07-12T10:43:29.360-06:002017-07-12T10:43:29.360-06:00Interesting that you have such a personal connecti...Interesting that you have such a personal connection to this subject, though I suppose many must! History certainly is full of grey areas, if only they didn't gloss over them so much in schools (or at least they do here in the US). Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-54843931797543939202017-07-08T15:26:01.058-06:002017-07-08T15:26:01.058-06:00I had never thought about it before. A pith helmet...I had never thought about it before. A pith helmet is clearly a part of my own cultural heritage, as we have a photo of my great great grandfather wearing one. But he is, as you say, wearing it while fighting another country's war on foreign soil, and was in fact responsible for the removal to Australia of a significant historical artifact from Turkey that has since been the subject of disagreement about its return. On the other hand, he was, though a very colonial sort of guy and a product of his time, also wise, compassionate, and a provider of comfort and spiritual guidance to many young men struggling with the horrors of war. I wonder sometimes how to view his legacy and I would certainly think of him if I wore a pith helmet, and wonder about that too. Again, no answers but a case study of one that shows the conflict in the history. Tanithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09915557658875958630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-36652268767565930042017-07-06T20:00:50.489-06:002017-07-06T20:00:50.489-06:00I never thought of it as a symbol of empire either...I never thought of it as a symbol of empire either until I was suddenly struck by the association recently! Proof that there is always more to consider and learn about!Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-44542503682709774522017-07-06T19:59:44.064-06:002017-07-06T19:59:44.064-06:00It seems like kakhi was adopted by many local forc...It seems like kakhi was adopted by many local forces in various colonized lands and became partially associated with independence in some places too, then becoming I assume at least a bit neutralized in its association with the colonizer after it was adopted as the nationalistic uniform of the once colonized. I feel like one could easily write a masters dissertation on just khaki! Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-38296225717439390652017-07-06T19:57:00.468-06:002017-07-06T19:57:00.468-06:00I agree that it was indeed that things which were ...I agree that it was indeed that things which were created for practicality were intended merely for ease of use and comfort originally, but that negative associations would have grown with time (and the stacking of terrible offenses). Thinking of it this way makes me think of like how fedoras are now a bit taboo (on men) because of the whole m'lady gross internet bros (see urban dictionary for fedora, http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=fedora). Obviously fedoras were just hats, nice hats really, but associations get attached to styles so easily! Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-23730694410753770132017-07-05T03:19:58.029-06:002017-07-05T03:19:58.029-06:00This is such an interesting topic, so much to thin...This is such an interesting topic, so much to think about. When I see you in a pith helmet I only think about adventurer/explorer style and it feels like part of the look. I hadn't considered it as a symbol of the Empire, maybe because I wasn't thinking widely, maybe because I am in a white bubble. So when I think of it like that it raises lots of questions as you say.Kate-Emhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15664293299445754159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-78249878057910280692017-07-05T01:55:16.099-06:002017-07-05T01:55:16.099-06:00My mixed-race relatives wore khaki and the like, i...My mixed-race relatives wore khaki and the like, if that makes you feel any better. (Though the relations between the Eurasian community and the white and Indian ones is worth a whole study in itself...)Mimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01578612522819952936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-12649885711695263512017-07-05T01:53:09.272-06:002017-07-05T01:53:09.272-06:00Yeah, I won't be wearing my earlier vintage st...Yeah, I won't be wearing my earlier vintage styles on my trip to India next year! Should be safe with the 60s though...Mimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01578612522819952936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-65384098651926710102017-07-04T12:32:48.055-06:002017-07-04T12:32:48.055-06:00This is a rather wide open topic, and I can't ...This is a rather wide open topic, and I can't say I have any answers to give to you. :(<br />One thing that I will toss out there is that a lot of "safari" styles- boots, linen fabrics, pockets and even the pith helmet originally started being worn for practical reasons. It's not as though people were saying, "I will wear this helmet because it makes me better than you." They were wearing them because they kept their heads cool in the sun. That people may have had those attitudes and committed atrocities while wearing those clothes doesn't necessarily mean that the items themselves are bad. No doubt it became a symbol of colonialism over time though. Like the "housewife's dress" became a symbol of the 1950's.<br />Like I said, I have no answers for you- just more questions! Good for you for thinking of this in how you dress though.Nicolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03850447706684871976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-46156330262958931842017-07-03T09:15:32.441-06:002017-07-03T09:15:32.441-06:00Thank you for such a great response Janey!
I fin...Thank you for such a great response Janey! <br /><br />I find, for me, when it is other white people getting up in arms about something being offensive to another culture, but people from that culture are actually fine with it, that's when PC has probably gone too far. Still, I always think it is better to just err on the side of not offending anyone. It's a bummer that the "Great White Hunter" is the main stereotype associated with safari style, but it is true history so this really can't be changed.Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-88198166543729224162017-06-28T20:50:57.069-06:002017-06-28T20:50:57.069-06:00Whoa! As someone, who is very much like you in lov...Whoa! As someone, who is very much like you in loving this style, and who wears it regularly, I honestly hadn't given this much thought. But also like you, I have a little white bubble. I've worn a straw pith helmet many a time, and have done so without comment, although I lived in a very white city, and despite moving, still do.<br /><br />I also think that there is something to be said for being too PC. I consider myself a fairly PC person, but when people get outraged over something, it can sometimes be something they don't fully understand, or are simply just "too sensitive."<br /><br />I also think that while some people who wore safari or "adventurer" garb were of the groups you talked about, conquering, killing animals, etc., there was also still a large group who wore it and cared a great deal for their country, people, and history. Most of that fashion really has a purpose, mostly related to weather and terrain, so I still find it acceptable, and not indicative or representative of a negative moment.<br /><br />Thank you for providing the link list! I look forward to reading the articles.<br /><br />xoxo<br />-JaneyJaneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09179447682223205557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-13195444255797689622017-06-26T11:48:39.874-06:002017-06-26T11:48:39.874-06:00Thank you! Yes I think it's good to at least t...Thank you! Yes I think it's good to at least think about these things, we all give off impressions by what we choose to wear, so it's important to think through what those impressions might be.Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-23056930189456474282017-06-26T11:47:28.062-06:002017-06-26T11:47:28.062-06:00Exactly! As soon as one realizes that all vintage ...Exactly! As soon as one realizes that all vintage clothing essentially is "items that white folks have worn at other points in time when rampaging all over other cultures" than safari fashions don't actually stick out as more or less problematic than the rest. Everything is problematic! Darn history... Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-79706471204535249622017-06-26T11:45:27.311-06:002017-06-26T11:45:27.311-06:00I totally agree, I can imagine too that such style...I totally agree, I can imagine too that such styles are less offensive here in the US, but if you showed up to a resort in Kenya looking like an Edwardian adventurer the implications would be very different! It's all about keeping in mind context and care I suppose.Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-62718160110431938642017-06-26T11:43:06.974-06:002017-06-26T11:43:06.974-06:00Its interesting too because the adventure looks fr...Its interesting too because the adventure looks from the 1920s-1950s are already distilled one layer down from the actual colonial Victorian/Edwardian era atrocities. Not that the implications of imperialism and actual colonial rule had ended by the 20th century by any means, just that those "safari fashion" looks were already inspired by instead of directly a part of such colonization. Too many layers!!!Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-88136657302229894742017-06-26T11:39:50.871-06:002017-06-26T11:39:50.871-06:00True enough that all clothing has a history and al...True enough that all clothing has a history and all history is gray rather than black or white. I find cultural appropriation to be much easier to understand because there seem to be harder lined differences between what is and is not appropriate. It's easy to decide when something is obviously offensive that I wouldn't want to take part in that, but when something is more nebulous like this it's harder to know where the line is!Bianca Espositohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01541302311277420740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-43142288932478837002017-06-25T02:46:47.971-06:002017-06-25T02:46:47.971-06:00Good text! :) Often these ponderings come only wit...Good text! :) Often these ponderings come only with knowledge; as an ignorant youth for exaple one does not know, or think, of origins of things, ideas and fashions... But when one gets to know that there might be controversy behind seemingly simple pieces of clothing, it is good to be considerate, like you are! matkailijakirppuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05606336866374286759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-2683327900014770092017-06-24T13:11:59.546-06:002017-06-24T13:11:59.546-06:00This is one I'm struggling to resolve in my ow...This is one I'm struggling to resolve in my own mind, I must admit. Is it because 'safari style' is not about 'copying' a culture, it's about the 'things that white folks wore whilst suppressing minority cultures'? In that case then, can we also stretch this to include all of the other fashion items that white folks have worn at other points in time when rampaging all over other cultures? (Which would be everything, no?) I don't have the answers, just more questions! xxPorcelinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02202283149145094340noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-29459178003832897922017-06-24T10:57:05.823-06:002017-06-24T10:57:05.823-06:00This is a really interesting topic, because it'...This is a really interesting topic, because it's not cultural appropriation, per se, the way wearing a sari or other cultural garb might be; the items of clothing that you're talking about were the uniforms of the colonizers, which as you say carries its own implications. As a white person, my first thought is "oh, we're so far past it that as long as we're not appropriating and stereotyping traditional garb, we're probably good," but I would be really interested in hearing the perspective of someone who is coming from the other side, who may have a different perspective. <br />I really appreciate seeing conversations like this. It's so easy to just decide not to think about the implications of certain things that we say or do (or wear), so taking a moment to recognize that certain images that we have that seem harmless - the late 1800s/early 1900s explorer, glamourous as they may look - can have rather ugly roots.Jessicahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06827840216337511678noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-74864508481789445202017-06-24T06:45:28.551-06:002017-06-24T06:45:28.551-06:00Oosh, I tend to find this one hard! As a loose rul...Oosh, I tend to find this one hard! As a loose rule, I tend to go with; if it would have affected Me in the past (so the lovely 50s dresses) I can "reclaim" it, but not if it would've affected other people (so, as a white person, wearing things very associated with colonial rule or past "ooh isn't it exotic" items such as turbans) as the people who were harmed by it (or there ancestors were...) is the person who gets to make the judgement call of whether it can be successfully removed from its past connotations. EWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13466616142538363334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3482142516265173452.post-8026388807512390132017-06-23T22:38:25.839-06:002017-06-23T22:38:25.839-06:00All clothing has problematic history if you look d...All clothing has problematic history if you look deeply enough at its past. I find the concept of 'cultural appropriation' puzzling in many cases, since all cultures borrow and adapt and appropriate from each other. Certainly, we should try to not insult or demean other people with our clothing choices, but in the end all clothing is costume, fantasy, an amalgation of disparate images and hard to interpret signs.E W Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17436967141352564181noreply@blogger.com