The difference between ladies and gentlemen

[Dr Fidelius]

Well. I shall continue to keep covered up until hairy. pale and flabby becomes the newest "look."

[Professor J. Cogsworthy]

I look good in a kilt, like many men. Does that help?


 (Is anything worn under the kilt? No ma'am it's all in perfect working order)

It is correct to wear shoes and socks under a kilt

[Capt. Dirigible]

I look good in a kilt, like many men. Does that help?


 (Is anything worn under the kilt? No ma'am it's all in perfect working order)

It is correct to wear shoes and socks under a kilt

Only if you've got 'a foot' under there!!

I think you mean 'with' a kilt rather than 'under' it.   

[bassspine]

I usually wear big clumpy boots and big porage socks on my lower extremities when I have a kilt about my midriff... 

[rovingjack]

you lot have given me horrible ideas about buying spare sets of shoes and socks for the express purpose of wearing one of each in addition to my usual shoes and socks. Rather like a cod peice but not always external, and what exactly does one need a treaded codpeice for anyway lol.

[kidkunjer]

very odd, I just finished writing this when i happened upon this thread... oh synchronicity:

But he did admit that what perhaps separated the two genders could be sight. He knew that it seemed more common at least if not natural for men to look and the women to be looked upon. But he knew what the gaze of men meant, what was behind it and couldn't understand a woman who would almost revel in it.
“Doesn’t it make you feel…” Victor struggled to find a correct word, “uncomfortable? All those men piercing you with their gaze?”
“Then you don't understand it at all,” she admonished, “it’s not the men who pierce us with their gaze, it's the women who penetrate the men with their image.”
Her choice of words and metaphoric language made Victor feel uncomfortable.

perhaps it's due to ... appetites; that men are apparently aroused by visual stimulation whereas women tend to require something more cerebral and/or emotional. that's the myth proliferated in modern sexual psychology anyway. therefore to attract a mate women must demonstrait their visual qualities whilst men must demonstrate their qualities visually, if you get my meaning. I wonder if homosexuality has a bearing on it...

interesting.

[Capt. Dirigible]

what exactly does one need a treaded codpeice for anyway

A better grip, of course!

[bassspine]

. I wonder if homosexuality has a bearing on it...

given that much of modern fashion is designed for women by gay men (who by definition don't find women attractive) I'd say it has a very strong influence on the matter.

[rovingjack]

. I wonder if homosexuality has a bearing on it...

given that much of modern fashion is designed for women by gay men (who by definition don't find women attractive) I'd say it has a very strong influence on the matter.

I think that's probably a misrepresentation. Most of the gay men I've ever known would never say they cannot find women attractive. In the same way that you might find a work of art or a physically fit and perfectly proportioned person to be attractive but not equate that to mating practices. You can make furniture and living quarters more attractive and appreciate their appeal visually. That doesn't make you a sexual deviant, who likes alone time with plush furniture.

[OswaldBastable]

Looking at high street fashion and what the kids get in the male lines, I see more revealing things such as the trousers below their arse (which I hate personal) and low neck tee shirts, vests and shorts to display tattoos. Steampunk is not neccessarily exempted from modern trends such as these we see today. It is/can be apart of it. Theres that bloke who goes around the UK whose a body builder who wears all that brass armour, a really outre steampunk outfit he usually sports at events and he very much wears this armour with nothing on underneath. Wish I knew his name to show a picture!

I think you might be refering to Steampunk Overlord http://steampunkoverlord.deviantart.com/art/Steampunk-overlord-mechanical-147527810

[bassspine]

. I wonder if homosexuality has a bearing on it...

given that much of modern fashion is designed for women by gay men (who by definition don't find women attractive) I'd say it has a very strong influence on the matter.

I think that's probably a misrepresentation. Most of the gay men I've ever known would never say they cannot find women attractive. In the same way that you might find a work of art or a physically fit and perfectly proportioned person to be attractive but not equate that to mating practices. You can make furniture and living quarters more attractive and appreciate their appeal visually. That doesn't make you a sexual deviant, who likes alone time with plush furniture.

it may be a gross over-simplification, but when most fashion models are 'encouraged' to look like underfed boys, I do wonder...

[frances]

Ah, Steampunk Overlord, delightful arrogance.

I wish I had the time to even try to compete with that sort of thing.  He does say that other people have helped him bring his OTT ideas to fruition.

There is a difference between him and his lady - for him every inch is decorated.  For her - she wears a simple white dress with, when it is cooler,  a simple white blouse underneath.  More comfortable no doubt.

[frances]

Unsubtle Pete said earlier that he was hoping for more men in tight trousers - or something like that.

To which I can only say here here - but only as long as they do not have the 'more mature' body shape. *giggle*

[KABAR2]

I think a some of it is not so much men not dressing to impress, just doing it differently. The world needs more men in tight trousers  

Be VERY careful of what you ask............ NOBODY wants to see a 450lb man in tight pants!

I wrote this while still on page one.....I just got to page two and see someone else was thinking along the same lines.....

[Mercury Wells]

If we're not careful, this might end up like the "Dandy Thread". 

[frances]

True!

But I have to say that if you go along to a Napoleonic Association event there are plenty of tight trousers, mostly encasing lovely tight derrières.  enchanting.

[Lady Evelyn Grey]

To add my two cents on a topic that has interested me for quite some time, the sexualization of Steampunk women has several factors:

1. The strong Victorian influence. While Victorian Society was sexually repressed, it did embrace the curved silhouette of the feminine body- using Queen Victoria as the ideal of the time rather than teenage boys like in the twenties. As others have already mentioned the current, high fashion models have figures nearly alien to the average woman. Yet, most modern trends reward the straight line rather than the curved . Not so Steampunk. Full skirts, bustles, and corsets worn on the outside all emphasize curves rather than hide them. Yet curves are also consider more sexual- either from biology or social influence. So the female steampunk silhouette is more sexual than the modern one.  In the Victorian Era, the sexuality was tempered at the time by strict social interactions, floor length skirts and high collars.

2. Sense of Independence and Freedom. In the Steampunk I've read- which is quite small considering- the social roles found in the Victorian Age and, to some extent, ours are non-existent. Women can be Captains of Areoships or mechanics in the ship's engines. And, from the pop culture I have seen, independent, powerful women tend to be sexual- or at least in touch with their sexual sides. Looking around attractive movie stars or other culture icons are always showing their legs, arms, shoulders, etc. Maybe not consciously to express their sexual independence and liberation, but certainly to show they are modern and 'fun.'

The combination of Victorian clothing with modern ideas of independence results in the sexualized Steampunk.

However, I don't think this is a bad thing. Because when I dress steampunk I have far more options than I do when limiting myself to the strictly Victorian or the strictly Modern.  Both short and long skirts are acceptable in Steampunk- both bare and covered shoulders. The versatility and freedom of dress (for women at least) really matches the openness of the culture.

/lecture

Well, this was a fun exercise to try and pin on paper some of the ideas that have been floating through my head. Does the logic make sense? I'm not a sociologist and my research is far from exhaustive, so if anyone has other examples or explanations for why, I would love to hear them.

[Dr. Wilson Montgomery]

I'm with Capt. Harlock — female bodies are just generally much prettier than male bodies.

Ahem... some of us Queer Gears beg to differ
I´d be all for more of the steamy (pun most certainly intended...) guys in big boots and tight breeches and a bit of sterotypically pin-up posing, just sayi´n...  We can always say it´s an effort to increase gender equality, right?

[kidkunjer]

I'm with Capt. Harlock — female bodies are just generally much prettier than male bodies.

Ahem... some of us Queer Gears beg to differ
I´d be all for more of the steamy (pun most certainly intended...) guys in big boots and tight breeches and a bit of sterotypically pin-up posing, just sayi´n...  We can always say it´s an effort to increase gender equality, right?

beauty is of course in the eye of the beholder...