In Troy Patterson’s “Who Gets to Wear Shredded Jeans”, there’s a line that goes
“We put on jeans with ruined
threading in a self-adoring performance of annihilation.”
The point of Patterson’s article is to explain why we, the fashion market consumers, are so enthralled and will pay ridiculous sums for already ripped or worn jeans. He specifies that these jeans have become associated with the ideas of punk or grunge styles. This line here specifically is his summary of the reason that we likes these ideals; he’s explaining that us humans who are entertained with the idea that we may spread the image of being destructive or do such actions that would cause tears in jeans are the type to be so self-adoring that the concept of showing off our imagined ruggedness is very much appealing.
He speaks about how the idea behind these type of jeans may suggest a sense of “cool” to them. Of being rebellious and not caring what others may think; which is an entertaining idea, considering one is literally dressing themselves in a way to make others think that they do not care, when in fact, they care very much. Thus the concept of the ripped jeans is somewhat a paradox. However, the question I would like to ask is why are we so preoccupied with the idea of wanting to seem as though we do not care what others think. If one genuinely does not care, it is quite evident. Everything beyond that basic and pure not caring becomes a pathetic display for something that the attempted rhetoric is lost on.
