So there's this "discussion" going on...

[bovil]

...on this list I joined mostly to get access to the files section. Yes, gurdymonkey, that one.

It's a costume-related list, so it only took moments for Godwin's law to kick in and "authenticity nazis" and "costume nazis" to come up, and (not surprisingly) offend a bunch of folks because of the Nazi reference.

Mind you, I'm a big fan of Donna Barr's humorous and satirical Desert Peach stories. I'm totally with Mel Brooks in that ridicule is the best offense against real fascists and folks that think fascism is cool; they just can't take it. Even Hogan's Heroes with its hokey sit-com formula (pretty inappropriate in relation to the real horror of the Third Reich) has some merit in making laughing-stocks of the Nazis.

Back to the offensensitivity, though. You don't diminish the power of an image and a movement by restricting its name to hushed discussions that practically revere its horror. You also don't make any point well by engaging in hyperbole that equates emo personal drama with the worst horror of the 20th century.

The funny thing is, in the greater context, I do have a few historical costume pet peeves.

I hate bad footwear. Yeah, I wore bad footwear for quite a while, but I got over it. Tennish shoes? Trainers? Gack. Shoes are hard to make, but it's possible to get decent shoes without paying too much. They don't even have to be the right shoes, they just have to be something that doesn't stick out like a sore toe. Dreamshoes and faire boots may not be "right" but they blend better into the illusion. Modern zori (men's zori, at least) and geta may not be period, but they don't destroy the illusion (women's modern zori are a bit precious and over the top).

I hate missing headgear. Hats are an essential piece of clothing for many periods and cultures. Part of it comes from working faire. When I started, I could almost always identify other performers even if I didn't know them; they were the ones wearing hats. Nobody else bothered. Faire patrons who come in costume seem to have noticed this, and it's now common to see costumed patrons who have hats. The modern aversion to hats destroys the illusion for me.

Mind you, I'm not going to go running up to someone saying "these shoes suck."

Comments

[gurdymonkey.livejournal.com]

For the record, the use of that term pisses me off because it's usually thrown around by someone who's there for the beer and is feeling all guilty and paranoid and defensive because he/she knows her kit is half-assed but can't be bothered to do anything about it. I've been on the receiving end of more rudeness from judgemental idiots of this ilk who decide to make snap judgements based solely on my appearance. You know, just like the people they're afraid are going to ruin THEIR good time. (Armpit Gusset Woman is only one.)'

For another, this occurred on a list that is generally the most civilized one I participate in. My initial reaction was "Who let these barbarians in here?"

So, what are you making your eboshi out of?

[bovil.livejournal.com]

Your response was probably the most measured. I'm keeping my mouth shut on this topic on list. No dead family, but a few friends, some only a few years older than my parents, with tattoos.

I haven't got enough brain cells for eboshi yet. I expect I'll make a half-assed attempt so I get done on time and then make better attempts as soon as I catch my breath.

[yourbob.livejournal.com]

I love authenticity mavens (the term I was brought up with and strongly prefer).

They always make me laugh when they can't explain their machine woven, machine sewn 11th century tunic, or whatever.

[ladykalessia.livejournal.com]

Perfect fodder for costume_snark.

I agree, there are some very obvious details that people tend to skip, just because in this modern day and age we skip them. If you can wear trainers to the office, why can't you wear them on the battlefield? Sigh.

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

Oboy, shoes. I don't know if you've ever seen Lisa in her full Sailor Jupiter costume, but the shoes are part of what makes the costume work -- but they are immensely painful to wear, so she can only stand about a half-hour or so at a time in them. But they're accurate. She even worried over whether she had the lacing pattern right or whether there were three or four criss-crosses in the lacing. (As it happens, the answer the question is "yes," depending on the source material; the show's animation isn't consistent.)

I reckon you can understand her annoyance when, in the only costume contest she ever entered at a convention, she was passed over for someone who had a flashier presentation but less accuracy, particularly in shoes. In fact, I don't know if I've ever seen another Sailor Jupiter get the shoes right, probably because the shoes are so deadly if done right.

(In case anyone wonders -- it's not the heels in Jupiter's kicky boots, so much as it it the narrow, pointy toes. Not good for people with wide feet, not at all.)

These shoes rock

[gurdymonkey.livejournal.com]

You've got to see these:
http://www.trocadero.com/dragondance/items/474826/item474826store.html
And how to walk in 'em: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=IcbsVoyDb8U

(Fortunately for me, they're a couple hundred years out of my period....)

Re: These shoes rock

[bovil.livejournal.com]

Holy mother of god if I was going to do onnagata I would so be doing my vaccuming in those shoes for a month.

Of course I'd be the nihonjin RuPaul, towering over the pretty girls...

[mwillmoth.livejournal.com]

Don't know if you know, but hats fell out of favor in the early '60s when then President John Kennedy failed to wear a hat.

Of course, baseball games have the 7th inning stretch because of then President Taft standing up at one game he was attending many years ago and a new tradition emerged.

<== Mike ==>

[bovil.livejournal.com]

The Kennedy-Hat connection has been somewhat debunked; he was a contributor to making the phenomenon ubiquitous, but the fashion of eschewing hats had started years before.

[mwillmoth.livejournal.com]

Darn. And here I thought I had gotten a brim shot...

Thanks for the correction :-)

<== Mike ==>