When taking my cousin and his friend's picture I truly noticed just how much society / the media influences young kids today. Each one having a dark t- shirt with a popular brand boldly displayed upon their chest. Coincidently, DC and Hurley (a "skater" type brand) and Nike (a sports brand) are the only two brands that were worn between the 5 boys. Even the poses that the boys strike are that of "men". They stand slouched over, arms crossed, hands in their pockets, and even one boy poses with a somewhat "tough guy" look, holding up a peace sign and sporting a harsh face. Society urges boys to have the jock image from the youngest of ages. Young boys are typically encouraged to watch and play sports such as football, basketball and baseball from the time they can walk. Automatically the clothes worn by each boy associates them with some kind of sport or physical activity. Some of the boys may not even play sports, but by simply wearing these articles of clothing they can appear as though they do. I'd like to see these boys in a couple years; I would assume that they are the future typical high school jocks. Or is that just the image that society has taught them to appear like?
6 comments:
These boys represent how much marketing affects children’s everyday lives. The companies that make the clothes they're wearing appeal to different images that the kids associate themselves with. DC and Hurley target the "extreme sports" crowd while Nike has always aimed for athletes. While these clothes provide no more added benefits than a plain tee shirt, the images they portray allow children to openly identify with whatever group they feel they belong. This clothing that clearly labels our youth allows them to be placed into stereotypes in which they will have a hard time breaking from because of the constant reminder of the image society associates with these brands. The boys in the skater clothes look more laid back and carefree, whereas the boys wearing athletic attire appear more aggressive in their stances. These behaviors will most likely follow them throughout their childhood and continue into adulthood, affecting their personal development as well as their interactions with others.
It's funny how the other boys are smiling and only one is making the 'tough guy' look. When boys are younger they tend to smile more. I've noticed that as my brother ages (he's 17 now) his school pictures get more and more serious. Obviously I don't know the boys in the pictue, but I would guess that the one who isn't smiling is older in age (if only by a little). And the shirt brands really do pop out- I never noticed that before.
This picture does a good job showing how socialized the boys are by them wearing the popular shirts and posing they way they did. Most pictures that I see of people twice their age look exactly the same as that and it just goes to show that the boys are already trying to act like 'men' by posing in tough ways and wearing the clothes that they are.
When I look at this picture I see young boys posing with their friends with these name brand shirts. You do wonder if they play sports or because of our society they just enjoy wearing name brand shirts to look like jocks.
I like how you point out that boys clothing is more sports- related. When I think back to highschool, the boys with more fashion sense, those wore tighter "non athletic" looking clothes were ridculed by other boys and often times called "fags" or other names that questioned their sexuality. Why does another man automatically think that one of their peers is gay is they have an interest in clothes?
I think this picture represents what many young teen boys go through in the process of adolescence. By looking like "tough guys" they know that their status of being "cool" will go up. by wearing brand name clothes like jocks do they will feel like society wants them to. Society puts alot of pressure on young kids to feel like they have to live up to the status of famous people like professional athletes.
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