Monday, September 28, 2009

Examiner Article: London Mantyhose Has Britons All a-Twitter

Men's tights contribute to a masculine-looking outfitFollowing the news from Britain last week of a major London retailer introducing a line of men's hosiery--dubbed Mantihose by its maker, Unconditional--there has been a flood of media attention in the U.K. Much of it has taken a negative tone, with headlines blaring sentiments such as, "Men's Tights Are An Abomination" in the Daily Telegraph. It's unfortunate that the British press can't simply report on developments without trying to hard to shape public perceptions along the way. Toward that end, I published an article on The Examiner that will, hopefully, lend some balance to the vigorous debate that has erupted since last Thursday...

I'll leave Nylon Gene readers to read the full article themselves. However, I can muse here on the blog about the possible intentions of the media who are reporting on this across the Atlantic. It surely seems they have an interest in squashing the men's tights trend, as I've tried to point out in my article. The question arises as to, 'why?'

It's one thing to not be a fan of legwear, be you male or female. There are many women who hate wearing pantyhose, and if they do wear them it's only when absolutely necessary. Yet, there are at least as many who love to wear a quality pair of hose and appreciate the feel of them, as well as the practical benefits. Likewise, there's a good portion of American men who will never don a pair of tights, regardless of how many legitimate benefits can be shown. But, again, there is also a sizeable (and growing) segment who have discovered these benefits and have become diehard fans. If you're one of the former group, it shouldn't matter to you how many men might take up the tights trend. So why must so many in the press unfairly slant the playing field against men's legwear?

As I pointed out in the article, the choice to use pictures from the e-MANcipate site hints at their motives, and it's reinforced by dressing a reporter in shirt & tie, with leggings and a mini-kilt below the waist. What's up with that? We certainly support Chan Kraemer's work at e-MANcipate, but we also readily acknowledge that they are out there, 'on the edge' and not the sort of imagery that's destined to convert the average man-on-the-street to a favorable disposition without a good deal of time to become acccustomed to it. The news reports never even state whether these leggings are in fact the product being sold at Selfridge's in London, so we're left to wonder if they just pulled this outfit together from leftovers from the wardrobe department? Those in the know, such as myself, are certainly aware that the e-MANcipate photos have no relation whatsoever with the new Unconditional line--nor does the mini-kilt.

Taken together, these paint a picture of British manhood that is not very secure with itself. If this were not so, why would it seem so imperative to take down this new line of clothing, no matter what misleading images need be used? Men who are confident in their masculinity don't feel it necessary to hunt down and eliminate those that they deem don't illustrate their definition of traditional manhood. In fact, they are willing to wear new things without running about and getting 'permission' from others beforehand.

As we're constantly illustrating here on The Nylon Gene, men's legwear (sheer or otherwise) is a completely masculine garment if worn in conjunction with otherwise male attire. It's high time certain members of the press attempt to provide a more balanced perspective than they've done thus far. Until that time, it will be left to myself and those like me to continue to beat the drum for the thousands and thousands of men in all walks of life who simply want to take better care of their legs and don't want to be associated with 'prancing about' and so forth.

8 comments:

  1. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2138050/posts

    ReplyDelete
  2. Uh Oh!!

    Some gerbe products made in china ??

    http://naturalteck.en.alibaba.com/product/251931958-209368605/Pantyhose_for_Men.html

    http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/232430706/MEN_SHEER_SOCK.html

    http://www.comfilon.com/cataloggerbe.asp

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your commentary is very balanced on this, unlike some who think a brave new tights world is on the horizon.

    "...these paint a picture of British manhood that is not very secure with itself."

    I know what you mean with reference to the mocking attitude often displayed. I am not sure this is due to insecurity as much as embarrassment. Many men are just plain embarrassed at the thought of wearing, as are many women. See the number of times both sexes worry about 'what other people would think' in the comments in the newspaper articles. Similarly, reporters are scared to be seen taking this seriously, so they have to joke about it or show pictures of men in tights that are far removed from the reality - and might even make Robin Hood blush!

    The other factor is that feminism has in fact 'masculinised' women in many ways. I think there is a real fear that tights on men will feminise them, which is something in reality most women don't want. Hence the resistance from both sexes. I'm not sure you can easily dismiss this as not having some validity with some wearers.

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  4. You raise some good points, Denis. I think this could be incorporated into a follow-up commentary article I'm thinking of writing.

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  5. Hi Steve A569 How many left

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  6. A little more than a dozen of Black, Tan and Beige (all in Size Tall)

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  7. digg.com - What sort of man wears pantyhose?

    "A giant tool" according to some digg users.

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  8. Maybe,the headlines should have been
    "Bare Legs are an Abomination".
    I've read bits of the article.
    Some people and reporters sure have lead some
    sheltered lives.ie: Cut off from the world.Or
    "Fashion nazis".
    Steve,you have a good week.
    Richard

    ReplyDelete

 
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