The Emperor's New Clothes — by Grace Christopolou

A vain emperor hired two weavers for a new suit. They said they could make a special fabric just in his honour. It would have been an amazing fabric: extremely light to touch, beautifully crafted and with the peculiarity of being totally invisible to everyone who was incompetent. The two waivers started working on it, and when the fabric was finally ready, they proudly showed it to the emperor. His heart skipped a beat when he realized he couldn't see anything in the wavers hands. Ashamed about his own thoughts and worried about his incompetence, he did what every coward would do. He faked enthusiasm. The two impostors couldn't be more happy about that. They said they would immediately start sewing the suit. The word spread among the emperor subjects about this magic fabric, and all the people couldn't wait to see the emperor in his new suit. The day of the parade before his subjects, wearing his new suit, the emperor was nervous. Would his subjects be more competent than him? When the crowd finally saw him, everyone started screaming and clapping hands. Within their own hearts, they were feeling the terrible consciousness of incompetence. Within their own hearts, they knew they had to fake enthusiasm. A child cried out: "He's naked!"

Hans Christian Andersen, who wrote this tale, wasn't sitting on the front rows during fashion weeks.

When the lights turn off, and the celebrities walk away, would you be able to scream out loud what you really think? Would you be able to accept your own thoughts? Fashion editors decide who's a genius. Buyers follow editors. Customers follow buyers. We all follow. Fashion is not about dresses. It's politics. Take a stand.

(gc)

Proposed by Dandyakuza on Monday 04 October 2010 at 02:03 PM

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