Dress appropriately

Post 113 Clothes make the man

Mark Twain, my favourite novelist and short story author, was a humourist. He said, “Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.” Indeed how could they have gone out of their houses to influence the society without their clothes on? We can only find one in a short tale, The Emperor's New Clothes, written by Hans Christian Andersen, when a naïve child cried out, "But he isn't wearing anything at all!"

Clothes make the man does not hold water for the corrupt. They may look well-dressed, professional and capable, yet are unfit for their positions. The clothes they put on cannot cover their shame of greed, hypocrisy, and incompetency.

Among the ancient Greeks, they believed that 'The garment makes the man' or that 'The apparel makes the man'. Though Greece is a relatively small country in Europe, it was an ancient civilization famous for its many eminent philosophers, culture and costume.

As appearance counts in business and social activities, one should be appropriately dressed. This is to respect oneself and others.

11 October 2011