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This episodeās vocabulary
Fashionista (noun) ā a devoted follower of fashion.
To take an interest (phrase) ā to be concerned or curious about something.
Baggy (adj.) ā (of clothing) loose and hanging in folds.
To reassess (verb) ā consider or assess again, in the light of new or different factors.
Unconventional (adj.) ā not based on or conforming to what is generally done or believed.
Industrious (adj.) ādiligent and hard-working.
To stitch (verb) ā make, mend, or join (something) with stitches.
Neurotic (noun/adj.) ā someone who is always frightened or worried about things that you consider unimportant.
We have also added these words to a āQuizletā set for you to study and revise in your free time: bit.ly/quizlets03e26
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Questions and Answers
Maria: Are clothes and clothing fashions important to you?
Rory: Not really, Iām not much of a fashionista, but recently Iāve been looking at some cool stuff thatās key that keeps being advertised on Instagram, and Iāve been taking a bit more of an interest. But itās definitely not the most important thing for me. Maria: What different clothes do you wear for different situations?
Rory: Um. Well, I suppose Iāll dress formally for proper work occasions, and then informally whenever itāsā¦ you know, just, like, day to day work. Iām quite lucky in the sense that I donāt have to wear, like, a uniform or a suit and tie or anything like this for the kind of work that I do right now.
Maria: Do you wear different styles of clothes now compared to 10 years ago?
Rory: Oh, definitely, yeah. I used to wear clothes that were much baggier, for example. But now, I suppose theyāre a bit more close fitting, a bit better fitting in general, probably. Indeed, after some prompting from you Maria, I decided to reassess my wardrobe, so itās panned out quite well in that sense. So yeah, Iāve definitely changed my fashion tastes over the last 10 years, over the last decade, for sure.
Maria: Good for you, Rory. Iām proud of you. When I sawā¦
Rory: Youāre proud of me for doing exactly what you told me to do.
Maria: Exactly, yeah, because when I saw you for the first time, you were wearing some whatā¦ dirty, torn jeansā¦š¤
Rory: I was a bit of a mess.
Maria: You were! Were you in this Gothic stuff? Like into Goth thing?
Rory: I attempted to be a Goth for a day, but then I realized it would beā¦ the demands are a bit onerous, to be honest, especially in terms of the makeup. So, no.
Maria: Do you think the clothes we wear say something about who we are?
Rory: A wee bitā¦ I think Iāve noticed that if people dress more unconventionally than they tend to be a bit more free thinking and a bit more creative, whereas people that dress more formally tend to be a bit moreā¦ whatās the wordā¦ Theyāre a bit more organised and sort of industrious, work and task oriented. So, yeah, it says a little bit, but I donāt think itās the defining feature of people. Also like are people this way because of how they dress or do they dress because they have these kinds of personality traitsā¦ But itās definitelyā¦ Thereās some connection there for sure.
Maria: Do you often buy clothes?
Rory: Um, well, still not often enough. Usually I wear things until they fall apart and even then I can stitch them back together again in some cases. But Iām going to start trying to buy clothes more often just because Iām kind of getting into fashion. Not seriously, but there are some nice clothes out there that I think I would like to buy.
Maria: Rory, are clothes important to you?
Rory: Well, I suppose in the sense that they keep me warm and looking reasonable and then they express a bit of my personality ā yes. But I donāt think itās, like, the most important thing by any means. I think itās more important to have, like, a decent character, for example.
Maria: Do you have your favorite pair of jeans that you hang on to?
Rory: Yes, Iāve got two favorite pairs of jeans, actually. Theyāre sitting next to me.
Maria: Oh, all right š What kinds of clothes do you wear?
Rory: Um, I usually just wearā¦ Well, since weāre talking about jeans, I usually just wear jeans and long sleeved shirts, for example. Thatās what Iāll wear on a daily basis just because itās comfortable. And then if Iām going on a night out or something that I might wear a slightly nicer dress shirt, for example. But itās usually this combination of jeans and long sleeved shirts.
Maria: Would you ever spend much money on clothes?
Rory: Um, up until recently, I probably would have said no. But lately Iāve been spending more money on clothes just becauseā¦ I have it now. And I kind of like trying on different things now. Like I say, itās not the biggest thing in the world, but itās still quite cool to look good.
Maria: Yes. I agree. Do you think men and women have the same view of clothing?
Rory: No, not in the slightest. In the main, obviously, people are unique and different, but in the main, men tend to be more relaxed about what they wear, whereas womenā¦ Well, theyāve got a much greater range of options in terms of what they can wear, (women) tend to be more neurotic about getting the right combinations. Although it does pay off in the end because a lot of people are quite well dressed. Youāre well dressed, for example. But I think men and women, generally speaking, have very different attitudes about clothing. Which is ironic because some of the mainā¦ like, leading fashion designers, are men. But then they are outliers. So thatās probably not the same as the majority of people.
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