Cultural Modesty
Modesty
The concept of modesty dates back to the early Victorian times when women would wear dresses that started with covering the neck, extending all the way down to the ground. The arms would also be covered with long sleeves. But as the fashion world has grown and changed modesty is not as important as it used to be to everyone. Believing that the body is a temple and respecting it by dressing modestly is still relevant and important to some. People of the Islamic, Mormon, Orthodox Jewish and Amish religions show modesty in their everyday life by the choice in clothing.
When looking up the word modesty on Dictonary.com, the definition came up with simple and easy to understand meaning stating, “The state or quality of being modest, reserve or propriety in speech, dress or behavior and lack of pretentiousness; simplicity.” While the definition may be easy to understand and comprehend, the concept of being modest is often over looked.
Different religions have different ways of covering the body and showing modesty. The most basic concept is not to show a lot of skin. And while it varies where to show the skin, some key areas are common, one being the midriff. This area should be covered on both men and women. Another area that skin should not be shown is the shoulders, this area has different occasions and variations of how to be modest. To the religious people who have strong beliefs about modesty, it is important to wear the right clothes, show respect to the body and others around and follow the guidance of religious leaders.
Islamic women are often very noticeable. With long loose fitting outfits, covering the whole body, along with a head scarf to hide the hair. The certain standards of dress has been set for the Islamic people by Shar’iah, defining that men must cover the middle part of the body, from the navel to the knee. For the women, as seen in Figure 1, they are to cover every part of the body
The concept of modesty dates back to the early Victorian times when women would wear dresses that started with covering the neck, extending all the way down to the ground. The arms would also be covered with long sleeves. But as the fashion world has grown and changed modesty is not as important as it used to be to everyone. Believing that the body is a temple and respecting it by dressing modestly is still relevant and important to some. People of the Islamic, Mormon, Orthodox Jewish and Amish religions show modesty in their everyday life by the choice in clothing.
When looking up the word modesty on Dictonary.com, the definition came up with simple and easy to understand meaning stating, “The state or quality of being modest, reserve or propriety in speech, dress or behavior and lack of pretentiousness; simplicity.” While the definition may be easy to understand and comprehend, the concept of being modest is often over looked.
Different religions have different ways of covering the body and showing modesty. The most basic concept is not to show a lot of skin. And while it varies where to show the skin, some key areas are common, one being the midriff. This area should be covered on both men and women. Another area that skin should not be shown is the shoulders, this area has different occasions and variations of how to be modest. To the religious people who have strong beliefs about modesty, it is important to wear the right clothes, show respect to the body and others around and follow the guidance of religious leaders.
Islamic women are often very noticeable. With long loose fitting outfits, covering the whole body, along with a head scarf to hide the hair. The certain standards of dress has been set for the Islamic people by Shar’iah, defining that men must cover the middle part of the body, from the navel to the knee. For the women, as seen in Figure 1, they are to cover every part of the body