if all of societies reactions were okay

[Absaroka]

Okay here is another question, based on the poll about how often we would dress if we didn't have to worry about rejection.

Assume (a wild backside dream here) that all reactions would be okay, just ranging from neutral to positive. Based on how others react, how would we dress and how often. For example do we want part of the time to be percieved as this cute piece of eye candy with drinks and compliments showered on us but we still have to fend the guys off? Do we want to be percieved as the nurturing Earth mother and if so how do we present? Do we want to be (gasp) treated with the respect and deference accorded granny in traditional culture? Do we want to be the tough guy that folks get out of the way off? The nerd that everyone turns to for help when they are stuck. What are other personas we would present if we weren't afraid to?

I'm too embarrassed to answer my own question here. Help me out

Andrea

[Beauty]

Hi Andrea,

Because of a man's testosteroned body, I feel they'd not have any restraint in wearing short skirts into their 80s or whenever the testosterone starts to wane. So my shallow opinion would be that this kind of thing would suck.

If everyone who dressed that way 24/7 were like Elizabeth then I'd be ok though. Unfortunately there's only one Elizabeth and there's not many wonderful gals like her.

Those who would dress part time like they do now like a lot of the girls here who go out, like for example Lorna would dress for the occasion.

So I feel that, for the most part, men would dress more often and dress more like sluts or fetishists than women.

Gracie

[DonnaT]

So I feel that, for the most part, men would dress more often and dress more like sluts or fetishists than women.

I have to disagree with Beauty.

I feel that many would forgo the wigs and makeup, and just go out in what is appropriate and comfortable, like women do.

Of course there are going to be a few that appear in public as indicated by Beauty, and if you go to a TG gathering, you can see some of them. But they are very few.

[Virginia]

If I understand the proposition: If society were of the mindset that anyone could wear anything (within reason) and no one cared, then individuality would rear its head. I am not as well versed in this as my sisters, Sally, CJ, Danielle and Elizabeth, but are we not all of a different mindset?
Our likes, dislikes, loves, hates, desires, goals, dreams, etc. Some of us want only to be liked, others to just fit in, others must have the best of everything, the newest, fastest car, belong to all the right clubs, go to the right church, attend the right parties, etc., etc., If the "dress-code" were suddenly lifted, I think you would see a flurry of change - we may actually see a lot of those closet CD'ers who use to live in fear (the judges, lawyers, policemen, firemen, politicans, doctors) all appear and perhaps we would find that the estimated number of "us" (what 10% +/-) may actully be a lot greater. Then the "newness" would wear off and each person would find their own comfort level and we would be back to our lock-step day-to-day existence, although perhaps with brighter colors on.
Virginia

[Loretta Ann]

There would perhaps be more of us dressing in public, but beyond that I don't think much would change from the way we presently dress. I don't think society controls that.

[Ralitsa]

Here is a post I dug up out of the cellar that I think is interesting. We are now 17 years on from when this question was first asked and the case can be made that now dress codes are a thing of the past, and this hypothetical is now a reality.

So I'm going to put in my answer. I feel like I could now wear anything and nobody (unless I were in Texas) would say anything about it. That being the case, I would LOVE to be the cute piece of eye candy that guys hit on and bought drinks for (and yes I know how horribly sexist that is, I'm guilty) but I'm a few decades past where that could be a possibility. So I'll go with the respectable earth mother which is a look I think I can actually pull off and not be ridiculous.

Thinking about this, I see it's only partly what public reaction is and mostly it's about my own self-judgement of whether I meet my own approval. Even though it's hurtful when some stranger makes fun of me, it's just really depressing when I look in the mirror and say to myself "you look fat and old in that dress, and it's not the fault of the dress".