Those who say that looks don’t matter are hypocrites. We are in a society that judges almost everything based on aesthetics.  When we first see an item we like, we are always almost attracted by the aesthetics. Whether we realize or not our first impression of someone or something is what’s on the surface and not what’s on the inside. We can’t tell a person’s personality by looking at them or well how well we may get along with them, so at times we may try to associate those with the way the person presents him or herself.

In Surface and Substance Postrel says that, “surface has a genuine value.” Indeed it does, it can put a label on the person you are or can be. There are so many different possibilities with looks that makes it the “very power of aesthetics,” and makes it hard for you to be truly right with your appearance. The style that you find to be accepting might seem vulgar to someone else.  For example, if your hair is tied up in a loose pony tail and you wear baggy clothing, it can imply that you’re a laid back person who goes with the flow. It can also imply that you were running late that day and just wore whatever you could find. Where you’re going that day can be affect that whole outfit too. If you were working in an office it would be inappropriate and you might look sloppy to your co-workers.

In the article Ralph Lauren: Still King Of Glamour, Postrel talks about the ad that was produced by the company and how it used photoshop to slim a model’s body so that her head was bigger than the rest of the body. What the company did was extremely wrong and by doing that it is sending a message to its consumers saying that it is not okay to be bigger than that model. The previous quote, “surface has a genuine value;” the company most likely believes that with a skinner model it can sell more clothing than with a fatter one. This shows how much our society is based upon looks.

I believe that it is okay for people to care about how they look like and that it is also okay for them to buy luxurious items. I disagree with Twitchell who says that only a superficial woman would be attracted by luxury and intelligent women wouldn’t. Not everyone buys pretty things because they are shallow or superficial; every now and then people just need something that will lift their moods. Substance is more important than surface, but it’s surface that affects your first impression to someone else.

Ralph Lauren: Still King Of Glamour

http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/22/ralph-lauren-photoshop-glamour-opinions-contributors-virginia-postrel.html