RSSStilts, Indeed
Okay, so I'm only mildly ashamed to admit that I have a thing for women in high heels. You know, those strappy, open-toed, stiletto-type things that make her butt stick out? You know, that symbol of modern femininity that says, "look how damn sexy I am"?
Well, the Times ran an article today entitled Stilt Walking Into Spring, featuring some of the most outrageous-looking shoes I've ever seen. And I looked at them, thinking, "What woman would wear these? They're just plain ugly."
So I read the article, wanting to see it from the woman's perspective. And I was a little surprised to learn that the focus seemed to be on sheer height. "The desire to be taller, amazonian, seems to fit with a society that likes things pumped up — lips and S.U.V.'s, for example — but that is only a conjecture," explains the columnist, Cathy Horyn. She gives the examples of Ms. Chetrit, who was willing to pay $795 on a pair of shoes to be taller than her kids and Ms. Reisman, who donned 5-inch Dolce & Gabbana platforms so she could say, "Now I'm tall."
Speaking as a man who doesn't think tall is necessarily sexy, I think they're missing the point. Because peppered throughout the piece is a hint of the real reason behind it all:
It's not about being tall, ladies. It's a marker, it's a sign, like plumage on a bird in mating season. A woman who wears particular clothes is signaling to potential mates: "I am a woman who wants to look good," or "I am able to conform to these social expectations and thus make a suitable partner." What other possible explanation could there be to strap yourself into a pair of ugly stilts in the name of being beautiful?In other circumstances, like walking on the wall-to-wall at the office or at a party where I mostly stood, the Lanvins were actually comfortable, and I enjoyed my new height and the giddy looks of fright on the men in the office.
In reality you don't wear a pair of shoes like that if you carry a book bag and share trains with commuters. You invite looks of pity. Shoes like that serve a different purpose: seduction, fun, making men bark.
