Abercrombie and Fitch and the Moral Degradation of America

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Recommended: The inclusion of personal values in decision making

Abercrombie and Fitch and the Moral Degradation of America

This past month I made my last visit to the popular teenage/college student retail store Abercrombie and Fitch. Finishing up some back to school shopping, I was on a quest for jeans, and I knew the place to get them. My last two favorite pairs were from Abercrombie and Fitch, and I was planning on buying the same kind once again. Happy and relieved that I would not spend the afternoon ransacking the mall for one pair of jeans, I entered the store to the pulsating beat of techno dance music. In front of me was the teenage Mecca of what is truly hip -- the first thing I noticed were the life-size pictured that covered the walls -- half-clad muscular and glistening young men, frolicking around with pouty faced but beautiful young women who were wearing either size 2 short shorts with bikini tops or 3 layered sweaters. The tables were covered with overpriced shorts, shirts, and sweaters, strewn about by desperate customers searching for the perfect outfit. The sales people who roamed the floors were definitions of cool themselves -- ranging from age 16-22, they modeled their employee discounts in a haughty way which encouraged the customers to strive for their ultra-hip look. And strive the customers did. What was the most noticeable upon entering the store (besides the blaringly loud music which made me wonder if I was at a clothing store or a dance club) were the herds of desperate young men and women, who seemed to range from age 12-25, strutting around the store and searching for anything that had the name A&F on it. I can only imaging how many nights of baby-sitting it would take some of these eager teenagers to buy one sweater. The young custome...

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...r yourself and don't allow anyone else to decide for you.

Even more important than the clothes you wear is how you choose to live your life -- a choice that is entirely your own and no one else's. No store can choose a "lifestyle" for you, and no one should talk you into believing that drinking, having sex, or anything else can make your life better than it already is. In their desperate attempt to sell their products, Abercrombie and Fitch has forgotten the individuality of the word "lifestyle". While claming that underage drinking and just the right outfit will make your life better, they forget that it is impossible to ever change your individual persona, or who you truly are. No tomboy flares or martini shakers will change that. That's why I decided to stick with my old jeans -- they're comfortable, I like them, but most importantly, they're me.

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