【推荐2】As the weather shifts, many teenagers search for and purchase fashionable seasonal clothes, often from fast fashion sites. The potential effects of fast fashion are well-known, with the fashion supply chain ranking as the third-largest polluter in the world according to a 2021 report by the World Economic Forum.

Companies like Shein are accused of art theft and unfair treatment of employees. The modern fashion industry heavily relies on labor and treat workers not that well in underdeveloped countries due to globalization. The issue of ethical (合乎伦理的) consumption is complex, particularly among students who put affordability and accessibility in the first place over longevity when choosing clothes. Many think sustainable ethical brands are classist (有阶级偏见的) and that these companies often cater only to wealthy individuals, ignoring many others.

Even if teens don’t throw away their clothes as soon as trends end, there is still a sense of guilt associated with unintentionally supporting the growth of these companies for something as unimportant as fashion or beauty. However, those who buy from fast fashion brands out of necessity are not the ones causing the problem to continue. The concept of sustainability in fashion has been distorted (曲解) by those who use it to make the non-wealthy feel guilty for not participating in ethical consumption. Even purchasing from moral brands becomes unsustainable and fuels consumerism when overdone.

According to Forbes, teenagers are major consumers of TikTok, finding excitement in the platform’s ever-changing trends. Microtrends and fast-paced fashion cycles have transformed clothing into a single-use product. In the past, teens relied on celebrities and magazines for fashion inspiration; but with the rise of influencers and apps like TikTok, access to these previously exclusive fashion cycles has expanded. This accessibility and affordability require transformative change and accountability from appropriate institutions.

A re-examination of business and culture is necessary, and we should encourage small steps toward more intentional, reasonable shopping instead of punishing and policing those who shop for fast fashion out of necessity.

【推荐3】“How do they walk in these things?” complains Jack Lemmon, walking with difficulty in his heels, newly dressed as his another identity Josephine, in the film “Some Like It Hot”.

High heels were, in fact, originally designed for men — and had an extremely practical purpose. Soldiers on horseback wore them in 10th-century Persia, according to Elizabeth Semmel hack of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto. The heel helped keep them stable as they stood up in their stirrups ( 马镫) and took aim at enemies with bows and arrows (cowboy boots still use heels in this way). Over time, heels appeared on the shoes of male nobles across Europe. Yet from the mid-17th century, heels became associated with supposedly “feminine” qualities, and so became women’s wear. Until the mid-20th century heels were heavy, heavy things. After the Second World War, techniques and materials used in aircraft engineering were applied to shoes, creating the stiletto ( 细高跟). The high, narrow heel requires a thin metal pole, strong enough to bear the wearer’s weight yet flexible enough to allow the shoe to move.

Shoemakers have searched actively for a right heel. They aim to reduce the angle created by a high heel, which forces the few square centimeteres of the ball of your foot to bear the entire weight of your body. Joan Oloff, a podiatrist-turned-shoe-designer, makes footwear lined with memory foam ( 泡沫) to absorb the shock of each painful step. The bottom part of the shoe is crafted to support the arch of the foot and distribute the wearer’s weight more equally. Antonia Saint Dunbar, an entrepreneur, makes shoes with a heel cup and strips inside to stop the foot slipping around and getting blisters ( 水泡). And growing numbers of companies make shoes with adjustable heels: two inches for the boardroom, four for the nightclub, none for home.

However, the wisest are stepping down altogether: in 2016, for the first time, more British women bought trainers than heels.