Why It Actually Matters Where Your Clothes Come From Analysis

This piece entitled “Why it Actually Matters Where Your Clothes Come From” is one published by a niche sustainable fashion and lifestyle online magazine called Who What Wear. It sets out to do just what the title promised by trying to educate readers about the importance of knowing the process by which their clothing is made and distributed. In order to achieve this task the author, Jessica Schiffer, interviewed Maxine Bédat, the co-founder of Zady, an increasingly popular sustainable fashion and lifestyle brand. Together they assessed the current state of fast fashion, the large and frantically growing market for clothing and accessory items, as well as the popular mega chains that fuel this system. The article as a whole sets out to inform …show more content…
Despite this, they missed the mark on creating freedom and safety in their article because they failed to consider the opposing argument. It was persuasive but it lacked some key elements that would have made it even more so.
Establishing Value by Using Quintilian’s Good Man Speaking Well This piece meets the value requirement of invitational rhetoric because it does not overtly try to persuade the audience, but rather inform and open up a conversation about fast fashion, where our clothes comes from, and how we as consumers can either foster or hinder this system. They are able to achieve this feat through an interview format, where the author asks Bédat leading questions and she gives her expert knowledge on the matter. Both rhetors, Schiffer and Bédat, are able to establish a closeness to the topic. They speak as a part of the population, as consumers who are a part of the system or at least affected by it. They personalize the topic by using the pronoun “we” to convey to the reader that they are on the same …show more content…
It fell short of freedom because the information provided was skewed to only talk about the numerous horrible impacts of fast fashion. It failed to take into account that while better for the environment and persons working in sweatshops, ethical and fair-trade clothing can be expensive and not everyone can afford it. In doing so, they unintentionally isolate an entire sub-portion of consumers who need to purchase clothes for whatever reason but do not have an extensive disposable income to do so. Despite the fact that the article has not directly said that we should stop shopping at mega chain stores because of their unethical tendencies, they do discreetly bring that message across. Ethically speaking, after reading the information given in this piece we might not want to continue participating in this system, but for those of us who are not as financially well off as the rest, this knowledge can come as a burden rather than a blessing. Some might actually rely on fast fashion because that is the only way that we can afford clothes even if we are just making occasional purchases. The rhetors were unable to establish safety because they could not provide a safe solution for their target audience. In theory, it looks great to suggest reputable, ethical, and fair-trade brands, but if those brands