Comments on: Carnival of Modesty - December 14, 2007

By: MInTheGap

MInTheGap — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 13:32:19 +0000

Tom, Modesty is certainly more than just how you dress– it definitely is attached with how you carry yourself and how you act. In some previous posts on modesty, we discussed the link between humility and modesty– as the two go hand in hand.

DSG, as for the picture with the post, one could say that it is flamboyant and that would draw attention to the person, but you could also say that any lady wearing a dress could draw attention to themselves because it’s different. There’s a line in their somewhere between being modest with what you show AND being modest in presentation. We don’t want all our ladies looking dowdy either!

Lisanne, did you ever see the results of the modesty survey that the guys over at the Rebelution did? One of things that they had there was on taking off a sweatshirt, and some guys agreed that taking one off in public would be a stumbling block. However, they did say that there would be an appropriate way to do it (hands inside first, then over your head).

That part of the discussion, though, centers on how much responsibility the woman has to help guard a man’s mind and how much is the man’s responsibility.

By: Lisanne Vasquez

Lisanne Vasquez — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 17:44:59 +0000

I believe that modesty, as stated in the comment above, is not just dressing “differently” than today’s normal society. Modesty is character trait, not simply the clothes you wear. I could be wearing a t-shirt with a sweatshirt, get warm and remove my sweatshirt in public and still be “covered up”. However, if I were modest, I would not remove that sweatshirt in public. I would go to the restroom remove the sweatshirt in private and then return wearing my t-shirt. I believe that would qualify as a part of being modest. I also believe that the rules for modesty are gender specific. There is a different standard for men than women. Does anyone have any examples either way??

By: DSG

DSG — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 19:46:37 +0000

Would you argue that the young lady in the photograph is being modest, or perhaps at least dressed modestly?
I would wish not to impute motives from a mere photograph, so I will only address the latter.
I would argue that while not immodest by today’s standards, the outfit is not modest.
1) The dress is relatively ostentatious, if we focus on the humility aspect of modesty.
2) The dress is rather flattering of and forcing focus upon a certain portion of the female anatomy.
I think too often we equate modesty, as well as many worthwhile virtues, merely with that which was done in the past. The dress in the photo seems to be thought of as modest because it is more traditional and not as bad as what people wear today.
I think it would be interesting and beneficial to all if we focused on the actual idea of modesty and not merely aiming for some differentiation from today’s society. Just being different than today is not, I believe, the goal behind modesty. I look forward to a guide to how to be truly modest, rather than just different.

By: Tom

Tom — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 04:43:33 +0000

Sometimes modesty feels like a curse but when you meet someone like you an enormous amount of information is transferred. It’s really odd, and is so honest. Hard work, patience, modesty, and some luck do seem to be what makes thing work for the people I care about.