Once upon a time, we pitied the kids who had to wear glasses. But recently, even people with 20/20 vision have found an excuse to wear frames, and a contemporary third-grader who has just been prescribed glasses will likely be sincerely perplexed if asked whether she fears that 1960s taunt “four-eyes.”
But that’s never been a problem with shades, which are, as far as we can tell, perpetually cool. Which raises the fascinating question, why? Perhaps because in a culture of individuals, they both accentuate and conceal identity; perhaps because in a culture of absurd self-display and transparency, they can hide expression and emotion. (Who can blame the bereaved survivors of passengers on the disappeared Air France flight, arriving at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport and having to make their way past the cruelly compulsory gauntlet of photographers, for wearing them?) Perhaps because, like all fashion, they allow us to say something about ourselves without having to say anything at all.
As the earth spins its way toward the solstice, what do sunglasses make of the world?
The sun is bright.
—PatThat sometimes it’s good to hide in plain sight; that people value the freedom from intimacy and scrutiny that comes from having our eyes hidden.
—Nate BarksdaleIts sometimes nice to not make eye contact (living in a culture where everyone does, i.e. not New York) and it is nice not to squint.
—Megan WhiteThat the sun can be as damaging to your eyes as it is to your skin.
—Matt“That the sun is bright.”
—Theresa GroshThat our eyes need some amount of insulation.
—Charles ChurchillMore please, this information helped me consider a few more things, keep up the good work.
—watches sunglassesOur eyes matter more than vanity.
—Joe CoxWe should be able to see without having to squint our eyes a lot.
—PatThat we should be able to carry our privacy with us, at least in a small way. That glamor (with its mysterious seeing-and-hiding) is, for better and worse, available to all. That “cool” environments will be sufficiently well-lit to allow us our shades even after the sun’s long gone, with minimal stumbling.
—Nate BarksdaleIf it’s in style, one should wear it even if it doesn’t look good on you?
How about round sunglasses coming into style, “Why Round Sunglasses? A Style Investigation,” http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/11/fashion/11SUNGLASSES.html
—Tom GroshThe world should be seen without squinting.
—Deets JohnsonProtection should be stylish.
—Joe CoxLooking around on sunny days without having to tire our eyes from squinting.
—PatWell, the above-mentioned privacy/glamour, for one thing. I remember a friend who grew up in Chicago talking about the importance of having good shades to maintain one’s “city face”—a useful skill in the sometimes intimidating crowds of downtown.
For people who are blind, they make it possible to gracefully deal with others’ discomfort with eyes that look without looking, and to signal one’s blindness, providing social cues that help might be in order in certain situations (though, surprisingly to the sighted, not in many others).
—Nate Barksdale“Vision of the sun much darker” ...
“A statement of fashion” ...
—HayleyI don’t like how they make the world seem darker. I like bright things :-)
—Elleni agree with Ellen.
—JodiFalse comfort that eyes are safe from UV radiation when they may be fact more vulnerable due to a wider opening.
—Peter VWe can look cool even when we have dark circles under our eyes.
—Deets JohnsonMost conventional glasses are out. (exception of polarized lenses and expensive prescription glasses.
—Joe CoxGoing without them. I’ll drive 10 minutes back to my house just to get them. And if I loose a pair, I’m off to buy a new pair right away.
—PatEye contact. (For better and for worse, depending on context and culture. I saw a documentary where a Native American community worker talked about how in mainstream culture, maintaining eye contact was considered a sign of respect, of being engaged in the conversation, but in her own culture it was just the opposite: holding someone’s gaze for more than a second or two was considered a mark of gross disrespect.)
—Nate BarksdaleTo see the real light, the way things really are. ...
—Ellen & Hayleygood answer again Hayley and Ellen… i agree
i also don’t like not being able to look at people’s eyes because they’re hidden behind shades but most of all, i hate mirrored sunglasses. i really do not like having to look at myself in the mirror when having a conversation with someone.
—JodiIntimacy
—Charles ChurchillVulnerability. We put a layer of protection between ourselves and the world when we are kitted up for battle. This is actually the evolution of the salute… you raise your hand to demonstrate that you have no weapon, and you raise your visor to show your face. A greeting was (and is) necessarily a reciprocal invitation to vulnerability; sunglasses as social armor says something about our willingness to be vulnerable.
—DaveMost conventional glasses are out. (exception of polarized lenses and expensive prescription glasses.
—Joe CoxSunglass cases and cleaners. Those things that go behind your head to keep you from loosing your sunglasses.
—PatReally, the wikipedia entry for sunglasses is even more valuable than most. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunglasses
Loads of fascinating stories from round the world, coupled with ever-loveable attempts at defining something that is common knowledge. For instance, it states that the first modern sunglasses as such (as opposed to 17th century medicinal tinted glasses, which—I must add—the great Sioux chief Sitting Bull wore sometimes in his later life as a sometime-celebrity) were produced in 1929, with the first Ray-Ban aviator-style glasses coming along just 7 years later.
—Nate BarksdaleSunglasses with hidden rear-view mirrors so no one can sneak up on you.
—Peter VStereotypes about people who wear sunglasses all the times.
Enmity with light.
Cool iconography.
—Charles ChurchillI cool 80s song by Corey Hart.
—Joe Cox