Thursday, September 27, 2007

Habilatory Diversions

It's most likely just an example of my ignorance, but it seems to me that the word sartorial has had quite a renaissance in the last few years. I see it in print everywhere I look lately, and I honestly don't recall ever having been aware of it prior to the last three to five years:

The same narrow sartorial parameters hold in American politics. Recently, when Hillary Clinton traded her conservative shirt for a (semi) revealing top, she was widely denounced as a cleavage-bearing hussy. (New York Times, 9/16/2007)

City puts sartorial splendor on display: 2nd Fashion Focus expands to 12 days.
(Chicago Tribune, 8/30/2006)

"Arenas Takes Sartorial Stand Against NBA's 'Short-Shorts'"
(Washington Post, 5/9/2005)
In truth, the word is probably enjoying the same level of use as it always has, since it was relatively easy to find the following quote from 1975 in an article about Tom Waits:

His sartorial style is strictly Salvation Army secondhands, and from the sound of his voice his taste in spirits runs to Drano straight--no chaser. (Chicago Tribune, 12/19/1975)
In any case, every time I read the word, it just occurs to me that it feels new to me somehow.

On a side note, I found this little list of adjectives to be something I want to tuck away for future reference...

1 comment:

Salty Miss Jill said...

'Sartorial' is the new 'Ironical', methinks.

Thanks for the link...now I know what I'll be doing for the rest of the day. :)

xoSMJ