[OB] Adolin's Fashion Sense: Just for fun or something more?

[Dreamstorm]

@maxal and I started having a discussion on Adolin's fashion sense and what it could mean prior to the ASK thread closure, so I wanted to bring it into it's own thread in case anyone else wanted to join the discussion.  Below is the most pertinent history on the topic:

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@maxal post:

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Adolin didn't need to "play" the part of a lighteyes; he is one.  If anything, he was "playing" a slightly lower dahn lighteyes - General Kahl's son - so it would make more sense had he been in uniform or something more practical.  (Kahl, being a Kholin solder, I am assuming dressed in uniform due to the codes like all the rest of Dalinar's men.)  It remains to be seen whether Adolin's love of fashion is just an amusing quirk, or if there's something deeper regarding frivolity, outward appearance, or some other connection, but even stalwart Adolin fans have noted his obsession with fashion while in Kholinar (and Shadesmar) seems at odds with what was happening.

I don't like Adolin playing "dressing up" and I still think those scenes exist mostly because Brandon thought they were comical and he wanted to add some humor to otherwise grim part of the narrative, but I recently read someone (not myself) argue Adolin focusing so much on fashion, when everything else is going wrong, is mostly him holding on to familiar things. He goes in line with his second viewpoint chapter where the smell of the stables was something familiar he could hung up onto despite being very distressed over Sureblood.

Wearing nice clothes, sewing himself clothes, these may have just been comical scenes written to relief the tension, but these may have also been subtle ways Adolin's character has used to regain a semblance of normality in a world he does not recognize. The party with the fancy suit, I think it was more Adolin remembering his teenage years, then anything else. When Adolin mentions of how someone's clothes speaks of its personality, Shallan asks him what happened to his fancy suit. Adolin responds he didn't fit him anymore... I always thought this was an odd response, but with the above explanation, it makes more sense.

Adolin no longer is the fop he once was: he tried once last time and it wasn't him anymore. I think this other person may have put the finger onto something.

 

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@Dreamstorm post:

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Wearing nice clothes, sewing himself clothes, these may have just been comical scenes written to relief the tension, but these may have also been subtle ways Adolin's character has used to regain a semblance of normality in a world he does not recognize. The party with the fancy suit, I think it was more Adolin remembering his teenage years, then anything else. When Adolin mentions of how someone's clothes speaks of its personality, Shallan asks him what happened to his fancy suit. Adolin responds he didn't fit him anymore... I always thought this was an odd response, but with the above explanation, it makes more sense.

Adolin no longer is the fop he once was: he tried once last time and it wasn't him anymore. I think this other person may have put the finger onto something.

 

I can understand the normalcy point, though I don't know if I agree with it (normal would have been a uniform for Adolin, as that is what he's been wearing for the past six years.  Fancy clothes would be a novelty at this point.)  Even if we take the normalcy point, that is along the same lines as Adolin's focus was elsewhere besides on the task at hand, on making himself comfortable, on feeling normal.  A perfectly natural feeling, but also different than the other three who were pushing their personal boundaries in order to accomplish the task (Kal being a lighteyes, Shallan risking her life to feed beggars (a misguided attempt, but that was her intent), Elhokar actually being a leader (lol at that last one)).

I like your point about that quote on "fit" a lot more.  It's something I had forgotten about.  I'll quote it below for reference:

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"Clothing says a lot about people." (Adolin)

"Yeah?  What happened to the fancy suit you got in Kholinar?" (Shallan)

He looked down - which stopped the massaging of shoulders for an unacceptable count of three, so she growled at him.

"It didn't fit me anymore," he said, resuming the massage.  OB, Ch. 97, Riino

 

Putting aside the fact this is a really stupid question by Shallan (they had been oathgate-napped from a battle.  Why would Adolin wear a party suit to a battle?  That's like me being kidnapped from the gym and someone asking why I was in gym clothes instead of a party dress), as I actually think the fact the question was so moronic means it was definitely inserted so that Adolin could say his line using an alternate meaning of "fit."  He's obviously not talking about physical fit (he didn't change size in the past day), but instead figurative fit.  This aligns with Adolin's reflection on "feeling taller" when he puts back on the uniform prior to the battle.

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When he walked down the steps to the main room a short time later, he was wearing his Kholin uniform.  His skin missed the softer silk and better form of the tailored outfit, but he found he walked taller in this one.  Despite the fact that a part of him, deep down, worried he didn't deserve to bear his father's glyphs any longer.  OB, Ch. 83, Crimson to Break

This shows great personal growth for Adolin IMO.  The way I read it is that Adolin was able to indulge himself, for the first time in years, in the frivolous vanity of fancy clothes.  He did so (much like a college student gorges themselves on bad food when they move out of their parent's house), and he realized he actually felt better, stronger in the uniform, and that frivolity didn't fit him anymore.  Good, subtle character growth, so excellent point!

Now, what is really interesting is that later on in Shadesmar (Ch. 101, Deadeye), there is an Adolin chapter which starts with Adolin sewing and having much thought over his Celebrant disguise clothes (and later critiquing everyone else's.)  This is also the chapter where Adolin has conversations with both Ico and Azure about his concern with being king now that Elhokar is dead.  I don't think this is a coincidence considering the above.  Adolin had previously decided he didn't need fashion, as the utilitarian uniform suited him and made him feel better, yet the next time we see him fussing over fashion, he has a conversation (with Azure) that becomes one of the turning points in his decision to refuse to be king.  So he's coming back to the frivolity of fashion at the same time he starts going down the path of abdicating his duty (or what his family would see as his duty), essentially turning away from the uniform and what it represents.  I think this ties into the last part of the first book quote above - about not being worthy to wear the uniform due to his killing Sadeas.  That is a huge factor in why he abdicates being king, and in fact his justification to his father, so it's as though Adolin is deciding he doesn't deserve to wear the uniform anymore, so in fact the frivolous clothes actually fit him better in the end due to his perceived lack of worthiness.

 

 

[Calderis he/him]

It also may be a need for control. You see people do this with haircuts, and with other ways in which they are perceived. An exemplary case of this is Jasnah. She has no real desire for male attention but always controls the way she is perceived through her appearance. 

Adolin's need to maintain appearances could be clinging to the familiar, but it could also be desperately grasping at a sense of control in a situation where he feels largely powerless. 

[thegatorgirl00 she/her]

I definitely think there is more to Adolin's fashion sense. Adolin is by nature a very expressive person. Vorin culture doesn't really allow many ways for Kent to express themselves. Fashion is one of the only ways for young men to express who they are. That's why it's always been so important to Adolin. 

The quote with Shallan, I think, shows that. She doesn't get how important a form of expression fashion is to him and other young Vorin men. And why should she? She's always had her journal and her drawings for that. Clothing is just another tool of many at her disposal. 

I think these scenes are Adolin trying to determine his identity in this new, changing world. Fashion, as his main source of expression, plays a major role in that self-discovery. 

[TequilaJack]

Adolin is like David Beckham if he was Prince of England. A metrosexual. 

6 hours ago, Calderis said:

Adolin's need to maintain appearances could be clinging to the familiar, but it could also be desperately grasping at a sense of control in a situation where he feels largely powerless. 

I felt it was otherwise. He continues to be himself and doesn't descend into Chaos. When people see a true leader they look for stability, continuity and assurance. I believe Adolin provides all. 

Despite dressing like a Fop, his bravery was never under question. His duelling skills are just next to Blackthorn and he has never shirked from facing a dangerous.

He'd definitely be a vote winner in modern politics.

[Calderis he/him]

15 minutes ago, TequilaJack said:

Adolin is like David Beckham if he was Prince of England. A metrosexual. 

I felt it was otherwise. He continues to be himself and doesn't descend into Chaos. When people see a true leader they look for stability, continuity and assurance. I believe Adolin provides all. 

Despite dressing like a Fop, his bravery was never under question. His duelling skills are just next to Blackthorn and he has never shirked from facing a dangerous.

He'd definitely be a vote winner in modern politics.

As far as politics go, I fully agree. But that's because Adolin is exceptionally good at putting his best face forward and hiding his doubts. He puts forward an unconcerned and cocky facade specifically to hide his own doubts, which are apparent within his narratives. 

He's constantly questioning if he's good enough. If he can live up to the responsibilities that Dalinar, and his own station, have placed upon him. 

He doesn't let anyone truly get close to him, because actual intimacy would mean letting people inside that facade. 

It's why I see his fashion as an extension of his public face. It's something he's always been able use to control the way he's seen. A way to impose control on the social chaos around him. 

It doesn't surprise me that he'd reach back towards that in situations that there's really nothing that he can do. Control the small things that he can, and stay alert for the next fight, where he has applicable skills.