1920's Clothing

     The 1920's fashion was much different from that of previous decades. The cultural change after World War I was apparent in the clothing apparel. It represented more closely to artistic taste, by incorporating elegant designs, delicate fabrics, and a variety of colors for women, and a more baggy, slim and simple style for men. This reflected the sense of the party lifestyle, in which music, theatre, and exciting times were a staple for daily life. Women experienced a period called "the roaring twenties", in which the American population, tired from war, wore new and colorful fabrics accompanied with elegant jewelry, hats, and shoes to represent the joy they felt for the ending of the war. Men's fashion changed drastically. The once "sharp", tight suits were transformed for the young men to become slim and more casual, with unpadded jackets over the trousers, lighter and brighter fabrics then ever before, and an overall more baggy and relaxed look. Women's dresses were brighter and shorter than ever before, giving designers the leisure to experiment with different fabrics and colors. Shoes and stockings also played a larger role in clothing, which is also the cause of corsets becoming smaller, and the bra being introduced. Flappers, as these women were called, wore short dresses with a loose silhouette. Seams also rose to just below the knee, and the knee could be seen while dancing. The women also wore pantsuits, canes, and hats, whose style was named after the novel La Garconne by Victor Margueritte. This look was accompanied by the "bob" haircut, reintroduced by the actress Louise Books. Men took their influence from sports. "Plus" pants, taken from famous golf stars, were categorized by how far the pants fell below the knee before becoming tight around the leg area. The pants were topped with a colorful Fair Isle sweater (sweaters that originated in Scotland that had different colors and patterns.) Men also wore white trousers and V-neck sweaters around town, modeled after tennis players.
     The clothing makes a powerful mark in the first half of The Great Gatsby, which also takes place in the 1920s. The elegance and luxurious aspect is described in almost every chapter, with it being a significant sign for money. At Gatsby's party, the women are wearing elegant dresses accompanied with expensive jewelry, while the men are wearing posh clothing as well. The choice of clothing ties into the characters' desire to have exciting times by partying with alcohol and music.

Pope Resigns

     The article, "Who Will Be Next Pope After Pope Benedict XVI's Resignation?" was written by Cavan Sieczkowski in The Huffington Post on February 11, 2013. Pope Benedict XVI of the Catholic Church plans to resign from the papal office on February 28, 2013. This marks the first resignation of a pope in the Catholic Church in almost 600 years, with the last pope being Pope Gregory XII in 1415. Benedict was elected in April 2005, and announced Monday, February 11, that he would no longer lead the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. Traditionally, a Pope's reign ends with his death, and a mourning period continues. However, being that the situation is different, the College of Cardinals will meet to elect the next pope sometime in March. There are 118 electors eligible to vote for the successor as of January 2013, with Italy having the most electors, twenty eight, and the United States having eleven. A conclave, a meeting of the cardinals to elect the next pope, could occur early as mid-March. The conclave must begin fifteen to twenty days after the Pope's resignation, with the eligible cardinals, who are all under the age of eighty, casting their votes in secret at the Sistine Chapel. Two votes are held in the morning, and two in the afternoon, until a new Pope is chosen. The ballots are burned after each round, with black smoke signifying that there has been no decision, and white smoke signifying a new Pope has been chosen. Three Vatican experts told USA Today that the top five cardinal contenders include: Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, Archbishop of Genoa; Cardinal Marc Ouellet, former Archbishop of Quebec; Cardinal Angelo Scola, Archbishop of Milan; Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the Pontifical Council for Culture; and Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, head of the Vatican's office for Eastern Churches.However, cardinals from Latin America are also in the running, because "The universal Church teaches that Christianity isn't centered on Europe." Also, two cardinals from Africa are each front-runners, which could possibly make them the first black Popes.