64.

ing completely above the sexual level) Since she REPRESENTS all these good things, and since many of the more thoughtful and sensitive males would like to think of themselves as being good, virtuous, fine, and as de- sirable to other people as he feels women are, it leads to the desire to become part of that which is so good and so beautiful and to partake of these satisfactions.

How can this be accomplished? Symbolically it can be done by "becoming" a girl on the outside. In our cul- ture, indeed in all cultures, one cannot, as Lawrance Langner pointed out in "The Importance of Wearing Clothes" (which I highly recommend) discuss mankind or his clothes separately. "Man and His Clothes" is a unit not really separable. (Langnor explains this very clearly but I can't afford the space here). In this case mankind re- fers to the human race in general, but even more than it is true of the male historically it is true of the female in our times and culture. One must speak of "Woman and Her Clothes" because all of them from shoes to hats, and from lingerie to fur coat are a part and essence of our conception of the female. Therefore the clothing represents GIRLNESS more than anything else and consequently in trying to acquire some of the qualities felt to be present in girls, the adoption of her clothes by a male is symbolically the same as "being" her and therefore he has acquired these qualities himself.

Since another feminine characteristic is vanity the male in feminine clothes will spend much time before a mirror as a woman would. At the same time seeing himself-herself is a far more satisfying assurance that he has acquired femininity than merely being aware of the clothes he has on or feeling them with his hands. So here is where the Narcissism that psychiatrists are at pains to point to comes from. Beauty is good--and de- sireable. Everyone like to have beautiful and attractive things around him, so that to be beautiful and attractive is to be desireable, wanted, appreciated and sought after by others. Since beauty is a feminine monopoly the adopt- ing of those forms of raiment, adornment and mannerisms