The Father – An Ideal Teacher

Long before his Ivy League days, JFK learned
to dress from his father.

It is well-established that children are ideally raised by their biological parents as the distinct, yet complementary strengths of a father and mother are best suited to apply unique and positive influences upon a youth in a stable framework throughout his development.  Beyond the more serious disciplinarian measures that prove necessary, parents often impart a variety of beneficial skills, expertise, and wisdom to their children.  A parent can offer insight through the use of accumulated experience that no youth could reasonably possess themselves at such an early age.  And while both parents contribute to the rearing of a child, there are certain subjects that are best communicated between father and son, and mother and daughter.  We can observe a prime example of this sort of relationship as a father teaches his son gentlemanly virtues.

A gentleman is composed of many well-cultivated habits, not the least of which is a commensurate cultivation of stylish apparel.  The father who has acquired the mark of a gentleman can teach his son from a young age how to dress well.  The instruction can manifest itself in any variety of ways, but given his position of authority, a son is likely to trust his father who is far advanced in wisdom and experience.  Through a lifetime of experience, a father has learned good rules of style to follow, and bad practices to avoid.  He will have witnessed changing fashion trends over several decades and can discern the enduring patterns from the whimsical.

Before a young boy is even conscious of deliberate style, a father can shape the habits and wardrobe of his son.  The father exercises the greatest influence over the formation of his son during the critical years leading up to adulthood.  Thus, he is the ideal teacher in the art of sartorial eloquence - a art that indeed communicates a powerful message of discipline, virtue, and tradition.