文章来源：《经济学人》Sep 11th 2021 期 Business 栏目
The pandemic has refashioned corporate dress codes
疫情改变了公司的着装要求
Bartleby
巴托比
Suits v sweatpants
西装vs运动裤
IN AN INTERNAL memo to staff in 2016 JPMorgan Chase relaxed its dress code. The American bank’s 240,000 employees could hang up their suits and don business-casual attire—once reserved for casual Fridays—all working week. Some garments remained beyond the pale (T-shirts, flip-flops, tank tops, yoga pants). But many—polo shirts, skirts (of appropriate length), dress sandals—became fair game.
don 穿上
在2016年发给员工的一份内部通知中，摩根大通放宽了着装要求。这家美国银行的24万名员工可以在工作日挂起西装，穿上商务休闲装，以前只有星期五才穿便装。一些服装依然有些出格，如T恤、人字拖、背心、瑜伽裤。但是很多款式都成了合适的对象，如polo衫、(长度合适的)裙子、凉鞋。
JPMorgan was, sartorially speaking, ahead of its time among stuffy corporate giants (turtlenecks and hoodies have long been the fashion choice of Silicon Valley titans). Others followed suit, as it were. Men’s corporate uniform—and the female power suit designed to mirror it—increasingly came to be seen as a vestige of the male-dominated offices of yore and no longer fit for purpose in a world of greater (though still imperfect) workplace equality. As more and more people ran or cycled to work, they found that changing into a full suit was impractical, since jackets folded into rucksacks tend to lose their crispness.
stuffy 古板的
turtleneck 高圆翻领；高领套头衫
hoody/hoodie 兜帽上衣
vestige 残留部分；丝毫
rucksack 帆布背包
从着装上讲，摩根大通在古板的企业巨头中走在了时代的前面(高领毛衣和连帽衫一直是硅谷巨头的时尚选择)。可以说，其他人也纷纷效仿。男性的公司制服，以及为反映女性权利而设计的制服套装越来越被视为过去男性主导的办公室的“残迹”，不再适合在更大（尽管仍不完善）的平等的工作场所世界。随着越来越多的人跑步或骑自行车去上班，他们发现换上全套西装是不现实的，因为折叠在背包里的夹克往往会失去原有的挺括感。
These days ties are no longer de rigueur in client meetings even for pinstriped investment bankers at Goldman Sachs. Purveyors of formal wear have fallen on hard times. Last year Brooks Brothers, which had been sewing button-down shirts since 1818, filed for bankruptcy. Last month Marks & Spencer, a British retailer, announced it would no longer sell men’s suits in more than half of its bigger stores.
de rigueur 社交礼节上需要的
pinstripe 有细条纹的；细条纹；细条纹西装
button-down 领尖有纽扣的
如今，即便是高盛的“穿着细条纹西装的”投资银行家，在与客户会面时也不再戴领带。正装提供商陷入困境。去年，自1818年以来一直缝制纽扣领衬衫的Brooks Brothers申请破产。上个月，英国零售商Marks & Spencer宣布，其半数以上的大型门店将不再销售男士西装。
As the pandemic completely decoupled work and presence in the office, employees at many companies switched into something even less starchy. Unlike JPMorgan, however, most have not put any guidelines in place as to what is and isn’t appropriate. Although the Delta variant is forcing companies to delay a return to the office, that day will come. When workers are back at their desks, at least some of the time, new sartorial rules may be required.
sartorial 男装的; 缝纫的
随着疫情让工作和办公完全脱钩，许多公司的员工换了更不刻板的服装工作。不过与摩根大通不同的是，多数银行并没有就“什么是适当的，什么是不适当的”服装制定任何指导方针。虽然Delta的变种迫使公司推迟重返办公室的时间，但这一天终将到来。当员工们回到办公桌前时，至少在某些时候，可能需要制定新的着装规定。
Much has been written about what people wore on Zoom calls during lockdowns (and what they did not wear: some retailers report that tops significantly outsold trousers in the past year and a half). Fashion designers like Giles Deacon in Britain have launched “work from anywhere” fashion collections, aiming for slightly looser-cut clothing that nevertheless looks smart. Two Japanese companies, Aoki and Whatever Inc, created pyjama suits—a hybrid of a suit and soft, comfy loungewear—perfect for the video conference attended from home. Aoki uses the same fabric as pyjamas but with a suit-like cut. Whatever Inc’s WFH Jammies are “business on the top, loungewear on the bottom”.
comfy 舒服的
Jammies 睡衣
关于人们在封锁期间在Zoom电话上穿什么(以及他们不穿什么:一些零售商报告称，在过去一年半里，上衣的销量远远超过了裤子)，已经有很多文章。英国的Giles Deacon等时装设计师推出了“在任何地方办公”的时装系列，旨在推出剪裁稍宽松但看起来时髦的服装。两家日本公司，Aoki和Whatever公司，发明了睡衣套装（一种西服和柔软舒适的休闲服的混合），非常适合在家参加视频会议。Aoki 用的是和睡衣一样的布料，但是剪裁像西装。Whatever Inc的在家办公的睡衣“上面是职业装，下面是休闲装”。
That is not to say that business-casual Fridays have given way to athleisure work weeks. Indeed, some workplaces are already experiencing a backlash against informality. In 2017 Britain’s House of Commons decided that male MPs were no longer required to wear ties when attending debates; previously they could go tieless only on hot summer days. But at the beginning of September this year Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, announced that he expected all parliamentarians to smarten up. Jeans, chinos and sleeveless tops are out.
parliamentarian 议员
这并不是说商务休闲星期五已经让位于运动休闲工作周。事实上，一些工作场所已经遭遇了对非正式性的强烈反对。2017年，英国下议院决定，不再要求男性议员在参加辩论时打领带; 以前他们只能在炎热的夏天不系领带。但在今年九月初，议长Lindsay Hoyle爵士宣布，他希望所有议员都能打扮打扮。牛仔裤、斜纹布裤和无袖上衣都过时了。
Looked at in the aggregate, individuals’ clothes speak to more than just personal preferences. People’s sartorial choices add up to a zeitgeist. It is no accident that the cheerful glitz of the 1920s came right after the despondency of the first world war and the Spanish flu. Today’s tailoring brands hope that when the pandemic recedes at last male and female professionals will feel a renewed desire to dress up.
zeitgeist 时代精神
despondency 沮丧
glitz 浮华
从总体上看，个人的着装不仅仅关乎个人偏好。人们对服装的选择体现了一种时代精神。在第一次世界大战的萧条和西班牙流感爆发之后，20世纪20年代令人欢欣鼓舞的浮华景象接踵而至，这并非偶然。如今的裁缝品牌希望，当疫情最终消退时，男性和女性专业人士会重新产生打扮的欲望。
So does Bartleby. Like Sir Lindsay, she would recommend that employees maintain a degree of formal presentation. Yes, some people can pull off a dishevelled look—but not everyone. Dressing with taste and elegance does not have to involve designer clothes or expensive watches. It signals commitment and seriousness. A freshly laundered, crisp shirt announces to the world that you have made an effort; a tracksuit does not.
dishevelled 衣冠不整的；凌乱的
巴托比也是如此。与 Lindsay爵士一样，她会建议员工保持一定程度的正式外观。是的，有些人可以弄得衣冠不整的样子，但不是每个人都可以。有品味和优雅的着装并不一定要包括名牌服装或昂贵的手表。它标志着投入和认真。一件刚洗过的挺括的衬衫向世界宣告你已经努力过了;而运动服则不然。
And if going to the office is a ritual, styling an outfit can be a pleasure, not a chore. The way one dresses is part of his or her self-expression. It also separates the public and the private. Peeling off formal office clothes and slipping into something cosy marks a daily transition from work to non-work. That line was blurred during lockdowns and could do with some sharpening. A man in a suit and tie is a man loosening his tie at the end of the day.
peel off 脱衣服
如果去办公室是一种例行公事，那么设计服装就是一种乐趣，而不是一件苦差事。一个人的穿衣方式是他或她自我表达的一部分。它还将公共和私人分隔开来。脱下正式的办公室服装，换上舒适的衣服，标志着日常从工作到非工作的转变。这条界线在封锁期间被模糊了，需要修整一下。一个穿西装打领带的人就是一个在一天结束时松开领带的人。
