Additional Garlean Fashion Inspiration

[Absimiliard]

I mean, you're pretty spot on with the Eorzean writing vs Garlean writing. Personally, I think it's pretty messed up. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. The fact the narrative just conveniently directs itself away from the messed up stuff Eorzea is still happily indulging in sends a message too, and that message isn't great.

I'd also tend to agree with the themes employed with Garlemald. It's obvious they were written to evoke certain imagery and historical events, but the game also goes out of its way to differentiate the Garleans from those things as well, by dedicating small but none the less significant portions of any part of the narrative involving dealing with them to showing some good parts of their society. For every oppressive or racist overseer, there would always be another that gave everyone the same fair and equitable treatment. I believe the purpose of these details was to avoid the Garleans being seen in the same light as a certain demographic from WW2 that liked to keep their knees locked while marching in formation.

The Garlean Empire is dead. All that's left to pick up the pieces are the same sad, desperate people the regime once kept in check with a thorough regiment of gaslighting, propaganda, and threats. As the narrative surrounding them changes, I believe people's views on what the Garlean style of dress stands for (and indeed, the Garleans themselves) should change. We've been shown clearly now how the majority of the (surviving) population wasn't onboard with what their government got up to anyway. Now they've little choice but to form a new government.