Like oat milk, the sock debate is dividing generations. “As a 45-year-old Gen Xer, I just can’t bring myself to do it. It feels wrong,” says influencer Alison Perry in an Instagram reel which has already garnered 62k likes. “I feel like everyone is missing the point,” says another user. “High socks when it’s cold, low socks when it’s warm. It’s not a generational thing, it’s a weather thing.”
Whether your socks mark you out as a product of your time is a matter of debate. So let’s debate it. If you recognise your own sock-tiquette in the examples below, you’re likely not alone…
Silent Generation (1928 – 1945)
Your average war baby may have been brought up in an era where children were seen and not heard (hence their name), but this taciturn trait flies out of the window when it comes to the provenance, merits and failings of their socks. Your average octo or nonagenarian falls into two categories: those who still revere the unimpeachable quality of M&S (although they’ll always tell you “it was better when it was St Michael”), and those who, usually thanks to their grandchildren, have discovered Primark.