We now live in a society where the entrepreneur is celebrated more than the corporate CEO. The guys running startups, with ping-pong tables in the boardrooms and casual Friday, every day. That said, randomuser is right, wearing a suit for special events when you normally don't have to is fun. I had to wear a tuxedo earlier in the year and I'll be damned if I didn't feel like.... well, like randomuser said... James Bond. James Bond with his Hubski spy camIn western culture, a person in a suit is normally someone who is important because of their knowledge, power, wealth, ect. This is a stereotype that people have been exposed to from a young age.
Yes, and at a young age it is a slight of hand trick that may actually work on you. As you get older though, the effect certainly wears off. mk writes, Perhaps a more interesting question is not what a tie represents, but when and where is it expected, and when can you get away without it?
I think about this often. When I started my career in sales, I was mandated to wear a tie. This was selling at a company making commission only and my annual earnings were a fraction of what they are now. The higher that I moved up in the professional world, the higher my earnings potential rose, the less expected the tie became. There are only very rare meetings these days where I will wear a tie. VERY rare. The most I get dressed up these days is in a sports coat. 
I have often thought about how many ancillary, unneeded pieces of apparel that women are expected to wear and really, there aren't many for men.... except the neck tie.
It's also funny because I realized, when reading this that the only thing I have a lot of, attire-wise like women's and their "unneeded pieces of apparel," are ties. My dress attire is as follows:
1 x blazer
1 x tux
1 x dress shoes
1 x nice leather belt (brown/black reversible, it's awesome)
2 x pairs or dress shoes
~8 x ties in different colors/hilarious design obscurities.