Society is constructed in such a way that some people become inferior to other people because of how society treats certain individuals. Fashion has become a catalyst that leaves a gap between the lower class and the upper class; this brings out the aspect of social structure as it ranks categories of people in a hierarchy,( Macious & Plummer, 2008).Bourdieu’s concepts of field, habitus, social capital and cultural capital gives an illustration of the elite and the lower class in terms of their fashion taste. This essay consists of three parts; the first part will look at the London Fashion Week applying Bourdieu’s concepts, the second part will describe the difference sorts of capital required for elite women to join the ‘secret club’ of Haute Couture and it will determine whether the garments worn are used as conspicuous consumption or as cultural capital, and finally this essay will examine if clothes are still a mark of distinction or has it lost its social meaning.
According to Macionis & Plummer, 2008:264 they define field as a “relatively autonomous space in which social relationships get organised. These relations are often economic, social, cultural and symbolic”, while habitus is defined as “our learned social habits which lead people to behave in certain ways”. Social capital is being a member and being involved in the social networks; this is evident when such people who have good connections and networking. Unlike cultural capital which refers to people with wield power and status because of their educational credentials. In the London Fashion week Bourdieu’s concept apply as the elite people recognise each other and ignore those who pretend to be rich (Entwistle & Rocamora,2006). In order for one to be recognised on...
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...uires one to be presentable in terms of fashion, as other people may discriminate you when you wear certain clothes which do not match their class. However, usually people of the upper class associate with the people of the upper class therefore Bourdieu’s theory is useful in today’s fashion.
In conclusion history in terms of fashion changed in accordance to social changes and industrial revolutions across the globe (Macious & Plummer, 2008) thus people are obsessed with fashion as fashion puts one in a certain class which one tends to like depending on one’s field, habitus, social, cultural, symbolic, economic, and cultural capital.
Bibliography
Cline,E .Overdressed http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wqkg06fV8q8 Entwistle,J &Rocamora A.2006. London College of Fashion
Macions, J.J &Plummer K.2008.Sociology: A Global Introduction. Prentice Hall: Pearson
The Trickle-down theory, a well-known theory in fashion industry, has significant meaning in 19th to 20th century Europe. The American economist and sociologist, Veblen, published The theory of the Leisure Class by 1899, in which he discussed the split between the leisure class and the industrial class in the US critically. He concluded that leisure class treats dress as a sign of their status and possessions, furthermore, ‘Dress must not only be conspicuously expensive and inconvenient; it must at the same time be up to date’(Veblen 1994), by saying that, he refers to upper class was tend to create new fashion trend which was the top of the trickle-down theory. In the 20th century, Simmel, the German sociologist and philosopher, developed this theory further from a more sympathetic perspective. He drew much attention to sameness and difference amongst both classes in his book Fashion (Simmel 1973). The upper class gets self-satisfied and the proof of its priority by distinguishing itself from others, and working class follows the fashion trend which led by upper class in order to feel like he or she is ‘belonging to’ higher class. These opinions which were discussed by Veblen and Simmel were coined by a journalist in the mid-20th century, as ‘Trickle- down Theory’. During mid-18th to early 20th century, the trickle-down theory described the process of how fashion flows, and explains that fashion is a cultural and sociological phenomenon which includes the discourse of identity and uniformity, agency and structuralism. This phenomenon was not limited by geography, at the same period, in the other side of the world, similar situation happened in China which is a typical East Asian country....
In John Wilmot’s, The Imperfect Enjoyment, the second Earl of Rochester, was born in 1647 to a noble family in England. He was said to be “one of the most famous lyric poets of Charles II’s court” (Orton). His noble stature later declined in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, due to, the obscene nature of his work. Rochester’s poem ranges from tender love verses to savage pornographic obscenities. Due to the harshness of this poem, it pushes the reader to another level and pushes the limits of poetry, in regards to mode and genre. In this wistfully strange poem, The Imperfect Enjoyment, the tone takes a rapid shift. At the beginning, the poet uses a tenderly erotic tone, which soon becomes intensely anti-erotic. From this tone, we experience excessive bragging to a sense of self dislike expressed through vulgarity. From the first impression of the poem the reader might think they are reading a sweet love story, but with further reading they soon will discover the complete opposite.
Shenkman, M. (2011). Bourdieu’s Theory and the Hipster in Society . Available: https://www.academia.edu/2007795/Bourdieus_Theory_and_the_Hipster_in_Society. Last accessed 12 April 2014.
Fashion has been around ever since ancient times, since the time of the Romans, it survived the world wars and is yet today a business with rapid changes. Fashion started off as an art form, a way for the rich to show their social status with unique and innovative designs that only they could afford. It was a way to separate the social classes of the society. In this paper I will include the creators of haute couture, and how the following designers developed couture, as well as leading names in today’s ready-to-wear industry. The list is long, but I chose to focus on the three most important designers in the modern fashion industry.
Bourdieu’s theory of distinction, judgement, and taste are rooted in education and then secondly, familial economic class. Through exposure and experiences we develop culture capital, which is all about being in the know. The more exposure an individual has, the more they know about the world and therefore, the more culture capital they consume. As a result of having culture capital one has the ability to decipher different symbolic codes because they are aware of more context. A hipster has a very specific culture capital that diverges from the mainstream and is ever evolving because they constantly have to be in the know and consume the latest trends before it becomes popular. Then only people with certain cultural
Georg Simmel explores the impact societal differentiation played on the 20th century, in the article Fashion, published in 1957 in The American Journal of Sociology, Volume LXII, Number 6. In this text he defines his theory stating “The elite initiate a fashion and, when the mass imitates it in an effort to obliterate the external distinction of class, abandons it for a newer mode- a process that quickens with the increase of wealth” (Fashion, p.541). Fashion connects those of a higher social class and segregates them from others. Simmel believes that fashion evolves from class differentiation, as members of the elite class seek to set themselves apart from other classes, and in turn a revolving cycle begins (Blumer, p.277). Members from other lower classes copy the elite’s fashion and with this the elite must change...
Fashion plays an important role in the lives of billions all over the world; people, as part of a status craving society, turn to “fashion capitals” of the world for ways in which to dress and carry themselves. New York, Milan, and Paris are leaders among this fierce industry that the world lusts after. Fashion can speak volumes about ones personality, or also about the condition the world is in at the time. In France, fashion changed rapidly and feverously as the times changed.
Moreover, each society has conventional rules that determine how its members should behave. Bourdieu’s theory claims that we carry history in us that determines which choices and perceptions we hold. We are ever in continual process of making history, but the conditions are beyond our control. The choices that we make are directly influence by our position in the social field.
Therefore, in an attempt to both show the gravitas of fashion’s impact and justify its mirroring of times and therefore society, a walkthrough of fashion throughout history and its adaptation is exceedingly appropriate. To begin with, Britain’s Industrial Revolution in the 1850s to 1900s came with the introduction of sewing machines and chemical dyes. However, this movement of clothe manufacturing rendered its availability strictly to the opulent. This is a direct relation to the economical situation of the time, showing that people’s expenses were not directed towards the most up to date fashion i.e. luxury products but rather necessities indicating a slowly developing economy. As we move from the 1900s to the mid 1920s, the inception of the First World War influenced the need for more ‘practical’ garments. To illustrate, one of the greatest designers of the century Paul Poiret, designed his garments in a style known as the Directoire. His dresses were simple straight tube sheaths defining simplicity and exemplifying both the political and economic situation of the times justifying the necessity for a free moving design in clothing. Why adopt the notion of simplicity and free moving garments? Women had to leave their traditional domestic roles and become part of the working class or work force and adopt and replace many roles that were normally given to men. Furthermore, the Great Depression in the 1930s comes to play its own role in fashion history further pushing the necessity for a fashion to be translated to accustom a busier lifestyle. This created an economic gap between the rich and the poor. Therefore, fashion in the 1940s in the substantial sense portrayed the necessity for work and socioeconomic background and furthermore encased the economic situation where, as previous times in the 1900s, high-end fashion was restricted to the rich. Following a chronological timeline comes the
The act of consumption has been the primary means through which individuals in society participate and transform culture. Culture is not something already made which we consume; culture is what society creates through practices of everyday life and consumption involves the making of culture. When attempting to understand certain acts of consumption it is necessary to observe the relations involved in production and consumption. Through technological innovation, the fashion industry has been expanded to play a prominent role in consumers’ purchasing decisions and styles are becoming less difficult to obtain. With the expansion of department stores and shopping being viewed as a leisurely activity, this has continued to transform the act of fashion consumerism. The functional interests feature a rational attachment to clothing items. Symbolic benefits involve status and prestige to fulfill the achievement for positive self-esteem. Further benefits include a provided experience for the individual consumer and the created use of imagery and desire used to enrich one’s life.
middle of paper ... ... It also analyzed the influences of modern dresses. As Palmer and Clark (2005) mentioned earlier, both decades are the classic era in fashion history.
Fashion is a style, which changes along with time. Fashion is mainly valued by females. Girls are always on the run to the mall to buy new stuff, which suits the new fashion. Whenever, something new comes to the mall, which is related to the fashion, girls will certainly crave this item. Fashion has changed as time passes but the girls will always crave clothing that is related to the current fashion. For example, in this collage a person shows that females like fancy shoes and heels. However, males are not addicted to fashion. Males are never interested in going to mall; they feel that this is boring. Males are more interested in formal clothing such as suits rather than buying fashionable clothing. For example, in this collage a person put a picture of a suit, which is not part of the newer fashion. Males understand that clothing is just a materialistic joy. This knowledge has helped boys stay away fro...
To begin with, I shall look at what fashion is; it is a currently popular style or practice involving clothing, footwear or accessories. It mostly refers to the current trends in looks and dressing style of a person (Cumming 234). In most cases, fashion is confusedly related to costumes; when a person talks of fashion they are seen to mean fashion in terms of textile. Fashion is seen to originate from the Western world and it is copied by other places. In this paper, we shall look at how fashion affects lifestyles and the group of people who are affected most. The paper further investigates how media is used to transmit fashion from one region to the other. Although it has been seen to affect people’s lives many people have different perspectives on fashion and dressing.
Fashion takes on many different facets and concerns many subsets— a model sashaying down the runway in a gown encrusted in real gems, Lady Gaga’s infamous dress made of cuts of raw beef, a teenage girl obsessing over the season’s latest styles— it is all an expression of our minds and who we are or want to be, made tangible. It is a medium just like any other, for while artists wield brushes and paints, designers use thread and cloth to illustrate their vision. The artistry is none more so apparent than in the exclusive world of haute couture, a world of extravagance that caters to aesthetics, producing one-of-a-kind wearable masterpieces that are made to be admired rather than worn. It is without doubt, high fashion and its design is an art.
One pays a large amount of money to buy clothes which sometimes does not suit her/him. It is claimed that clothes and accessories that are in trend are generally the most costly. Not to mention the fact that they go out of fashion very quickly. Furthermore, the current vogue for stylish objects has brought social discrimination, especially among the young generation. It is unfair to the poor, who cannot afford the latest products, being discriminated on the grounds of class or money.