The fabulous most nifty thrifty Sharon Rose tagged me on the bookworm award! Rules: Pass it on to five other bloggers, and tell them to open the nearest book to page 46. Write out the fifth sentence on that page, and also the next two to five sentences. Now bad luck for you all my nearest book to hand was Fashion Classics: From Carlyle to Barthes by Michael Carter. As you might realise this is not about garments by designers but serious analysis of clothing and fashion.
"As Veblen comments, 'at probably no other point is the sense of shabbiness so keenly felt as it is when we fall short of the standard set by social usage in this matter of dress'. Because dress is a universal public phenomenon, it enables a set of rich competitive strategies to be engaged in simultaneously. This means that, within one's own class, status can be asserted in relation to that of one's peers in a game of individual competition. At the same time, the superiority of one class over another can be evidenced by the greater quantity and quality of clothing resources the 'Leisure Class' can mobilize against those of its 'inferiors'. Veblen argues that only a small part of clothing is to do with protection and bodily comfort...'it is by no means an uncommon occurrence, in an inclement climate for people to go ill clad in order to appear well dressed'."
Now the five bloggers to be tagged are
La Belette Rouge
Wee Birdy
K-Line
Dressed & Pressed
Goddamit I'm Mad!
Hi there-loved reading that extract. I would say that nowadays you can't tell from peoples clothes their class (if they feel they have one!) I think style and fashion now, transcends these boundaries, people are mixing designer, high street and vintage, even those with money to spend.
ReplyDeleteI am thrilled to receive this smart and well dressed award. Thank you, dear you! And, thanks for sharing a little of the interesting text with us.
ReplyDeleteClothing as a competitive sport. Yeah, that makes a whole lot of sense. It is interesting how the luxe class of clothing often takes inspiration from street fashion that is at the bottom of the fashion hierarchy and appropriates it and makes it out of reach of those who inspired the trend.
Very interesting!!
ReplyDeleteIt's part of social analyse which is in my field, so...
xoxo
I love that passage. Gonna have to mull it over for some time before I can say anything more articulate ... but it got my brain going in the best possible way.
ReplyDeleteWoohoo! I lurve being tagged. Thank you. Will get this done tomorrow. And what an interesting and apt passage. 'Fraid mine may turn out to be rather different as I currently have three books on the go, none even remotely fashion related. Hey ho...
ReplyDeleteOh this one is so fun. Thank you very much Kate! I'm going to do a post on tags soon and I can't wait to add this one in!
ReplyDeleteMake do, can you type out some more of that book?! Is this your thesis area for your studies? If it is I hope you are going to publish for us all to read.
ReplyDeleteThis is fun! I love these kinds of tags.
ReplyDeletethese are all great blogs you nomiated!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the coolest tags I've seen! I might play along too!
ReplyDeletex Grayburn
Blimey you are a knowledge monkey!
ReplyDeleteHa great idea! I do love a good book!
ReplyDeleteTake care!
M.
Why thank you for the tag. I'm currently lying in bed with the laptop in the middle of the night so I'll have to do my book thing tomorrow. (Dammit can't sleep, but hurrah for internet.)
ReplyDeleteRefresh my memory... was Barthes all about the gaze? Or...?
xx