Clothing has been apart of the world for over 170,000 years. Clothing can simply be garments worn to cover bodies, or it can have much more meaning. In the Middle Ages, clothing and fashion was a very large part of the society. Clothing was a direct reflection of the Feudal System. The garments one wore, said a lot about their lives, and identified their place in the world. The social pyramid was one of the largest elements in the middle age society. Everyone had their place in the pyramid. Clothing was a very clear indication in which social class you were in. Your status was shown by the materials that your clothes were made out of, to the colors of your fabrics.
The difference between the clothing in the social classes was very distinct. The wealthier the person was, the more elaborate the clothing material, color, and size. Fashion was dominated by the kings and queens of the land. Their dress highly influenced their people. Nobility, upper classes and lower classes were also set apart by a set of laws that restricted specific elements of their clothing. Due to these set of laws, only higher classes were able to
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Color was made using dyes. Dyes were expensive because it was adding and extra step into the manufacturing process which increases the price of the garment. Therefore, colored clothing was most commonly seen in nobility. Peasants and the lower class were also able to create colors in their clothing by using plants, roots, crushing insects, etc. But these colors faded very fast from their clothing, therefore, rich and deep colors were only seen in higher class garments. Likewise, deep and rich colors showed signs of wealth.
A typical outfit for a peasant was basic and practical. They could not afford anything elaborate. But due to their work-filled lifestyle, they did not need extravagant clothing like the higher classes. Both men and women wore neutral colors, such as browns and grays. Men
During that time period, fashion was based upon the brilliance of light. Reflective, bright objects indicated luster and resplendence. As such, armor was perfectly suited to be a fashion item. According to McCall, “Renaissance lords wore individual elements of shining armor…underneath and on top of clothing for both fashion and defense.” Now, some of these types of armor were used on the battlefield, but Lords would also wear armor at other times as well.
There were also various classes of common people. There were farmers, who were very efficient. There were merchants, who would travel and trade. These people had a fair amount of freedom to be independent and wear stylish clothes. There were artisans of different kinds.
This created a difference in the social ladder. People were usually distinguished in a particular social class based on the kind of items they possessed. Some goods were classified as luxury and high valued due to the region where the goods are from, making it rare and indigenous to an area where they aren't usually found. In other words, luxury goods are geared to the elite class unlike the common goods. Luxury and the commons good both had the same effect on society.
Throughout history, there has been several examples of shifts within the political and economic structures of early era societies. Such shifts are viewed in the Babylonian society under Hammurabi, the Athenian society under Solon as their lawgiver, and, lastly, in the Roman society with Plebeians. The Code of Hammurabi, the reforms of Solon, and the Twelve Tables shared several similarities as well as differences when addressing the issues of class divisions and social hierarchy. Each of them implemented a social stratification alongside several other distinctive standards on their individual societies in the hope to create a peaceful balance. In fact, the elements of socioeconomic status are the prime factors that created this social hierarchy.
The upper class is on the top of the social class and are the “wealthiest”. Certain stereotypes of upper class have been their appearance of being well dressed with expensive clothing. They are seen to have expensive lifestyles expensive vacations. Their behavior
Tailored clothes were also designed with much more aesthetic detail such as pictures being “embroidered by hand” (Source 2. 5) which meant clothes took hours upon hours to finish. These fancy clothes were a symbol of wealth because only the rich could afford to have these clothes custom made for them. Lower or middle class people often had their own family members making clothes for them because they could not afford to have a tailor. Most clothes made by lower to middle class people were only made of “one or two pieces of cloth” (Source 2. 4) in order to conserve cloth for other clothing. As time when on tailoring changed from making fancy designs to making clothes that fit the body well and looked good.
The fashions of the nobility became more extravagant in order to emphasize the social standing of the person wearing the clothing. The peasants became slightly more empowered, and revolted when the aristocracy attempted to resist the changes brought about by the plague. The social and economic structure of Europe was drastically and irretrievably
In the Elizabethan age, social class structure was paramount. The class ranking dictated how the people of each level could dress, the diet and food available, and career standing. Social hierarchy classes consisted of a monarch, nobility, gentry, merchants, yeomanry, and laborer. The monarch was the highest and most superior class ranking, it was based off of bloodline only and the oldest monarch would take the throne and become the most powerful(“Elizabethan Era.”).
They decided what to wear because they made the clothing depending on the different seasons. For example, in the summer they could make the clothing fabric less thick The old clothes were used to create new clothing and quilts for the beds to sleep on. The women made the different clothing for both men and women. 2. They have to wear certain types of clothing because of their religion.
When the Pharaohs died they go mummified. That shows social classes because only the Pharaohs got mummified. Depending on their Social Class they would get buried with all their prized possessions. They also used Social Classes to have slaves. The slaves would do the work for higher people in Social Classes.
For them, life was difficult. They had to work long, hard hours on the manor that belonged to their lord. Most peasants were farmers. Peasants did not have good food or clothing. They did not have the right to be educated.
However, there still was a large distinction between the rich and the poor. Many people during this time period where wealthy and believe they had superiority over everyone. It was a very
The word fashion design, the fabrication of fashionable clothes, originated from Paris, France. Paris was known to influence fashion and it also had names like fashion capital, fashion became more influential in the nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century. Jen Viegas claims that individuals first wore clothing about 170,000 years ago after the “second-to-last ice age.” Scientific researchers performed on lice’s DNA because of the relation between clothes and lice. The first, fashion designed piece was a dress, History of Fashion states that the royal court was the original inspiration for the expansion of the dress, the royal court would often get their pieces made anonymously.
African aesthetic plays an intricate role in Caribbean fashion. It combines various colors, patterns, and fabrics which the Caribbean is known for. As a result, over the years Caribbean fashion relies heavily on African influences. Such influences are attributed by slavery, creolization and conformity. In the 17th century the first dress was the uniform of the estate afforded to those working and resident on plantation farms.
The middle class wore dark and black colors as a symbol of wealth. • Fashion for men was more elaborate than women. • Middle class were morally conservative and wanted to dress like royalty. • Lower class dressed according to their occupation. (Barton,M n.d)