I think it’s a shame that capitalism has mostly erased the diverse ways people have dressed over the centuries and across regions.
People used to take so much pride in their appearance. Many still do today but not nearly on the same level as our ancestors and that’s often because we simply don’t have the time to do so, even for ceremonial purposes. Now everybody wears a t-shirt and jeans or a bourgeois business suit regardless of what country or culture you go to and it’s just depressing. I hesitate to even call it “Western” in style because while it did originate in the West it also destroyed existing Western dress styles. Clothing used to have cultural meanings and now it’s just “whatever I like and is practical” and that kind of reductionism for what was historically one of the core pillars of visual cultural expression is kinda heartbreaking.
This is a pattern with anything Western: It starts in the West, is spread through neocolonialism, and through the process of neocolonialism, it becomes the “universal”. It is disappointing.
I believe it’s also got a lot to do with the commercial clothing and fashion industry, everything is factory produced and mass manufactured, and it’s more practical and scalable if everything fits a specific convention for clothing. If you traditional dress isn’t something that can be mass produced for a profit, it’s near certain to be phased out of society over time.
I think it’s a shame that capitalism has mostly erased the diverse ways people have dressed over the centuries and across regions.
People used to take so much pride in their appearance. Many still do today but not nearly on the same level as our ancestors and that’s often because we simply don’t have the time to do so, even for ceremonial purposes. Now everybody wears a t-shirt and jeans or a bourgeois business suit regardless of what country or culture you go to and it’s just depressing. I hesitate to even call it “Western” in style because while it did originate in the West it also destroyed existing Western dress styles. Clothing used to have cultural meanings and now it’s just “whatever I like and is practical” and that kind of reductionism for what was historically one of the core pillars of visual cultural expression is kinda heartbreaking.
Capitalism really does just kill human culture.
Basically what I said. :>
This is a pattern with anything Western: It starts in the West, is spread through neocolonialism, and through the process of neocolonialism, it becomes the “universal”. It is disappointing.
I agree. Luckily in China it seems to get reversed
How so?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanfu_Movement
I believe it’s also got a lot to do with the commercial clothing and fashion industry, everything is factory produced and mass manufactured, and it’s more practical and scalable if everything fits a specific convention for clothing. If you traditional dress isn’t something that can be mass produced for a profit, it’s near certain to be phased out of society over time.