Term Paper
This paper was a work in progress over the entire semester, and I finally merged all of my previous work into this. I had been doing research for the duration of the semester and reporting my progress (as can be seen below).
Teens v. Experts: Speaking Fashion
The language of fashion is spoken by a multitude of people ranging from teenagers to industry experts. This has led to many different ways of speaking about fashion, and emphasizes the widening gap between the people reporting on fashion and the people consuming fashion. When fashion is being discussed on the street, trendy terms are heard more often than professional terms, likely due to the difference in research and general knowledge of the way it is spoken about officially by the specialists.
Common words to hear on the street include “Canadian tuxedo,” “relaxed,” and “oversized,” two of which are common styles among teenagers and one of which is despised by teenagers. Relaxed and oversized are simply used to describe clothing that hangs off the body when being worn, with relaxed being “one size too big” and oversized being “two sizes too big” (Wasilak). This is a common occurrence in many teens’ closets right now. A Canadian tuxedo is wearing “denim-on-denim” (Wasilak), most often seen as jeans with a jean jacket. The vocabulary common to the streets represent the fashion common to the streets, which is rarely a direct reflection of the runway styles.
The industry uses more complex terms, such as “applique” and “covert couture,” both of which come from the French language. Applique is a method of layering materials to create detail and texture (Danishwar). When translated to English, applique is simply applied, a simple term that could be used and possibly integrated to the street but likely will not be. Covert couture is ordering personalized haute couture (Danishwar), which is not something the average person can afford to do, emphasizing the difference in class levels between those in the industry and those simply following fashion. The vocabulary used in the industry is suited to the needs of those speaking about luxury items, but does not have the ability to flow into street-speak as well.
The divide between fashion industry expert and consumer languages will continue to exist until the people using the language casually require the terms of the professionals. As long as fashion remains a difficult industry to explore without money, the two languages can never combine to become a single widely-spoken one.
Works Cited
Danishwar, Dessy. “Speak Fashion-Ese: The A To Zs Of Fashion Lingo.” HuffPost Canada, HuffPost, 25 Feb. 2017, www.huffingtonpost.ca/dessy-danishwar/speak-fashionese-the-a-to_b_9308306.html.
Wasilak, Sarah. “Do You Speak the Language of Fashion?” POPSUGAR Fashion, 21 Feb. 2017, www.popsugar.com/fashion/Style-Words-Fashion-Girls-Say-34864256
Letter to the Editor: Necessity or Desire?
“Perfect” items and outfits to wear for a certain occasion or to a certain location are constantly being published in places that many shoppers frequently view, such as brand advertisement or magazines. To the companies, this is an incredible marketing strategy that creates a connection between two items and/or concepts that are not necessarily connected, but become connected through example or statement. It is less-than-perfect for the consumers, many of whom do not have the money required to make purchases equal to those being suggested by the industry experts. The styles and supposed “essentials” for trips and events are often difficult to style in everyday situations, preventing those in the middle and lower classes from having access to wardrobes that leave them feeling good about themselves.
Connections can often be found in articles with statements such as “a halter is the new go-to for the beach this summer” or “garden weddings will be filled with floral dresses this season;” neither statement could be proven true, yet both can be convincing if announced by a person with influence in the fashion industry. They are being paid to make the people pay, and this is an effective method. It creates an impression of importance and exclusivity for the product mentioned, but never delves into any ways to reuse the often obscure, difficult-to-style item. The industry convinces people that a different item is necessary for everything they will ever do, and sets standards and selects “appropriate” clothing accordingly.
The idea of select clothing only being appropriate in select situations needs to be changed. It is certainly not ever going to be acceptable to wear a formal dress to grocery shop, or yoga pants for a formal event, but different people feel good and can afford different clothing, and a wider variety should be considered appropriate. Limiting fashion to only those with extensive pocketbooks creates a large rift in our already divided society, and will lead to resentment if it continues. No one should be left to feel they are not worthy of looking their best or that they are inherently worth less than others because they cannot dress as well, but this is the society we live in.
Orwell on Fashion
Orwell would dislike the current language used in the fashion industry. In his essay “Politics and the English Language,” he lists some “tricks” used in modern language that leads to poor writing. Both pretentious diction and meaningless words are included, which forms the majority of language used when fashion is discussed by industry experts and reporters.
Pretentious diction comprises of not only formal, complex words, but also foreign words. These are common appearances in discussions of fashion, with descriptions of shows being written in over-complicated terms and the constant allusions to unnecessary French terms. Foreign additions are a constant, from the runway (prêt-à-porter, haute couture) to everyday conversation (à la mode).
Fashion shows are often described with numerous meaningless words, including many from Orwell’s own list. Romantic, natural, living, and dead are some examples of ways a show could be reported to be, and all are directly addressed within his essay.
The fashion industry keeps up its exclusive pretenses by using pretentious diction and meaningless words that dazzle many newcomers, but merely confuse anyone attempting to analyze any articles or reports written about fashion.