Individualism as Value

Clothes are very much a signal of social status. Throughout history, different groups have worn characteristic dress to differentiate themselves and to express their position within society. Obviously, this type of adornment isn’t required for survival, and this brought about the economic/sociologic idea of conspicuous consumption.

It’s natural for humans to behave in this way. From a survivalist perspective, showing dominance and desirability is fundamental to finding a sexual partner (our primary instinct beyond survival). In the modern, civilized world, people simply like to be accepted and complimented. Finding a group of friends who accept and respect you is a fundamental part of growing up and living in modern society, and this is inextricably linked to one’s social status.

As we grow up, we receive a lot of compelling evidence that clothes (as well as other material objects) actually creates social status, as opposed to being indicative of it. Growing up, it often seems that the people who buy the newest clothes are the coolest people, and this image can be long-lasting.

The current social system rewards two things which are contrary to the cultivation of individualism and creativity:

1. Exclusivity. Introducing barriers to entry is a very common way to form groups. Again, it’s natural for us to assert dominance and collect ourselves with other like-minded people. While many of us may morally oppose the formation of cliques, putting down others, and elitist behavior, it’s likely we all have participated in it to some extent. Often it’s simply a matter of perspective.

   Further, an easy way to measure superiority in our world is through money, and signals of money. Thus, it’s often the case that fashion and social status is predicated on expensive trends, which is facilitated by a marketing campaign which rewards top/exclusive designers and their expensive products.

2. Grouping. Wearing distinctive, trendy clothing (not necessarily mainstream trends, of course), makes it easy for groups of people to identify with each other and promote a coherent idea of self-expression. Often, this coincides with the ideas of exclusivity and expense above, especially when the group is based on social status ideas rather than other communities, like those who rally round an activity like skating (with a rich fashion culture) or music (also much fashion history here).

In either case, the existent system is very good at inhibiting individualism and creativity, because there is significant risk associated with be individualistic, and no obvious method to claim reward. While we may know people who have social status based on individual style, it’s usually not clear to us (or even them) how that came to be. Because creativity is something that can be cultivated and grown, it can also atrophy, and the social system cases that for many people.

It’s insufficient to wring our hands about this and simply tell people, “don’t follow the trends, be yourself!” This doesn’t address the concerns of individuals, at worst it just makes them feel bad for playing the game society puts forth. Those of us who want more individualism and less groupthink in fashion need to provide social value for participating in different behaviors.

What can be done to generate value for being individualistic with one’s dress?

People who create other forms of art often earn social respect, especially musicians. Unfortunately, fashion is often not one of those forms of art, especially for males. Further, most people don’t have even the most basic fashion design and construction skills. While many people pick up the basics of music or drawing as they grow up, much fewer people learn how to sew or design fashion patterns.

The most basic, but quite difficult, answer is to create a culture which makes it easy for people to make small creations and to be rewarded, socially, for doing so.

Almost paradoxically, a great way to do this is to create a garment which a large number of people wear (providing automatic social benefits), but requires individuality to use. An example of this is the charm bracelet, which is/was a fairly common piece of jewelry, but almost by definition, no two are alike.

Imagine creating a more expansive series of outlets for people’s creativity in this way. Garments which have a basic structure that is shared by many, but compartmentalized subgarments which require individual attention. Pieces like this significantly reduce the risk of expressing individuality, and this facilitates the maintenance and growth of creativity, a wonderful thing. I don’t think there is an ideal progression that can be attained here, but this idea seems like a good step to me.

-Barry