Fashion is abandoned by a class once it diffuses to other classes

Evidence

Fashion, in and of itself, as a form of social life, is a preeminent case of this correlation. The adornment and accentuation that it lends to the personality is accorded to it only as the member of a class that is collectively distinguishing itself from other classes by adopting the new fashion. (As soon as a fashion has diffused into the other classes, it is abandoned and replaced with another.) The adoption of a fashion represents an internal leveling of the class and its self-exaltation above all other classes. — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 618

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines fashion’s mechanism: internal leveling plus external self-exaltation, and abandonment once diffusion occurs.
• ADDENDUM: Directly extends the class-signaling logic of the immodesty/dress essay: fashion-based distinction among social classes is the same status-signaling dynamic described there.
• XREF: connects to: Elites lost a sustained battle to mark status through dress; Fashion recurs cyclically because old forms regain the charm of difference once forgotten — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 743; Fashion requires both the impulse to union and to isolation — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 721 (+1 more)

Related

• Fashion diffusion works through upper-class innovation followed by lower-class imitation and upper-class retreat (similarity 0.88)
• Fashion requires both the impulse to union and to isolation (similarity 0.87)
• Elites lost a sustained battle to mark status through dress (similarity 0.87)
• Fashion substitutes for class and profession as a source of individual differentiation. (similarity 0.86)
• Fashion recurs cyclically because old forms regain the charm of difference once forgotten (similarity 0.84)
• Fashion dictates styles with no objective, aesthetic, or practical justification. (similarity 0.83)
• Emancipated women signal status through indifference to fashion. (similarity 0.82)
• Conformity to fashion can shield and protect an individual’s inner difference. (similarity 0.80)
• Opposing fashion is itself a form of conforming (similarity 0.79)
• Rapid fashion change signals nervous exhaustion in an era (similarity 0.79)
• The weakening of permanent convictions drives modern consciousness toward fashion (similarity 0.79)
• Fashion heightens the felt presence of the present moment (similarity 0.78)
• Dress regulations and political strategy made even ‘straight’ appearance misleading (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Fashion diffusion works through upper-class innovation followed by lower-class imitation and upper-class retreat #expands (0.95) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 717
• Fashion requires both the impulse to union and to isolation #corroborates (0.60) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 721
• Fashion recurs cyclically because old forms regain the charm of difference once forgotten #corroborates (0.50) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 743