Test Review
Chapter 7
Domestic Scale culture: 50,000 BCE
Refer to table on page 215
Government: when an issue arised all members had a discussion and decision- making process to resolve problems.
Status based on: age, ability, position in kin group, and gender.
Pop: 500 or less people in tribe or village.
Animism- worshiped celestial bodies, nature, animals, and ancestors.
Shamans: mediators between human and spirit world and healers.
Family/ kin based.
Nomads: Traveled with the seasons in small groups called bands and they would hunt and forage for food. Or Subsistent Economy: lived in settlements gardening small plots or herding domesticated animals. Had simple manual tools and knowledge of natural environment in order to produce enough food, clothing, and shelter for basic survival.
Dress did not communicate individual identity because everyone knew each other as unique individuals because of how small the population was. For protection or to show kin group or rite of passage.
Dress was minimal because they needed to be able to carry it on their backs.
Body supplements include feathers lightweight transportable item. Amulets
“ Modifications: body paints tattooing and scarification
Subsisitent economies wore wrapped of preshaped items that could be folded easily and stored away. Anoraks or loincloths
Between 20,000 and 15,000 bce the needle and thread were developed and tools such as fishing line, handles, nets, carriers, and dress materials textiles made with yarn and rope etc.
Chapter 8
Political Scale culture: 10,000 BCE- 1,500 CE
Refer to table on 235
People settled in permanent dwellings: villages, states, kingdoms, and empires. Clustered around at least one large city.
Farming, fishing trading
Pop: 10,000 or more in settlements. => Not everyone knew everyone as individuals.
Improved techniques of acquiring food farming, fishing, agriculture, trade, employing draft animals, plows, carts, and boats. Architecture, the arts, and textile production.
People were ranked by caste and class
Caste- group of people who are in a specific form of labor and marry only within the group. Hierarchy- greater or lesser status than other castes.
Class: similar to caste ability to rise and fall below one’s social position was limited.
Centralized power- either :
Chiefdom (tribal members gave up equality to one person, made decisions for tribe.)
Kingdom (chiefs and people of several villages joined around one person of power.)
State (when power of several kingdoms was unified)
Empire. (State that successfully conquered most of its neighbors)
Religion: worshiped high gods in human or near human forms who were served by kings. Power to rule was granted by high gods and called the divine right of kings.
Geographic distance and divisions of labor led to different dress.
Dress gave info about occupation, family, caste, village and wealth.
Since people did not travel they could accumulate more material goods.
Wealthy had bigger houses and closets. Poor had garments for daily wear and special occasion dress.
Domesticated plants and animals made cotton, flax (linen) and wool available for garments.
Textile Production: twisting fibers together to make them stronger. A loom was used to weave (variety of textures). Spinning wheels created strong fine yarns. Dye to create hues.
Clothes were weaved into the shape in order to avoid cutting, sewing, and waste of cloth. => Simple as a length of cloth wrapped around the body. (Toga, sari, tunic)
Surplus in food and material goods symbolized wealth.
Occupations such as furriers, lace makers, gem cutters, tailors, dressmakers (designers)
Fashion emerges – captures idea of process of change and discard. New trends.
Sumptuary laws: gov. legislated dress requirements for categories of people. Elements of dress that were costly (silk, purple, gold) restricted for highest caste and class.
Military badges and insignias
Cultural authentication- when exposed to material and non-material culture people decide for themselves what they like and don’t like and what they want to adapt into their own cultures use bits and pieces of cultures to create a new culture and they change its use.
Ethnic dress emerges
Ecclesiastical dress- religious dress what the priests are wearing to indicate special relationship with god.
Chapter 9:
Commercial scale dress: 1500 CE – till now
Global network of trade was established. (spice and silk trade)
The last 500 years people have been connected through manufacture and trade of products and services.
Large urban centers
Rural, urban, city
Over time political scale cultures embraced the values of commerce/a market-based system and grew into our society today.
People of many different cultures can and do interact as part of a daily routine.
Pop: Individual populations of 1 million people or more. Billions globally
Industrialized- depends on fossil fuel for energy and rely on manufacturing.
Concentrated farming- grow hybridized monocrop fulfilling many peoples needs => more profitable and subsistent farming. (one farm growing many things)
Based on production of profit for large corporations that fulfill consumer desires.
Ranked by income and education rather than caste or class.
Nations develop and (allies) partner with/align themselves with other nations for political/econ strength.
Dress is used for social identity (job position) and personality individuality
Cultural group spread beyond its place of origin is a diaspora
Products are manufactured bought and sold in exchange for money=> produces a distinctive system for the production of apparel.
Clothing is mass produced- huge quantities in a factory setting.
People are too busy to make their own clothes=> ready to wear and to mass produce you need a standard sizing. Which makes it possible to cut and sew billions of garments at high speed and fit greater #’s of people.
Stores have target markets- juniors, kids, sportswear, intimates (genres of clothes)
Synthetic fabrics- less expensive, more variety, unlimited colors.
Wealthy can afford to purchase high quality cut designer, poor buy quantity instead of quality.
Consignment shops, vintage, department stores, large malls, discount, online= stores
People travel for fun and need lightweight clothes for example backpacking Europe.
World dress- blue jeans business suits
National dress- dress unique to a society
World fashion- shifting styles of dress worn all over the world at the same time (tumblr)
Chapter 10
The art of dress
Evaluating body modifications and supplements as pleasing or not pleasing which results in a system of cultural practice.
Art= product and an artifact produced.
Aesthetics of dress the 5 senses
Dress can help gather info about others and interpret meaning.
Aesthetic code- dressing to be pleasing and showing your individuality.
Cultural ideal- your ultimate goal which is considered the best aesthetic values in your culture (Barbie playboy)
Cultural standard- what we can all achieve which offers a much better chance of social acceptance.
Dress codes
Body dominant- merge the body and dress super form fitting clothing.
Body subordinate- dress moves away from the body
Prescriptive writing- what to wear
Proscriptive- not to wear
Cleanliness, health, and youth 3 valued cultural standards.