Georg Simmel - Fashion: Understanding Contemporary Social Life

This paper discusses the contribution of German sociologist Georg Simmel and his theory of fashion. It critically evaluates the social theory and presents an argument based on the concept and contemporary life.

Running head: GEORG SIMMEL - FASHION
GEORG SIMMEL – FASHION
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Introduction:
Social theories can be defined as the ideas, arguments, hypotheses and thought
experiments and explanatory speculations that helps understanding human societies and the way
it has come to be formed, changed and developed over time or have disappeared from being
existing (Martindale, 2013). Social theories have presented the world with various theories
explaining a various social phenomenon. Social theories may vary along with time, region or
people however in most of the case they deal with human behavior and social changes.
Therefore, these theories along with time have shaped the modern theories as well. In this paper,
the contribution of the German sociologist George Simmel is discussed. Simmel’s famous article
Fashion has been one of the significant contributions to understanding the contemporary social
life. Firstly, the paper examines in brief about the sociologist followed by his thinking about the
concept of Fashion in the contemporary social life. Secondly, the paper critically evaluates the
social theory and presents an argument based on the concept and contemporary life.
George Simmel:
The philosopher, sociologist and critic George Simmel is one of the major contributors
who has created theories to understand contemporary social life. Born in 1858, the German
philosopher with his neo-Kantian approach has built the foundations for sociological
antipositivism. His insightful essays based on social interaction and personal interactions
inspired the development of qualitative analysis in sociology (Frisby, 2013). He was one of the
sociologists who isolated the general forms of social interaction from the activities that are more
specific. He gave focus on the obedience and authority such as economics, the role of money and

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other special activities. One of his significant contributions that the world obtained is his theory
of fashion (Frisby, 2013).
Fashion:
According to Simmel, the purpose of identifying social group is served by fashion. To be
more precise, fashion serves as a tool of demarcating social position and an identifier for the
people who belong to the demarcated social position (Veenstra & Kuipers, 2013). Like the way it
has already discussed, Simmel’s work was focused on the relationship between the individual
and society. Also, it can be put as he was interested in antagonistic battles as well as the
continuous conflict between individualism versus socialism, action versus inaction, change
versus stability, need for isolation versus the need for union, creativity versus tradition, avant-
garde versus orthodox and difference versus uniformity (Ruiz‐Tagle, 2013). Society from its
inception has been comprised of conflicts. According to Simmel, fashion is a complex structure
which is not merely a facet of life however it presents the perfect site to examine nature, culture
and society of human. Simmel perceives fashion as “the child of thought and thoughtlessness”,
and he does not find any reason for the creation of such objects, possesses, motivations,
outcomes and failings (Machuco Rosa, 2016). From his perspective, it is only to exhibit its
power by getting humans to adopt the most atrocious possessions for its sake solely. Fashion
being complex in nature provides a strange feeling of satisfaction to individuals by imitation
which, according to them, does not make them stand alone in their actions. This satisfaction
includes freedom from the worry, the worry of choosing and hence makes them belonged to the
group like the social contents’ vessel.

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Since fashion has been essential for human’s living, it is deeply enrooted to human
psychology. People opting for the fashion draws a sense of satisfaction by the thought that his
possession is special, striking and in the meantime largely supported by set persons who are
striving for the same properties carried by him. The person labelled ‘fashionable’ is considered
with mixed feelings of envy as well as approval. Therefore, by the way, fashion operates and
regulates it can be understood that it furnishes an ideal field with dependent nature for
individuals. The dependent feels from the individual’s self-consciousness which in some way
requires a certain proportion of prominence. Also, fashion is highly capable of making any
unimportant individual an representative of a class. Fashion is deeply integrated with gender,
class and time which allow different people to have a sense of satisfaction. Also, fashion cannot
be escaped for someone paying any heed to the fashion will belong to another set of a group with
some different form of fashion (Cavell, 2013).
Analysis:
According to Ramarajan (2014), George Simmel illustrated in various ways the
contradiction existing fashion. His journal on fashion suggests that in every individual there
exists dualism, which begins from one’s soul and involves in every aspect including life. There
are broadly two tendencies in society, generalisation and another specialisation. Every person
wants to belong to society as well as social situations. Fashion is a form of social relationship,
and it allows individuals to conform to the demands of the group to do the same. At the same
time fashion also provides scope to the individuals who wish to be individualistic to deviate. The
tendency of generalisation is upheld by individuals who imitate. According to Almond (2016),
imitation is processed by which people escape the responsibility of becoming creative and create

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something. They get the opportunity to fit in society without necessarily making any choice or
even worrying about making any decision. On the other hand, the tendency of specialisation
wishes to become different and be individual as for them imitation is frowned upon in society to
a certain extent. The dualism is present in fashion as it gives people the opportunity of both,
becoming an imitator as well as stand out of the crown by being individual.
According to Aspers and Godart (2013), Simmel discusses the nature of fashion that the
way the upper class turn away from a particular fashion once it reaches the masses involving
even the lower class. Through this Simmel have portrayed the way fashion is class oriented. The
differentiation is also evident in groups that are closely related yet refuse to be considered the
same. For them, fashion is used to promote the differences. Also, dualism nature of fashion is
reflected through the necessity in its production that is the need to unionise as well as the need
for isolation. Supported by Appleford, (2013), these two factors are seen and expressed in order
to show the isolation and to unionize of different cultural, social, religious group throughout
history. It is also important to represent the two ideas of fashion that manifest fashion imitation is
either obedience to rejection. Rejection of fashion as well as the obedience of fashion, despite
making any choice a person will undoubtedly fall under one of the two categories. In both the
case people feel a sense of satisfaction that may be the need to individualise of the need or to be
different. Simmel also discusses the way fashion is related to people’s inner and outer struggle in
life. The most important battle of people is balancing self into fitting in or standing out the
society and social situation. Fashion is a tool that either helps or hurts this particular struggle.
Fashion also majorly revolves around this mentioned concept. Simmel says, “fashion is merely a
product of social demands”. If the human did not feel the need for fitting in or standing out, there
would not have been the existence of fashion in society. Simmel also discusses how fashion is

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time oriented, class oriented and gender oriented. However, these are only aspects of the
economy related to fashion.
According to Atik and Fırat, (2013), in the contemporary era, the trend of becoming
‘fashionable is only a way of fitting in some social group, and this can be derived from Simmel’s
line ‘attempts to combine the interest in duration, unity, and similarity with that in change,
specialisation, and peculiarity’. This also explains the way fashion tends to make every
individual similar. People seek fashion in order to differentiate themselves from other groups,
however, to fit in with own social group or class. People use fashion to make themselves
different yet same, it is only to differentiate from one group and be same to another group.
Conclusion:
George Simmel’s theory of fashion is still relevant in today’s 21st century. It is a theory
that represents people’s desire to belong as well as different. He has beautifully represented the
duality that is involved. It represents the society’s behaviour and the way it shapes human
perspective. Therefore, at the end of the paper, it can be concluded the importance of social
theory is evident. They comprise various aspects of society that logically explain the social
phenomenon. In this paper, the social phenomenon, fashion has been analysed which has helped
in gaining the insights of people behaviour, people’s relationship with the social phenomenon
and last the social phenomenon itself.

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References:
Almond, K. (2016). A Potential Dichotomy: Clothing, Fashion and the UK Apparel Industry.
The International Journal of Designed Objects.
Appleford, K. (2013). Fashion and class evaluation. The Handbook of Fashion Studies,
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Aspers, P., & Godart, F. (2013). Sociology of fashion: Order and change. Annual Review of
Sociology, 39, 171-192.
Atik, D., & Fırat, A. F. (2013). Fashion creation and diffusion: The institution of marketing.
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Cavell, S. (2013). The world as things: Collecting thoughts on collecting. Contemporary
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Frisby, D. (2013). Fragments of Modernity (Routledge Revivals): Theories of Modernity in the
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Martindale, D. (2013). The nature and types of sociological theory. Routledge.
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