Because there is little movement among social classes, there is little motivation to change styles in order to stay ahead of the proletariat, styles that trickle down and are imitated with the intent of raising one's social status, motivations that we see in societies such as our own. .
"With the cheapness of textile materials, the imitative power of the inferior has been greatly augmented." (Edward Ross, pg. 104) A counterfeit product can be put on the market for a tenth of the price of a pair of Oakley Sunglasses or Levi Denim Jeans. When casual street-wear was first bombarded with corporate logos it was seen as a disgrace to the .
fashion label. But as this insignia on clothing became more widely used, the shock lost its impact. At one time showing your clothing label was a .
means of showing your wealth. But now it's just common practice. Even those below the so-called poverty line are willing to trade in their hard earned dollars (much needed for more important things of use-value) for highly regarded clothing labels in an attempt to buy their way into middle class society. The same goes for the middle class and wearing fake fur in an attempt to buy symbolic power. This makes it very difficult to pinpoint one's social class by the way that they dress. Veblen's position (1899) was that the upper classes invented fashion to distinguish themselves from those below. When the styles and practices of the upper classes were imitated when their fashions 'trickled down' to their social inferiors, the upper classes were impelled to reconstitute themselves. Without fashion labels or brand names, upward mobility becomes a difficult task. But with the use of fashion labels, the lower classes are presented with a how to guide of living a rich materialistic lifestyle. One problem with this is that It only allows an individual to distinguish themselves from others using a limited amount of socially accepted resources, among these include mutilations of the Human body in forms such as liposuction, extreme dieting, cosmetic surgery, make-up, body wraps, piercing etc in order to .
