Earlier, People Wore Clothes Which were Related to their Culture but Now People Wear the Same Type of Clothes IELTS Writing Task 2

As a world where cultural hostility is increasing, it is our collective responsibility to remain open-minded and welcome people of diverse upbringings. That means acceptance for people wearing clothing related to their culture. Wearing the same kind of clothes is essentially the product of an assimilation culture. A culture wants and enforces humans to look, feel and talk in the same language. It’s also about trying to be a dominant figure and positioning oneself as a more powerful entity. This is possible by way of establishing a universal clothing culture designed and marketed well by more developed nations. Although, it is certainly not wrong trying to increase the reach of one’s culture that shouldn’t happen at the cost of decimating others’ cultural values.

The consequences of the entire world wearing similar clothes are multi-pronged. For instance, artisans losing their livelihood means, loss of cultural capital and disappearance of difficult skills that are carefully handed over generationally. For some of us, this also amounts to the displacement of ancestral roots that ground us in times of alienation and separation.Clothes are cultural cues that can provide important information about others. It becomes an avenue to launch interesting conversations surrounding family, traditions and ethos. Although people all over the world are wearing similar clothes, we can see the tide turning in favour of indigenous clothing in recent years. More and more people are proudly wearing their cultures and the world is looking full of hope with many colours, tones and textures of clothing around.

There is a surge in the out-migration of citizens from developing to developed nations. This necessitates the assimilation of people into the cultures of their new homes. Cultural clothes make them stand out in ways that they wouldn’t want to in all situations. Especially in formal set-ups wherein discrimination of any kind is sought to be avoided at all costs, wearing similar clothes is generally helpful. Also, clothing is related to social stature and caters to creating belonging in certain groups. Many critics have pointed toward the loss of cultural heritage since people are opting to spend less on handcrafted clothes. However, in an era of shifting priorities, the cultural clothing to remain relevant would need to upgrade itself. It is important to hence understand the changing preferences of the current and potential consumers. People aren’t ready to spend a large sum of their paychecks on one hand-made clothing when they can purchase more machine-made clothes for the same amount. It’s acceptable for people to look similar rather than exhaust their savings for looking different and cultural.

In modern times, people wear similar clothes instead of clothing related to their cultures to be successful and influential world citizens. With borders becoming blurred, people tend to prefer belonging to many places instead of a single place. This makes them seem more approachable and it's easier to network with people wearing similar clothes. Clothes related to one’s culture apart from the long delivery process and high costs, also have valid concerns for authenticity. Many traders are now selling machine-made clothes labelled as hand-made. This has led to severe mistrust issues in consumers who don’t want to be duped of their hard-earned money. This is one of the reasons that many people have wardrobes full of similar-looking clothes rather than clothes with cultural value.

The reluctance of artisans to upskill themselves to make clothes for the changing demographics also contributes to their dwindling state of affairs. The marketing teams of the brands designing similar-looking clothes have tapped into the dynamic needs of their target audience. This includes the need to stay connected and be heard. This makes a lot of difference as the ones with the purchasing power are putting their money into brands that align well with their globalised worldviews. People are increasingly trying to give clues to their ideologies and ideals by dressing in particular clothing. Instead of trying to stand out, they are trying to blend in. Looking similar helps their cause. It’s a world of shared dreams– a continual increase in lifestyles, access to places deemed exclusive and to make it irrespective of the many hurdles. Wearing similar clothing is also aspirational in some ways in that journey of being successful. Fake it till you make it–it can’t be any more true than in a similar kind of clothing. It is a powerful visual device to make others form constructive opinions about you. It’s a popular mantra for success.