![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Light Amusements
Dec. 11th, 2007 01:48 pmWork is sloooooowwwww. Probably due to the absolutely foul weather. Darling sent me in the van today, as the little Red Hockey Puck is unsuited to current very icy conditions. I have three appointments scheduled for the afternoon - and I expect only one is likely to show up, as the other two are new clients anyway. ;-)
Meaning I'm trolling for something to do. My hands are still a bit sore to do much knitting, so I'll fish for ideas, instead. Anybody have good suggestions on what sort of gifty thingies to make to distribute to my pals and acquaintances at 12th Night? I have some sugar plums, and could certainly make more if I get on the stick. Other thoughts?
So, first my little pea-brain went wandering down paths secondary to a conversation with Darling. We were discussing how it used to be possibly to determine someone's "location of origin" as it were by their accent and speech patterns. In certain areas (London, New York, etc.) this identification could be very specific. Then there were the affected accents - Harvard and Oxbridge leap to mind. At one point these things were Important, and Noticed. Not so much anymore, probably due to the extreme fluidity of society today. Larger regional and national accents exist - but even those begin to blur at times.
And I got to thinking about the Cheese Ladies from my research project. I really do think they're the beginning of an extreme form of identifying regionalism in dress. City by city proclamation of "hometown" as it were. One wonders what other identifiers that aren't so visible in a painting were used. And then there are things that identify marital status, age, and social class. It makes it really, really difficult to ascertain who wore what from artwork. It was an interesting, and relatively quick evolution. For instance, if you look at the Tres Riches Hours the upperclass and working ladies wear gowns of a similar basic shape. They vary more in length, layers, surcoats, sumptousness of fabrics and outlandishness of sleeves. Into the later 16th century the middle class "city folk" seem to create almost a uniform. And it later evolved into the Regional Costumes we expect from folk troupes and trips to see Dutch Dancers or the local Bavarian festival. And then, faded away again in large parts of the world.
I do wonder what factors brought about the "we-they" mentality that made folks want to identify themselves clearly as residents of their town. And when we decided that we didn't WANT people to know where we're from at a glance and why. *ponder*
Meaning I'm trolling for something to do. My hands are still a bit sore to do much knitting, so I'll fish for ideas, instead. Anybody have good suggestions on what sort of gifty thingies to make to distribute to my pals and acquaintances at 12th Night? I have some sugar plums, and could certainly make more if I get on the stick. Other thoughts?
So, first my little pea-brain went wandering down paths secondary to a conversation with Darling. We were discussing how it used to be possibly to determine someone's "location of origin" as it were by their accent and speech patterns. In certain areas (London, New York, etc.) this identification could be very specific. Then there were the affected accents - Harvard and Oxbridge leap to mind. At one point these things were Important, and Noticed. Not so much anymore, probably due to the extreme fluidity of society today. Larger regional and national accents exist - but even those begin to blur at times.
And I got to thinking about the Cheese Ladies from my research project. I really do think they're the beginning of an extreme form of identifying regionalism in dress. City by city proclamation of "hometown" as it were. One wonders what other identifiers that aren't so visible in a painting were used. And then there are things that identify marital status, age, and social class. It makes it really, really difficult to ascertain who wore what from artwork. It was an interesting, and relatively quick evolution. For instance, if you look at the Tres Riches Hours the upperclass and working ladies wear gowns of a similar basic shape. They vary more in length, layers, surcoats, sumptousness of fabrics and outlandishness of sleeves. Into the later 16th century the middle class "city folk" seem to create almost a uniform. And it later evolved into the Regional Costumes we expect from folk troupes and trips to see Dutch Dancers or the local Bavarian festival. And then, faded away again in large parts of the world.
I do wonder what factors brought about the "we-they" mentality that made folks want to identify themselves clearly as residents of their town. And when we decided that we didn't WANT people to know where we're from at a glance and why. *ponder*
