A conflict should always are present between the utilitarian means of individual and you can what we can just only call brand new useless need of sartorial morality.
Still each other public-opinion and you can specialized regulations try usually put in the naught; while Trends, whose laws is actually enforced rather than formal sanctions, is actually obeyed that have wonderful docility, and this and even though their own demands was unreasonable, arbitrary, rather than seldom horrible
… Little is stored in the effort in order to control the fashion. Although reputation of sumptuary rules is the reputation of dead letters.
The brand new spectacle displayed by history of wear Europe is actually thus certainly one of conflict between two inimical forces existing not just from inside the same communities however, in exact same individuals (the legislators were frequently one of many poor offenders). For the reason that conflict brand new authored sumptuary legislation and unwritten rules from public-opinion keeps usually become depending all of that i constantly hold really precious in our society: our spiritual and you may ethical standards, the sense of decency and you will self-respect, our concern to have social health, our very own want to see the all the way down sales kept in its right lay, the good judgment, and you can the humankind.