Item 64 - A plea for individuality

Typescript essay on individuality. Beaton writes that fashion tends to oscillate between romantic and classical conceptions, and that changes within fashion are often a reflection of social and national changes more generally. This change would be justified if there were indications of progress, but since fashion is illogical, it is difficult to see how one mode of fashion is any superior to another. Just as in life, fashion moves in circles or spirals, with the possibility of little or no progress at all. One of the greatest tragedies engendered by human society is the pressure of conformity, which places ridiculous limits on individuality. Conformity in fashion is expensive. By contrast, being individual is a rare and beautiful thing, for which money is not always necessary. Both are powerful forces. Beaton recognises women who want to achieve distinction, forinstance, but spend their whole life devoted to a pursuit of imitation. He concludes that it is much better to express one's unique self, than to conform to convention.