Country clubs are commonly associated with upper class. They are very exclusive, some requiring months of work in order to get accepted. Tennis is also a sport associated with high social status. Country club tennis makes an interesting link to our discussions. At many country clubs "tennis whites" are required in order to play. It is a dress code of all white necessary in order to be able to be on the tennis court. White is strictly associated with the upper class and exclusivity represented in club tennis.
In what ways is white a tangible representation of exclusivity? Is white always associated with the upper class? What are the problems with associating white to the upper class?
In religion, only the priests wear white. Jesus is always depicted in white, to show a "set-apart ness" and from others and holiness. That might have something to do with exclusivity. I feel like white is not always associated with the upper class. Guys on the swim team wear all- white tank tops that are basically undershirts. One of the women in your picture is wearing a white camisole. Are these signs of the upper class? If I wear a white long-sleeve tee shirt to school, that I have owned and worn
ReplyDelete(and washed) for 3-4 years, does that show that I am upper class? I don't think so. It only shows that I own a white shirt and that I am careful enough not to spill pasta sauce on it. Some of the problems may include the idea that someone is rich or upper class, when in reality they aren't. I think that you shouldn't judge people from the outside, and that this kind of "slotting" of fashion choice could be dangerous. Because of these, I think that owning white clothing should not be a defining factor for upper class membership. Even if country clubs require it. White is cheap. It looks good and clean. Who can blame them? Just don't judge the people playing tennis.
There is clearly something to the tennis//white conenction because of the rule at Wimbledon that someone mentioned in class a couple weeks ago. Tennis players must be wearing 80% (or something close to that) white apparel, which is appaling to me. I understand there being a dress code there because its a very prestigious thing to be able to play there, but I don't understand why it needs to be white when there's such an obvious connotation of race with that color. Maybe they could change the rule to wearing only one color, or they could mix it up and do a color per match. But in the present day, an all-white dress code is ridiculous, in my opinion.
ReplyDelete