CONNECTED EXISTENCE
A fashion study of comfort and quality to empower socialization and femininity
in the fast fashion world.
DESIGN FOR THE FASHION SYSTEM
Supervisor: Arturo Dell’Aqua Bellavitis Student: Maria Kovacsova
10525001
This project could not be delivered without the help of people, who surrounded me with their support and motivation. The problem of the fast fashion and trends that are present now need a better understanding in sake of finding the right solution. For that, I would like to express my special thanks and gratitude to my supervisor, Arturo Dell’Aqua Bellavitis, who supported me through the entire project. He gave me the right guidelines to stay focused and to deliver a complete thesis. I would also like to thank for being kind and motivational throughout the reviews and meetings which gave me more power to continue. As for the extra hours of consul-tation and guidance, I would like to thank Debora Sinibaldi, who kindly helped me find a way to pick the right design for the dresses.
Secondly, I’m very grateful to my parents and siblings who have always been standing next to me, to my friends and Pietro, who cheered on me during the challenging times. I would like to express my special thanks to the photographer, who helped me finalize the project with
This thesis focuses on the problematics of fast fashion and rapidly changing trends. The fashion industry, which has turned out to be rather more trend-centric than humanistic, is struggling to provide high-quality clothing at an affordable price for the masses. Although mass pro-duction has always been challenging design-wise, that should not stop the fashion to be functional and not just decorative. The low quality and the insane focus on our appearance has brought many problems regarding self-image, body diversity, comfort and feminine issues. The goal of this thesis is to investigate this problem and to give a solution for the fast fashion.
The research part is composed of chapters that examine the damages caused by the over-consumerism. It brings up the issues regarding low quality and bad tailoring. The chapter Research on quality, focuses on the bad production and the lack of sustainability while explaining what durable fashion is. At the last sub-chapter varied brands are shown as an example from small to big corporations which have sustain-able and eco-friendly approach.
The other half of the research is targeting mainly the topic of socialization and the importance of human interaction. The technological tools that are supposed to make us more connected, in fact, separate us from the reality. This part also includes the problem of misunderstand-ing individuality and compares it with collectivism.
To understand socialization better and the role of clothing in it, the end of the research focuses on clothing as means of identification and uniforms in general. These chapters investigate the question of uniforms: what are they and what form they appear in? What in particular is the purpose of school uniforms and what did the Soviet school uniforms look like?
The project development offers a solution on clothing and fast fashion in which the product is a single dress in a form of identical clothing. There are six different proposals as a design study. Starting from the first dress that is the most detailed and old-fashioned to the final two identical dresses that are radically minimalized and modern. The color palette and the styling of the full collection is inspired by the soviet school uniforms. Fabrics that are used in this project are carefully selected, mostly to be comfortable, sustainable and natural
The world has become an over-consumeristic place, where fashion has a bigger role than ever. We buy products on a daily basis regardless of their necessity. To make us purchase more, fashion trends have come to change rapidly creating a huge chaos, where quality and comfort are not primary. It is very hard to find a well fitted dress that lasts longer than a season on the mass market. But where does this trend of consumerism go and what can we do against it?
Even high-end brands seldom provide the quality that should be equal to their price category. This might seem like a disconnected, over-pro-duced fashion place. To go against it, as a first step, we should understand better where does it come from and what damages has it caused already. Does it affect our relationships as well?
To find a solution for such a big problem, that is deeper than just the problem of an outfit, has inspired this work and collection. Its main purpose is to embrace femininity, quality and comfort as well as to support the formation of friendships and human
ABSTRACT 6
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 4
INTRODUCTION 8
TABLE OF CONTENTS 10
FASHION AND TRENDS 13
1.1. What are trends 14
1.2. History of trends 16
1.3. Nowadays trends 26
INDUSTRY OVERVIEW 39
2.1. Industry overview and Fast fashion 40
2.2. Buy-use-throw away theor 44
2.3. Not humanistic fashion /
Body diversity in the industry 48
RESEARCH ON QUALITY 53
3.1. Research on quality 54
3.2. The times of quality over quantity 60 3.3. Minimalistic approach to fashion 64 3.4. Brands and their humanistic approach
Sustainability in fashion 68
HUMAN AND SOCIETY 75
4.1. Human as a social being 76
4.2. The belonging vs individualism 82 4.3. Clothing as identifiaction 88
STYLING RESEARCH 91
5.1. Uniforms and their function in our society 92
5.2. School uniforms 94
5.3. Soviet school uniforms 100
CONCLUSION 104
A UNIFYING DRESS 107
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT 109
6.1. Design study 110
THE ELEGANT DRESS 111
THE JACKET 119
THE WAISTCOAT 127
THE TENNIS DRESS 135
THE BASE DRESS 143
THE COLLECTION 141
RADICAL MINIMALISM 153
1.1. WHAT ARE TRENDS?
Trend: A trend is what’s hip or popular at a certain point in time. In fashion, it’s the big wave of a certain style, color combinations, fashion of new (or old) designs.
Fashion has always been around since the beginning of mankind. It doesn’t mean simply a way of dressing. There is much more behind it. It’s a definition of a historical era, a certain political, cultural and social status related to a certain period of time. All these aspects are de-fining diverse styles of wearing garments, taste, way of thinking, behavior and lifestyle itself. The bigger is the group of people who relate to a certain style, the bigger the trend becomes. This is all clear to most of us, but the more important question is: why are there trends and what is their real, deeper function?
Our society is structured into different kinds of groups of people bigger social circles narrowing down to smaller friendships and fami-ly-like relationships. It can be firmly stated, that humans are social beings and total separation is not typical of them. This is a very im-portant life element and the fear of being rejected by a certain group we would like to belong to makes us want to become one of the key-members of the circle. The better we are, the more celebrated we become and the bigger security we have (we might even become the leader of the group). Therefore, fashion has become the most crucial way of expressing one’s socio-cultural status. The way we dress comes first in importance over words, thoughts and ways of behavior. By following someone else’s style, one can easily adapt and relate to them. That’s how trends are formed.
1.2. HISTORY OF TRENDS
While looking back in history, we can see what kind of trends were related to different political eras. Starting from the end of the 19th cen-tury the way of dressing started to change rapidly. As an example, the sheath dress, a close-fitting dress with a defined waist, has taken on several different forms.
In the late 19th century the “princess silhouette” was favored with a fitted waist showing off a corseted figure and accentuated by a heavily
ruffled lower back. This era was known for its rich, high standard-like living with overloaded luxury and joy - just as the aristocratic class. In the 30’s the bias cut was introduced, making fitted styles more attainable. Women of the 30’s (or rather, the ones who led the kind of
lifestyle that called for gowns) began to favor the dramatic, long sheaths as an alternative to Greek styles.
In the 1940’s, sheath styles became even more popular. Fabric rationing during wartime called for simpler, more fitted garments. Bigger
shoulders, narrow waist and hip lines referred to the “working woman’s style”. Since the war started, the lacking amount of man in the fac-tories made woman to take over the working places. The trend formed according to their social status and gave a much more soldier-like look, breaking the feminine, fragile lines.
The 1950’s and 60’s were prime years for the sheath, and the versions worn during these two decades are what we tend to envision when
we think of this dress. Quintessential 1950’s style came in two styles after the war, since woman returned to the houses and the “house wife” look became popular. The first was Dior’s classic “New Look,” featuring a tailored bodice, nipped in waist and full skirt. The second look was a similar, but much sleeker sheath dress version. Dior created the “Vertical Line,” a more feminine and less boxy sheath than its 1940’s predecessors. The bodice and waist remained fitted, but the skirt also hugged the body from the waist down. It was common for the 50’s sheath to have a scoop or boat neckline, often decorated with little collars or bows. The skirt of the dress was what we refer to today as a “pencil” silhouette. This skirt was fitted, and frequently tapered down to the mid-calf. Some sheaths were so fitted at the bottom that a vent or kick-pleat was added to the back of the skirt so the wearer could walk. These exaggerated versions were referred to as “wiggle” dresses. In the 60’s designers introduced bold and loud colors into their creations; the skirts became shorter, thus culminating in the mini clothes,
and the quintessential girlie look of the 60’s. Designer clothes of a decade earlier which had a slim line and tubular, gave way to flared skirts and tentative beginnings of the A- line dresses. Soon after, skirts and dresses came in varying lengths: midi and maxi. These cuts have re-mained popular for about fifteen years, until the late 70’s.
1970s Fashion was the era of hot disco scenes and the “freedom of sexuality”. The 70s brought denim and neutral tones into the spotlight
alongside pantsuits, corduroy, and leg warmers, while women were crazy about platform heels and maxi dresses. These were the rave! Though platforms were “chunky” and looked somewhat bulky and awkward, every woman had at least a couple of pairs. The seventies heralded in its own style of fabulous clothing as it was the period of individual expression. It was rather about the free-for-all and ‘anything goes’ period than fitting in with a particular trend (what we can experience lately as well). Many women dressed in ways to please them-selves (not others), although it doesn’t imply they had no interest in high fashion. Dresses and fashion accessories presented on the runway were more radical design-vise than the styles of previous decades.
Women of the early 1980s loved soft textiles and neutral colors like beige, brown, tan, and pale orange, but by the later years of the
de-cade bright neon colors became highly popular. In the 80s jeans went from smart, sporty, or a casual ranch weekend wear to a hot fashion trend that became glamorous wardrobe must haves. There was spandex and shoulder-pads, while popular fashion accessories were belts, scarves, and bracelets. Interestingly, when you think of the 80s, you’ll remember hair spray, excessive makeup and bright flashy apparel. As we come forward we might question what is already history and what is current in fashion. The 90’s are already meant to be the trend
that we look back at as something already passed, but then again, where is the exact ending of this era?
If we want to describe the fashion of the 90’s, first we must better investigate what was this era about. Looking back, we can clearly see that
this was not just another fashion wave, but it made a mark on our society. It formed the basics of nowadays. It settled our desires and made a huge mark on the beauty industry as well, so much that it is just lately we started to question the unwritten rules of becoming an iconic woman. What does that mean and what exactly happened?
The 1990’s was the beginning of the rejection of fashion. This lead to the popularization of the “Casual chic” look, including t-shirts, jeans,
hoodies and trainers, which we still have today. Street wear was in and couture was on its way out. The modern woman was a working one, who needed to dress in a more practical and efficient way. She was also supposedly equal to the man, and at this point women and men dressing in a similar style had become a regular thing (both dressing as men). Fashion had more to do with the expression of personal style than the old fashioned “proper” way to dress like a lady or a gentleman. This effected in a wider range of styles to choose from, and an un-derstanding that fashion was a way to signalize who you are, on a deeper level.
The silhouette was minimalistic, straight, oversized or boxy. You could have a messy and casual grunge look, be punk, hippie or goth, be a clean modern preppy, smart casual, or business casual, be a playful or classy minimalist, have a colorful and oversized hip hop style, or just
All of the 90’s featured many styles never publicly accepted before, and definitely added a new twist to the ideal of beauty with its an-ti-fashion mix and match clothing, silly hats, platform shoes, as well as the start of the tattoo and piercing trend (you no longer had to be a rocker-type to have one). But, the biggest change of the 90’s was probably the new acceptance of the edgy or quirky look as a fashion style. With the help of iconic anti-heroes in television, film, and the fashion icons embracing this look, being a “misfit” quickly turned into “cool individualism”. This change opened the doors to a more relaxed and playful form of beauty and a new type of woman.
In the beauty department, makeup and hair trends dictated that the skin should appear matte and flawless, eyebrows defined or super thin, noses very narrow and small; “sucked in” cheeks were hot, body glitter and bedazzling was cool while lips were supposed to be full of a deep red lipstick or frosted with a pencil outline.
The Rachel haircut became a big hit throughout the entire 90’s meanwhile some other hairstyles were slightly odd, messy, crimped, straight or just plain natural, and both men and women started to cut their hair short.
The 1990’s had two main beauty ideals. On one side, there was the glamazon super model, such as Elle Macpherson, Cindy Crawford and Naomi Campbell, with their athletic, but curvaceous figures. On the other side, there was Kate Moss who marked the beginning of the ‘waif’ look (a physical presence of youth and extreme thinness; a fashion style featuring this look), and started a revolution not only in modeling but also consumer fashion. Off the runway the ideal could be divided into four accepted looks: 1. The thin, straight figure (Brick and Col-umn), 2. The athletic (Cornet), 3. The chesty but slender (lollipop and goblet), and 4. The slimmer fit version of the classic hourglass (hour-glass and vase).
At this time, it was still considered to be a sign of overweight to have a large bottom or thick thighs in the western society, and the pear-shape was a negative word. Larger women were basically never cast as the “hot girls” which sent the message, “only skinny girls are beau-tiful” (although, plus size modeling was already a profession).
pres-This era brought the rise of big personalities and supermodels. Anyone could become a supermodel or an actress. The magazines were full of stories of superstars starting from nowhere. The poor girl coming from a country side suddenly becoming a catwalk model was some-thing common, without a doubt everyone believed the story. So, the question was not “if I ever could be”, but “how can I make it as fast as possible?”. Music bands and artists such as the Spice Girls and Britney Spears made it even more believable and the stalking of celebrities became an addiction. Magazines were full of paparazzi photos and articles about “who what wore” and how and where to get it. They be-came a bible to young woman, opening an entirely new market to the mass.
These magazines and advertisements built up an irresistible desire to achieve something unattainable. They created a feeling of insecurity in women so they felt (and still feel to this day) the need to buy more of the products and clothing seen on celebrities in order to satisfy themselves. This trend blossomed through the entire first decade of the 2000s.
As the world became more technologically and economically connected, diverse fashion trends got in the reach of the public. The fast fash-ion brands quickly grew offering runway inspired collectfash-ions at affordable prices for the masses.
Hip hop was one of the main style inspirations alongside the glamorous sexy girl with very short pink skirts. The huge circle earrings (golden or silver) blossomed with the statement “the bigger the better”. Pants and jeans were worn only around the hips and as Christina Aguilera came to the scene, girls were trying to push it even lower to show more skin. Careless about the cold in the winter the main point was to just look “good”.
The first half of the 2000’s saw a succession of more trends such as: tiny shirts, rocket dog sandals, patterned jeans, puffy pants, ruffled
skirts, graphic shirts paired with the famous UGGs. In 2005 the hippie look came in and a year later the ballerina shoes.
1.3. NOWADAYS TRENDS
Moving from one decade of trends to another we barely realize that we have already passed 2010. It feels like we wore those baggy low waist pants combined with checkered beret hats just yesterday. Looking back, it seems like appearing in that look was a mistake - on the other hand, we still might have those pieces in our wardrobes.
From the early 2010s we could see some changes in the fashion industry. Designers returned to a fashion trend that was considered embar-rassing just a few years ago. One of their main inspiration was the 80’s comeback. We could see some neon colors on the runways as well as in the fast fashion shops. The term “vintage” became so fashionable that retailers had to fill up their shops with all the old-retro-rugged looking garments. But even in that trend there were some rules about how to wear it the cool way and which vintage pieces are meant to be worn. It was not about everything your grandmother had in her closet.
As the mobile application called Instagram became more and more popular in the late 2012, seemed like bloggers started to take over the fashion industry. Since blogging started to be a beloved hobby for some individuals, fashion blogging became a full-time job to anthers. These women (and later also men) became an inspiration to famous designers with their unique styles. Their attitude towards fashion was different from those fashion editors who wore only the high end, luxury brands.
Lot of these girls were coming from regular families. By uploading nicely composed pictures of their daily outfits, full of vintage garments from second-hand shops and fast fashion brands, they gained attention from the public. Articles such as ‘how to wear’, ’10 rules how to com-bine…’ and ‘my favorite casual look’ became the next big bible. We moved from admiring celebrities to following people “from the mass”. We were fed up with the sparkling, beautiful world of the plastic fashion industry and slowly learned that there is much more out there. Instagrammers became the most popular bloggers, and as their previous generation, they also received clothing from famous brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Alexander Wang, Michael Kors and so on.
It was the fitness and wellness that brought a different market to the fashion industry. This was not just about wearing running shoes with skirts, but a change in lifestyle as well. Workout routines, fitness magazines and online articles got more views than ever. The healthy life-style and eating habits were increasing again. Now it was not about cutting off calories, but to eat as much fruits, vegetables and organic products as possible. The pictures taken from above of your breakfast or lunch quickly spread through Instagram as a big trend. Everyone had at least a couple of them on their account. Lifestyle bloggers, personal trainers gained fame with their short videos appearing in the latest Adidas or Nike collections.
Yoga girls posing in the strangest yoga poses on the sunset beach, another one on the edge of the hotel terrace all wearing bright colored and patterned yoga wear. This seemed like a new opportunity for the fashion designers. The fitness theme has not been touched for a very long time. The last big health wave was in the mid 80’s. Back then bright and neon, shiny leggings were worn with a body suit over them, commonly accessorized with a belt. Who knew why and what function did the belt have or why the bodysuit over the pants were worn. Probably was not meant to be comfortable in the first place. It seemed like a fashion attitude rather than a functional active wear.
In 2014 the sportswear and active wear were really taking over the place. Big brands such as Adidas and Nike started to develop new textiles and materials to make the garments more functional. They gave a new life to running shoes. They were no more the ugly pairs we would hide in the back of our closet. We could say goodbye to non-sense combinations of reflective materials and colors. Some companies ap-proached sportswear with a harmonic attitude to integrate it into our everyday clothing. Others made it rough, harsh and visibly standing out as a symbol of pride.
Collaborations with sports companies and high-end luxury brands were the second big move to get even those customers who were not convinced with the first idea of this trend. Adidas with Stella McCartney launched their new collection, Adidas StellaSport in 2015 and they sold out immediately. High street brand H&M in collaboration with Alexander Wang introduced a new kind of trend on active wear. Neo-prene materials, embossed letterings, oversized puffy jackets with even bigger pockets were driving the youth crazy. People were willing to sleep in front of the shopping malls entrance the night before in order to get the first pieces of the collection. Many were just making editorials for magazines and later re-sold the garments for even higher price.
Kanye West has also made a collaboration with Adidas. His Yeezy Season 1 brand shoes were welcomed very well, but the clothing was much more of a different matter. After the release of the clothing line and consequent unsuccessful selling, Adidas bailed out from the further development of Yeezy. But even a year later the sneakers were sold through websites such as e-bay.com at a higher price. Clearly it was more outstanding than expected.
Maybe this collaboration was not the best investment, but it clearly founded the basics of street wear trend. Alongside with Supreme, the oversized hooded sweatshirts, simple t-shirts with printed texts and sweatpants were introduced as an everyday casual wear. Celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Gigi Hadid and Kendal Jenner were spotted wearing these pieces even at fashion events pairing them with high heels and jewelry.
The nude makeup, thick eyebrows (that were re-introduced by Cara Delevingne, the muse of Karl Lagerfeld) and matt dusky pink lipsticks gained immediate fame. The pink color in many shades, especially the ones closer to nudes, were applied on everything and everywhere. The new era of the millennial pink has begun. Probably this color is the one trend that lasted longer than only one season, considering that we still wear it even nowadays.
Clothing became more comfortable and the fashion industry started to be a bit more open towards diversity in beauty. Gosha Rubchinskiy and his gang were recognized as the Eastern post-soviet trend. He opened a totally new kind of “luxury” and brought a new view on clothing. Something that we thought to be poor and “lame” suddenly became cool and refreshing. The teenagers he has been working with were individuals full of dreams and goals in their lives. Exactly the opposite of how we perceived the Russian young generation. Artists, poets, musicians, designers and dreamers were representing love and happiness in an absolutely different way. There were no smiling faces on perfect photoshopped editorials, but the simple, untouched moments of life.
Gosha’s philosophy on the Slavic culture has brought sympathy and some understanding to Eastern countries. The kids among his “gang” are truly in love with their mother land and Moscow. They grew up there, they belong there and instead of escaping the reality, they focus on the good and positive moments.
One of his skater boys’ points out the perception of the communist era in an interview for I-D magazine. He says we should try to explore and focus on the good side of that time. It is a part of our culture, and since the 90’s we see only the bad side of it. Only hunger and restric-tions, but before that it represented a strong community of people believing in each other and keeping together as sisters and brothers. Although Gosha’s world is not meant to be political, it represents a strong unity and a fair point of view. His 90’s inspired soviet street-skater style became so popular that many of the fashion brands started to implement some elements into their collections. Tracksuit pants, red, blue, white and black colors, caps, hoodies, shirts and bomber jackets took over the catwalks and the fast fashion stores.
The most important change to point out were the editorials and campaigns in magazines and advertisements. It became very popular, re-gardless whether it was Gosha’s influence or it appeared (at the same time) as an evolution of the previous trends. It was not only for the pictures which looked like they were shot with an old analogue camera with flash lights, but also the choice of models.
The whole atmosphere of the image communicated something strange and unfamiliar. On the first glance it looked like a very ugly model wearing clothes combined with shoes that do not fit. The background was out of place. In fact, the first impression was very shocking. But still it did not let our mind go. The pictures glued the attention of the viewer to investigate the style more thoroughly. The longer we looked, the more we realized that the model was not ugly. Indeed, she had a unique beauty with the relaxed, careless pose. The shoes somehow worked together with the clothes, giving them freshness and coolness. And the background gave such a particular coloring that made us believe we are a part of it.
Something started to change in the fashion industry and this change was all about individualism. Customizable Nike shoes or later the Gucci jackets with the desired own embroidery were just the beginning. A door into a different world of a new customer.
We still cannot know whether it was about fashion starting to be more humane or just trying to explore new ways of expression. Magazines are full of discussions about the gender-fluid and transgender personalities. Is it just another trend or a real empowerment of diversity and individuality? More and more celebrities and models talk about their sexuality claiming they are genderless. But what does that mean? And where does that lead us?
If we look closer to the frequency of the presence of these topics in online discussions and fashion magazines one could easily think that fashion is blooming in the unisex trend. In fact, it returned to the most feminine floral style full of ribbons, ruffles and long dreamy dress-es. So where did the genderless ideology go? Was it just another hot topic that lately sold the most? People became careless of celebrities, therefore it was for sure a good way to catch attention. Or is the floral-ruffle trend the new embracement of feminism? It seems like these mixtures of new ideologies and trends create a big chaos. A world full of “individualities” and “personalities”, where the expression of an
Stella McCartney Resort 2018 Public School Resort 2018
2.1. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW AND FAST FASHION
We are all very familiar with the sentence “I have nothing to wear”. We hear this short claim many times from our relatives, best friends and even from ourselves while the closets barely can hold the amount of clothes we have. It is full of garments from nice and valuable pieces to rags and useless t-shirts. One over another, we sometimes forget what we have already. There are hanging dresses worn only once a lifetime and shoes barely touched. Still before each night-out there is the big question: what to wear.
One of the main reasons behind this “problem” might be the rapidly changing trends. As mentioned in the previous chapter, fashion be-came very chaotic. Trend after trend was appearing and the collections in the stores were renewed almost each month. In the fast fashion brands such as Zara, new lines are introduced every second week. People got so used to that, they became bored of looking at only seasonal collections. But what is the price of this? Is this the right way to grow a new kind of customer?
We assume that affordable and reachable brands, made for the masses, are inspired by the high-end runways and other influential artists’ or designers’ collection. They pick up a theme of a main trend which is meant to be the most selling and appealing for the people, and they come up with a much cheaper version. We can hardly imagine how many pieces they produce and sell all over the world. They became the mass leader brands in many countries and people have no other option than to buy their products.
We can hardly imagine how many pieces fast fashion brands have to produce and sell all over the world. They became the
mass leader labels in many countries and people have no other option, than to buy there.
The first years of H&M, when they were introduced to the market, people went crazy about the nice fabrics and the stylish look of the stores. The clothes seemed to be very simple and rather casual. It was possible to buy very fine denim and knitted sweaters. When Zara has opened the first store, they were something very new among the fast fashion brands. Zara had a very unique and individual style. The garments were just as off the runway, but of course for a cheaper price, but still nicely fitting, minimalistic with interesting details and solutions. Silk, cotton and linen were very easy to find each season among the collections. So, what happened and what went wrong?
Of course, in the first years of establishing a fashion company it is very important to build a good reputation. Brands are very focused on creating a good and strong brand image. The most important is to make people easily understand what they want to communicate. What is the story they want to tell and how do they make us feel? It is not just about the single garment itself, but the atmosphere of the store as well. There was H&M with its casual and comfortable style and Zara with its fashion forward pieces. Two stores meant for the masses, but having a different approach towards fashion. Though when we look at the last two years of these brands we barely see a difference. It seems like they both communicate one message: to follow the latest big trend in order to sell more.
There are other fast fashion brands such as Stradivarius, Bershka and Tally Weijl which are very popular among teenagers on the market. Their sizing and clothing is different accordingly to their target audience. More colors, text prints on almost every t-shirt, all over the store. At first it is very appealing to the eye; but as we look closer, we can see that the dresses do not fit well. The fabric appear to be very cheap, the tailoring is off and the text on the shirts are meaningless. Do these brands want to raise up a generation with no understanding for quality? Do they think young teenagers do not care about what they wear?
Probably it is not in their intention to create a market that buys everything in the store just because it is trendy. Their intention might be to survive in this competitive industry and the only way they can is to sell as much as possible.
2.2. BUY-USE-THROW AWAY THEORY
We live in the world of capitalism. A capitalistic system works because of the consumers. The bigger the market is, the more the industry earns. We do not question whether we need the clothes. We take the necessity for granted in order to feel better. But are we doing it inten-tionally?
By having the fashion styles and trends changing so rapidly the quality of clothing is not guaranteed to be good enough. Because of the speed and the price, competitive brands are pushed to produce their collection for as low cost as possible. There are only few countries where this is still possible and those are the poor countries. The life standards are low, the cost of the workforce is extremely cheap and the demand for work is very high because of the poverty. The industry takes advantage of low salaries and no required quality of working conditions. In fact, what could a poor person asks for in such World?
Most of us do not even know about the damage capitalism has caused. There are many articles, documentary movies and photographic evidence of the terrible dirt and pollution. Textile factories deflating the chemical colors into the rivers; leather manufacturers letting peo-ple to work without a proper protective gear, making them breath the polluted air; women working behind the sewing machines extremely long hours. These are just parts of the reality. And even after being aware of this all, we still go back to the cheapest store to buy that shirt, without feeling guilt.
There is such a big controversy between the consciousness of our choice of clothing and the real consciousness of our
purchase. This current trend of having fashion as a lifestyle should educate us about the ‘buy-use-throw away’ theory better.
There is such a big controversy between the consciousness of our choice of clothing and the real consciousness of our purchase. This cur-rent trend of having fashion as a lifestyle should educate us about the ‘buy-use-throw away’ theory better.
The shoes we buy do not last longer than one season. The coats we bought last winter are already torn apart and not “in” enough. The countless white t-shirts are already in the garbage after being used for three times and we do not even question the correctness of that habit anymore. “It costs just five euros in any other store. Do not keep it in your wardrobe!” – this has become the common way of thinking. That little amount of money does not mean anything for us, only for the person behind the production.
Recently there were many campaigns about “who made your clothes”. Sewers showing up a paper stating: “I made your jacket”, “I made your t-shirt” were a very conspicuous advertisement for some sustainable fashion brands, but will this change anything? Probably the problem is much deeper than just the way of production. In fact, there is an over production and over consumerism. The waste is too much and what happens with that amount of clothing is a mystery.
2.3. NOT HUMANISTIC FASHION
BODY DIVERSITY IN THE INDUSTRY
What the fast fashion has brought us with its turn on low quality is not just aesthetical. It is about sizing, tailoring and the choice of fabrics as well. Clothing is no longer about supporting our motion and everyday duties.
Our lives have changed during the last century. The World became faster. We travel a lot in a day from work to shops and home. Running on appointments, quick lunchbreaks and the use of public transport has become more stressful. We often do not have the luxury of having an option to change clothes and we might end up going for a date in our work outfit. Tight dresses, high heels and the feeling of the necessity to look sexy are just some regulations in our mind. But what can we do if our situation requires keeping these “rules”?
In the first decade of the 2000s fashion brands were producing mainly for children’s wear and for woman’s wear. It was very rare to find clothes for teenagers and young adults. The design of the garments were way too serious looking or way too childish, though 60% of the customers were aged from 13 to 19 and from 20 to 25. These were very specific groups of young shoppers who were conscious of what they were wearing.
Fashion brands started to see a potential in this target group and put a bigger focus on them. In fact, from 2010 more than 90% of the col-lections were made for them, leaving out the adult, more serious working woman outfits. On one hand, adults became more relaxed about their way of dressing and adopted fresher pieces in their wardrobe. On the other hand, fast fashion brands did not care anymore about the age category since they were selling anyway.
The market segment has changed radically. Now we experience the problem of lacking the comfort and fitting. It seems like everything was made for skinny, young school girls. We can find sizes of each garment from XXS to XXL regardless the aesthetics. We often realize that a
Some people would wear whatever is trendy regardless their body shape. Probably they do not care or they do not have the knowledge about these facts, meanwhile the term “wear whatever you want” is not always true. The fact that the industry does not offer any solution for this is just making the problem even bigger. So, what can this non-humanistic industry do?
Women have many different shapes and curves. Two persons with the same weight and height does not mean the same size at all. The waist line could be bigger or smaller and the hip lower or higher at the same time. We are all genetically differently gifted and the fact that not everyone has the need or the possibility to do sports might also give us diverse body types. Though there are some main attributes of clothes that categorize the fitting and help to find the “prefect” dress for us.
These attributes mostly refer to the waist line differences. The sand-clock shape is the one and mostly desired body type every woman wants to achieve. Slim waist and nicely curved hips are a dream come true. But what about those plus sized women who feel sexy and con-fident being curvy? Since when did this become less feminine? And why does the industry avoid this kind of body shape?
There are many answers and they mostly initiate from the fact that the production for masses cannot cover all the different needs of peo-ple. Though a lot of women can relate to the curvier body type, for the fashion industry it has not been very appealing in the past. It is just the very recent years that plus size models are promoted on the runway and in magazines, but design wise they are not a point of focus. Designers are meant to push the borders and cross the lines. Their biggest challenge is to question the rules of traditions which makes the World taking steps forward. But is looking for better solutions in tailoring a boring subject? Is it something that cannot change clothing radically?
There have been many concepts about dresses that can enlarge or shrink according to the shape of the body, such as ideas about spraying liquid t-shirts directly on the person or personalized 3D printed clothing. Most of these solutions are way too futuristic and the market is
3.1. RESEARCH ON QUALITY
Usually there is no way for us to know what is considered to be a quality clothing or quality fabric. It is not just our lack of education, but also the fact that it is sometimes very hard to differentiate materials by a single touch or sight. In this world, there is no guarantee anymore of higher price for higher quality. The label and the name behind it is quite enough for some to be sure the product will last long enough. Pair of jeans torn apart after a few months and shirts after the second wash look like they have been worn for 10 years. This is very familiar to everyone and the problem of not being able to buy long lasting garments is becoming bigger. So how can we be sure we are investing into clothes worth their price?
The first important point is to check the fabric content of the garment. Many people prefer fibers extracted from plants and animals as cotton, wool, linen, or silk, but synthetics make up a growing share of our wardrobes in the form of polyester, acrylic, spandex, rayon, and other manmade fibers spun from plastics and petrochemicals. Technology is improving their texture, luster, and drape, and some of these synthetic fabrics offer qualities such as stretch. They are often blended with natural materials to create fabrics that feel a lot like natural fibers. But these blended fabrics usually do not regenerate with repeated laundering the way natural fibers can. For example, when we dry a cotton-polyester blend garment in the dryer, the two materials can shrink at different rates, slightly changing the shape of the garment. Even a garment labeled 100% cotton can be low-quality. Fabrics can be made cheaply if they use low-grade fibers (which are typically not very strong) or if there is not a lot of fiber in the cloth. To cut labor costs, manufacturers may cut corners to produce clothing more quick-ly—resulting in clothing that is poorly made. That is why it is useful to learn how good quality looks and feels.
The best way to judge a fabric, knit or woven, is to touch it. Does it feel thin, brittle, and rough?
Or does it feel smooth, soft, and substantial?
That final trait matters because the more fiber there is, the more likely it will last longer. A fabric does not necessarily need to be heavy to be good. If the yarns are tightly packed but thin, the cloth can still be lightweight. What we should look for is density.
However, we cannot always judge a fabric from touch alone. Manufacturers may add chemicals, or something as simple as starch, to make cloth feel heftier and smoother, creating a nice surface on that button-up or t-shirt on the hanger that can disappear as soon as we wash it. (On the other hand, prewashed items, such as jeans, give a good sense of how the item will feel after we put it through the laundry.) A good solution also is holding the fabric up to the light and giving it a close look, especially with an item such as a button-up shirt. Paying attention to the individual yarns is very important as well. The more tightly spun they appear, the better.
For knits, in particular, there is another way to test them: stretching a small part of the fabric in an inconspicuous spot. It should ideally bounce back to its original shape. If it does not in that moment, it will not when we wear it either, meaning it may quickly start to look stretched out and misshapen. Some knits, even very expensive ones, are intended to be gauzy. That quality can be desirable, but just to be aware that some stretching, or even holes, may be inevitable.
Fabric, of course, isn’t the only element that matters. It is important to check the seams holding the garment together. The stitches should be even, closely spaced, and lying flat on the fabric.
For instance, checking the hem on a shirt or the insides of the crotch on a pair of pants can be helpful. If the seams look sloppy, or if there are spots where they appear loose or stitched over multiple times, those are warning signs. Even a stitch that is flat on the surface of the garment but bubbling on the inside may be a cause for concern. A sewing machine uses two threads to create a stitch, and they can pull on the fabric differently if the tension between them is not balanced. If the surface thread is too tight and the thread on the underside too loose, for instance, the stitch may look fine from the outside, but actually it will not be stable.
The fabric of a garment should be cut either straight along the grain, or in the case of a bias cut - on a clear angle - usually 45 degrees, which allows for the fabric to stretch. If it is not cut properly, the garment can pull out of shape with wear.
Any of these issues on their own are warning signs, but they also generally indicate that the product was made hastily and probably not with quality in mind. On the flipped side of that, if the inside of a garment looks just as clean and finished as the exterior, it typically shows that the item was made with care. High-end brands will even put what is called “binding” on seams, so that there are no exposed fabric edges inside the garment.
Manufacturers decrease labor costs by cutting the sorts of corners on garment construction mentioned earlier to produce more clothes per hour, or they may just not be paying workers much. In those cases, factories may be doing everything so cheaply that they are also ignoring basic standards of safety.
Manufacturers also reduce costs in sneakier ways, such as by using cheap thread that can break under even small pressure. For a compa-ny making millions of shirts or pairs of pants, the savings can be substantial, and even an educated consumer would not be able to tell by looking at the thread. But under a bit of strain the thread can easily snap.
All in all, this is just a hint of how we can easier recognize whether the clothes we intend to buy are worth the price or not. Though some-times we buy simple t-shirts in the spirit of quick use and do not expect it to last more than few months. Although we should be more aware of investing into good, long-lasting products.
3.2. THE TIMES OF QUALITY OVER QUANTITY
When we talk about quality clothing, we often think of luxurious pieces; garments that are handmade and the fabrics are produced in-house. The yarns come from a professional manufacturer who is very passionate and precise when it comes to work. It is a dreamy fancy world, unreachable for most of the people. But when we look at the clothes from our parents or grandparents, the jeans are still wearable and comfortable, the dresses are like new and the pullovers look untouched. The only sign of the time passed are the color combinations and patterns we do not see nowadays in stores.
If we look at the times before the extreme consumerism we are suffering from nowadays, we find ourselves in a very specific era and cul-ture. The communism, which was blooming in many eastern European countries, is not that of a beloved topic. Especially in countries which were under this political regime, it is not something that is talked about. Even though politically it was way too tough, unfair and inappro-priate, but it streaked something good into the industries and economy.
Fashion was one of the most significant industries in the eastern European countries. The textile production was blooming all over the USSR. There were areas specialized only on shoe production and leather goods, while some other regions were focusing on different types of clothing. The fashion of this part of Europe was very different from the West, because of the regulations these countries had. We must point out that the industry itself was very strong and the production and selling was very high, but the reason behind this success was the fact that there was no other choice. Only few big brands were producing (but at least quality) garments, which were meant to last long for sure, although style-wise were not that diverse.
A typical woman from the Soviet Union was dressed very modestly and traditionally. Cotton white shirt paired with dark colored mid-knee
When we look at the clothes from our parents or grandparents the jeans are still wearable and comfortable,
the dresses are like new and the pullovers look untouched.
From the 1960s, people were able to get the gasp of the latest trends from foreign magazines and of course actresses and actors were sig-nificantly influencing the desire for a particular dress or jacket. But the stores were offering only regulated and very simple pieces. Clothes were meant to be worn, therefore had to be functional and comfortable. Even after more generations the pieces were still useable
without a doubt.
The fashion was very plain compared to the French and Italian way of dressing. Only simple colors and very limited material combinations were available. Though the synthetic fabrics became very popular, there were very high-quality cotton, silk and linen productions. Wool coats were sold in grey, dark grey, black, dark blue and brown colors. The trend was much more traditional rather than fashion forward. In fact, it was said that Eastern Europe had no fashion, just functional clothing and mass production.
At those times the import of garments from foreign countries was very limited. Not everyone could afford to have one of those colorful, nicely patterned skirts that were seen in fashion magazines. Women in that time started to sew their own dresses. It was considered to be normal to have at least one sewing machine in each family, which was not kept only for repairing garments. Magazines with sewing patterns were sold out immediately and probably turned over the whole city. Some girls became very professional in sewing and opened their own little home-tailoring. Of course, only secretly, but it was very common in each small town or village.
The other problem was to get a different kind of fabric than what they could buy in the stores. Others had problems to get the yarns for knitting in diverse colors. They had to have the right connections to get what they wanted. It was not easy for women, but they became very much aware of what an excellent quality textile was or where to get nice lace for their home-made lingerie. They learned to hand stitch and traditional embroidery. Home-made was the haute couture of the East.
We can say that fashion design was not present as in France or in Italy by that time, but the way people learned to work together to prepare their desired pieces was amazing. This had awaken a special kind of creativity in each woman. A feeling of desire and to work hard to get
3.3. A MINIMALISTIC APPROACH TO FASHION
It is not in the intention of politics anymore to create such regulations upon others personal life such as the choice of clothes they want to buy or the freedom of access to information. No one can really say anymore who what should wear and how much pair of the same t-shirt they should obtain. But people could have already learnt the lesson from the damage capitalism created in our mind. It is never enough. People want more and better. As much as possible, while the only “regulation” is given only by ourselves. But who is saying no, if nobody really has to.
The last few years an emerging movement called ‘minimalism’ or the ‘minimalistic wardrobe’ started to spread among the millennials. The concept is about having only the necessary pieces in the closet. It is not just about clothing, but a different approach towards the life we live. This goes against the over-consumerism, the capitalism and the low-quality products as well.
Millennials are becoming more and more educated about their purchases. The usage of technology and the connectivity allows them to think twice about a desired product. They can double-check whether the price category is fair enough on the websites they are intending to buy from. There are many sites focusing only on the quality of products, of course, mostly focusing on goods we use during the day. This way of thinking has started to take over also in the fashion world. We get many suggestions on different websites to compare quality and price. In this way, the young generation is becoming more thoughtful about clothing itself.
According to Forbes in the article Millennials go Minimal (2016 article), 59% of millennials compared to “baby boomers” would spend on experience rather than material goods. They favor products which are environmentally friendly, sustainable and ethical. They are more into the style of life, meaning that they care about how they live, what they consume and where it ends up. Garbage separation has become a
The last few years an emerging movement called ‘minimalism’ or the ‘minimalistic wardrobe’ started to spread
among the millennials. The concept is about having only the necessary pieces in the closet.
In the first half of the 20th century an average woman had approximately only 36 pieces in her wardrobe. Today it has increased over 120 for and average consumer. From that more than a half are just clothes which have never been worn, or used only for one occasion. Ac-cording to a new startup called Cladwell, 80% of our wardrobe is full of useless items (Millennials Go Minimal: The Lifestyle Trend That Is by Deborah Weinswig, 2016 article). This startup helps people to minimalize their closet, which they call ‘the capsule wardrobe’. To understand better what people need, they choose clothes that can be matched in most of the color combinations, while style-wise and quality-wise are worth to keep. Their service consists of two parts: a closet clean out and the selection of the capsule wardrobe.
So what is this minimalist trend exactly? It influences all our consumer decisions from the clothes we wear to the products we buy. Every decision is considered for its usefulness, necessity, and functionality, and - of course - its impact on the environment. Whether we consider ourselves a Minimalist or we are just considering simplifying our life, either way, focusing on function over fashion can help to change more than just the wardrobe.
Some say that keeping and owning many things is heavy for the soul. It makes us feel like we are bonded to the place. We can barely move around or travel away from home because we are stuffed inside our house full of useless objects. In fact, it makes the travelling harder. Be-fore packing it takes time and a lot of effort for some to select out what to put in just a 20kg luggage. Dresses we barely touched during the year suddenly become a bondage screaming at us: ‘take me with you! You will need me!’. It is usually at the end of the holidays we realize we wore only 10% of our belongings. A simple t-shirt, one dress for a dinner, some skirts and a pair of pants.
On one hand, it takes a lot of energy and time to focus on the selection and cleaning up procedure, but on the other, some people claim they cannot afford to buy quality clothing. These consumers end up buying many cheaper and of course low-quality garments in fast fashion stores. But if we count the money spent on 10 useless shirts and one or two finer pieces, we end up at the same amount.
3.4. BRANDS AND THEIR HUMANISTIC APPROACH
SUSTAINABILITY IN FASHION
One way how the fashion industry is trying to approach the pollution and the problem of over-consumerism is with sustainability. This kind of approach has spread all over the businesses from little brands to bigger corporations. Some do follow this path and respect the environ-ment from the beginning of their establishenviron-ment, but most of the fashion companies are still careless.
Sustainable fashion, or also called eco fashion, is a part of a growing design philosophy and trend of sustainability, which follow a path to create a system where the human impact on earth is minimized and social responsibility is maximized. It is an alternative trend against fast fashion.
Sustainability has been already on the scene since the 1980s and 1990s, when two brands Patagonia and Esprit were founded. The owners have taken responsibility and action after witnessing the pollution and damage the industry has caused over the decades. The two brands were focusing on the fibers they were using in their businesses in order to make a better-quality product. Esprit were focusing on cotton yarns while Patagonia on four fibers: cotton, wool, nylon and polyester.
The work of these two companies has inspired the whole fashion industry to take a turn towards a different way of production. Esprit in 1992 introduced a collection that was made of natural cotton, recycled wool, naturally processed wool, “low-impact” dyes, focusing on wa-ter energy and toxicity. Naturally colored cotton and non-electroplated hard wears were a massive surprise for the industry. Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, the movement of sustainable fashion broadened to include many other brands. Though the primary focus has remained on improving the impacts of products through fiber and fabric processing and material provenance, Patagonia and Esprit were early to note the fundamental cause of unsustainability: exponential growth and consumption.
Slow fashion is the movement focusing on producing garments that last longer than a season or a year. The approach towards consump-tion is to create a historical and emoconsump-tional bond between the customer and the product itself and that way they become more valuable. Of course, the clothes have to be long lasting in order to keep up this special bond, so the focus on quality is the priority.
Another very important mark and trend is to make the companies more transparent. They need to create a new kind of customer relation-ship in order to make them understand their approach towards the industry. Better communication and open doors to their production and design process create a feeling of being a part of their company. A desire to belong to such a community of people and to support the philosophy attracts the customer to purchase at their stores from their collection.
This is also achievable by the so called emphatic design. For creating clothing that is appealing and desirable for the customers we must fully understand their needs, feelings and lifestyle. There are many brands focusing only on one kind of a market, narrowing down and fo-cusing their designs to please a specific type of person. It can be a focus on working women in big cities, young graduated and free-spirited 20-year-olds or even a wider range of age category of people who share the same life philosophy. To achieve a perfect emphatic design, it needs a deeper research on society and emotions. It is not just about the single garment or the collection, but the atmosphere of the store, the communication of the brand with the customer and the experience they get from it.
Large mass market and established fashion houses might not do a great job at eco-conscious production, no matter what they tell us. They are running archaic and eco-destructive production systems and business models. Their sustainable policies are often just about damage control, with a lot of PR sparkle, but very little substance. Meanwhile, smaller independent brands with sustainable production models built into their DNA are widely available. And unlike more established brands, they do not have to undo their global production systems, or con-vince investors that money must be spent to re-make the system which made them wealthy.
Big corporations have already launched many capsule collections in order to make a step towards the sustainable trend, but these moves are often just so called “green marketing” strategies. This is more than enough for an uneducated consumer, and their implementation of the eco-friendly philosophy often ends there. To truly become a part of this movement they should go through their entire business plan and change it, which requires a lot of effort, time and money that many of them are not willing to give away.
These big corporations should follow the steps of smaller brands who implemented and established their designs on the sustainability. They do not follow the crazy fast changing trends, but invest in smarter solutions. These labels are obtaining long-lasting collections or ev-ergreen designs produced in high-quality and smaller production. They are also using recycled fibers and waterless or chemical-free dyeing processes and less synthetic materials. Even more because when thrown away, plastic does not decompose, it sits in our soil and floats in our oceans.
Young brands established in the recent years are based on this connection. Creéme is a new startup brand from Slovakia focusing on working woman and man as a primer target group. Their idea was to design a lingerie that is not visible through the working dress code. White shirts are often a bit transparent and to find the perfect bra or t-shirt that does not “scream” beneath is quite a challenge. Instead of coloring the fabrics, they decided to use the finest cotton in its natural color: cream and light beige. The cream color is the most invisible under a white shirt and to produce lingerie without additional chemicals is the healthiest way. This concept is not just about aesthetics, but a focus on eco-friendly and sustainable production as well. Their further steps after gaining enough support from the public to launch their first production, is to start to grow cotton in Slovakia. This would create and open more job opportunities, as well as support the local manufacturing.
Local production and manufacturing is the other factor in the eco-friendly fashion. To get the clothes directly where they have been made is a big advantage and thought to be luxurious already.
4.1. HUMAN AS A SOCIAL BEING
A human being is a social animal dependent on trust. We trust someone if we share the same values and beliefs. We seek for communities and the feeling of belonging. Our satisfaction in society comes from being accepted for what we are and how we think by people that mat-ters to us. It is an enthusiastic feeling that is driving us forward. This is one of the main reasons why we love the social media so much and why we want to be connected with each other all the time.
We are not perfect machines and certainly we are not able to do everything by ourselves. Especially in this society which is based on the interaction between two people (or more). We rely on the fact that we are surrounded by others who can help us. Those we trust the most, let us experiment and act openly.
Every single decision we make is a way of communication. It is a statement or reflection of what we believe in. Those who believe in the same as we do and share the same values, are more likely to form a bond. We naturally surround ourselves with people or products that reflect who we are.
Each person in this world has its role in this society. It is like an organism all working together and being connected. A single movement or a word can affect one and another causing a chain reaction. Though we might think it is just ones’ business, the truth, is we send out negative and positive energies as well, which can radically change the mood of others. Being positive and empathic towards each other is not always our natural form of behavior. The stronger we are bonded and form a group of people, the more we might behave negatively towards those
“Man is by nature a social animal; an individual who is unsocial naturally and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or
more than human. Society is something that precedes the individual. Anyone who either cannot lead the common life or is so
Firstly, we investigate our position. After understanding where we are and who we are in that environment, we start to interact in order to understand who shares the same values with us. Only a few and right sentences are enough to immediately awaken sympathy and we become friends or good colleagues (especially in work). Though it might seem very simple and in fact, this explanation is simplified, human connections are extremely complex.
Children learn certain forms of behavior from their parents. They are raised up in the tight circle called family which provides them the most trusted (or meant to be trustful) environment. Within this group of people, they have the chance for the first human to human interaction and in that way to bond relationship with them. However, family relationships are often very complicated. More and more families are liv-ing separate lives, which for some is good, but some might be harmful. The traditional family image that consists of a mother, father and children has changed in many ways in the last century. It seems like people often stay together not because they want to, but because of the traditions. What and how a family should work is another matter of topic, but surely affects the social behavior of the individuals, since they learn the basics of human contacts from them.
Extending our social circle by gaining new friends start also at a very early age. Toddlers already communicate with body language, but it is not absolutely clear how much they are aware of their interactions. In any case, it comes naturally, and while growing up we already form our circle of belonging. Interaction and communication makes us who we are. By exchanging thoughts and experiences we learn from each other. The importance of this connection is not necessary towards others, but for us, to form and build up our values and personalities. Many studies were investigating whether a human being really needs the socialization by itself. There are some theories claiming that the necessity of meeting new people is generated by an outer stimulus, meaning that our culture makes us to be social. All the advertisements, topics we are talking about, problems and solutions are all related to our relationships. Naturally when we are alone somewhere, we start to feel the need to share our experiences after a while. We seek for a person to talk to.
The famous movie, Cast Away, directed by Robert Zemeckis, deals with the topic of social needs. It is the directors’ interpretation of a situa-tion where a FedEx executive suffers a crash landing on a deserted island. Clearly, he is the only survival and there is no way back for him. Chuck Noland (plied by actor Tom Hanks) stays alone struggling to stay mentally and physically stabile for years in isolation. In a brief time, he starts to talk to himself, and later creates an imaginary friend from a ball which remained from the crash. After four years of solitary life, he finds his way back to the civilization by escaping from the island.
The movie is for sure full of typical Hollywood elements in order to favor the audience. In fact, there is more action than in reality would be and the fact that he returns to the big city life without a mark on his mentality and behavior is just an imaginary situation. What would happen in the real life, whether he could interact the same way as before, is a question of psychology. Would he need the connection again, after learning how to live alone? Probably yes, because he was raised up in a community before. But surely would make a change on his view on life and later socialization.
There are several movies and books reinterpreting the desperate isolation of a human being, but all come to the same conclusion, that we need interaction and communication. If we have no other option than just ourselves, we create an imaginary person we can talk to. Surely each one of us, when we were children, had our own toy we were talking to, an imaginary friend who listened and was always there for us. And what could be more honest and intuitive than a mind of a child.
