IELTS Essay: Western Clothes and Traditional Clothing
Vocabulary
What do the words in bold below mean? Make some notes on paper to aid memory and then check below.
As the fashion industry has become increasingly closer, it is now more common for individuals to wear western-style attire instead of their own traditional clothing. In my opinion, this is a natural result of globalization and is a negative on the whole given its lack of diversity.
Many countries now adopt western fashion trends due to the effects of globalization. In past centuries, consumers were limited to the clothes that they either made themselves or could procure from their local area. Today, it is possible to efficiently transport vast quantities of goods by air, land, and sea. These fashion products are often made by famous brands such as Nike and Calvin Klein and can undercut local manufacturers’ prices. The global nature of media, particularly with the rise of the internet and social media, has also accelerated this process. Most people watch and listen to western movies and music and are subconsciously influenced by western fashion.
In my opinion, the pervasiveness of western fashion is decidedly detrimental as it concentrates wealth in unimaginative corporations. There are thousands of traditional styles of fashion around the world that have now been subsumed into a limited range of western aesthetic preferences. For instance, the Hmong communities in the North of Vietnam are famous for their vibrant design and the use of sustainable, textured fabrics such as hemp. If their cultural contributions were to be lost, it would necessarily mean a blander fashion world. The companies that now have the most power in terms of fashion tend to be concerned with profit over creative expression, and therefore create clothing without artistic merit.
In conclusion, wearing similar, typically western, clothing is a result of the spread of consumerism and impairs cultural diversity. Consumers should strive to embrace more traditional and environmentally-friendly fashion trends.