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The Seven Stages of Classic Menswear

Caustic Man

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In our journey from nakedness to transcendence each of us passes through stages of being, or psychological existence, in Classic Menswear and, indeed, in any other type of dress. These stages repeat with almost all individuals and conform to the basic principles inherent in the development of the human self. Not all devotees of Classic Menswear attain all seven stages. In fact, the more advanced stages are rarely achieved at all. What do we mean by advanced? By implication, which are the neophyte and intermediary stages? Between all seven of these stages there is some overlap. Some may never make it past the most basic stages after nakedness. Others refuse (or are unable) to break past intermediary levels. Those who do may proceed to advanced levels or reach the highest level of attainment which is to transcend Classic Menswear altogether. This can be more simply referred to as becoming a "tastemaker". A brief definition of these stages is as follows:

0: No concept of clothing whatever.

1: Primordial. At this stage a human being comes to realize that coverings offer protection from harmful elements in nature. This stage is usually attained at infancy and certain basic emotions such as wellbeing may be associated with being covered. Conversely, negative emotions such as unease or insecurity may be felt when coverings are absent.

2: Elemental. At this stage a human being comes to understand some basic symbols and associations with clothing such as a response to primary colors or a piece of clothing with a favorite cartoon character on it. This stage too develops early although usually after the human has learned to speak. Some indications may include a child insisting on wearing an item of clothing every day. This also represents a stronger attachment to feelings of security associated with particular items of clothing.

3: Rational. This is the stage at which a human begins to believe that certain kinds of clothes or combinations of clothes look better than others. Rational is a very broad stage which begins in prepubescence but can last for decades or for the entire life in the human. The rational stage usually finds the human generally capable of distinguishing what they believe looks good from what they believe looks bad. They cannot, however, explain why they believe this.

4: Imitative. At this stage the human attempts to break free from the confines of the rational stage and examines the patterns and similarities between clothes and fit combinations that appeal to them. They may notice a particular pattern, style of clothing, or brand that commonly appears in the things they like and attempt to acquire similar items. These items are then paired together in an attempt to imitate the styles that they like. The human, possessing only the most fundamental understanding beyond the Rational stage, usually looks haphazard and incoherent.

5: Subtle. The subtle stage sees the human begin to posses a rudimentary understanding of pattern matching, texture, color, and formality levels. This stage sees the human move away from imitation and become somewhat more confident with the creation of their own clothing combinations. Instead of imitating an entire fit that they like, they may change one or two items according to their preference. The mark of a Subtle practitioner is someone who may have a style similar to others but who posses one or more quirks which somewhat differentiate them from their peers.

6. Individualistic. This stage sees the human break free of the Subtle stage and develop a truly unique style. This style often breaks the "rules" of Classic Menswear but most peers from the Rational to the Subtle stage agree that it looks good (although many comment that they would never wear those kinds of fits themselves). Humans at the individualistic stage rarely bother with the "signature" quirks of the Subtle stage but nonetheless transcend Classic Menswear norms in creating a look that is immediately recognized by those who know them. When humans in lower stages encounter the individualistic dresser they often refer their style as something they wish they could "pull off".

7. Transcendent. At this stage the human completely transcends concepts such as Classic Menswear, levels of formality, and "rules". This person has an experience with clothing similar to the direct experience of ultimate reality. The human at the Transcendent stage posses the ultimate understanding that all the previous stages are an illusion. They dress in ways that neither follow the rules nor break them. The styles of clothing they wear are examined and rules are formulated by dressers in lower stages based on them. The transcendent dresser, however, does not recognize the requirements or prohibitions that these rules produce.

Stages 1-3 represent so called "neophyte" phases, the upper levels of which are the extent to which most humans perceive of clothing. Stages 4-6 represent "intermediary" phases and contain most regular posters from StyleForum. Although these stages may be perceived to vary greatly they actually occupy a very narrow level of dresser. This can be typified by the popular refrain that "You still look better than 99% of the population." Within that 1% exists all the moderate (though unspectacular dressers) and the upper tier which exists on StyleForum. Though this subset of dressers is narrow it has its own "advanced" stages which are represented by some in stage 5 and all in stage 6. Stage 7 represents a significantly smaller fraction of the afor mentioned 1%. It is arguable whether a transcendent dresser has ever existed on StyleForum although they certainly exist in the world. Examples may include Ralph Lauren, Yves Saint Laurent, and others. Being a well known name is not required to be a Transcendent dresser but a potential to influence those around them in a way that transcends all other stages is required. Dressers such as @Manton , Vox Sartoria, and @mafoofan have been referred to in terms which are often associated with Transcendent dressers although their influence may be considered dubious.

These stages represent a general overview of the development of humans to their clothes in the world at large and, starting in the later neophyte and early intermediary stages, on StyleForum. In rare cases people may skip stages but this is exceedingly rare. Most people follow these stages of development precisely, although how long an individual may spend in each stage can vary.
 
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EliodA

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Who is this "human" that you keep referring to, do I know him?
 

SartodiNapoli

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I suscribe to the thread to avoid forget it.

Will edit this post on a few days since i liked it for the philosophical/psychological ( my current studies among high tailoring,and classic dressing).
 

chogall

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@Caustic Man did you just transcribe that picture of stages of menswear cycle of life picture that was posted on this forum several years back, with RJman, Vox, Mafoo, Manton, PG, etc being used as a representation of different stages?
 

jedwards

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I thought this was a fun and thought provoking post.

Please could you clarify what you mean by 'transcendent' though?

I genuinely got a bit lost with that point because I didn't see the connection between that word as I continued reading... To me 'transcendent style' would be something in the spirit of "When this person walks in the room, guys wish they were dressed like him". Appropriately dressed for any given situation, but still looking like the dog's bollocks.

Are we conflating people who spend a fortune (relative to average incomes) on rare or luxuriously made clothes with being 'transcendent' in their style?
 
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Caustic Man

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What does the word "transcend" literally mean? It means to move beyond something. In this sense transcendent style has less to do with a particular way of dressing than it does with an effect that dress has on the person wearing the clothes and those around him. When dealing with something transcendent it is somewhat problematic to relate it to what other people think since to transcend is literally to neither reject nor accept conventions, to neither care nor not care what people think, and to neither seek to influence people nor not seek to influence them. This concept of transcendence is fundamentally tied to the concept of Atma, or soul. The soul is neither material nor non material. It transcends both realms of existence and occupies a space of perfect unity with the two. Similarly, the transcendent dresser approaches a personal experience of ultimate reality. Consider it like this. If stages 1-6 are the stages that people go through in their Classic Menswear journey, then stage 7 is the computer screen you are reading it on.
 

Caustic Man

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Are we conflating people who spend a fortune (relative to average incomes) on rare or luxuriously made clothes with being 'transcendent' in their style?

To answer this specifically, the amount of money spent is of very little concern. Of far more importance is the philosophical-psychological state of mind of the transcendent human. By definition this person neither values nor does not value expensive items. This person could shop entirely at thrift stores or not at all.
 

An Acute Style

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Given these levels, I'm curious about how a particular human would place themselves vs where other humans would place them. You mentioned some people who may be in stage 7. Who would you consider to be in level 4, 5 or 6 from the current WAYWRN crew.
 

Caustic Man

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Given these levels, I'm curious about how a particular human would place themselves vs where other humans would place them. You mentioned some people who may be in stage 7. Who would you consider to be in level 4, 5 or 6 from the current WAYWRN crew.

Stage 3, along with all the intermediate stages, were written with specific StyleForum users in mind. The stages weren't created because these members exist, rather an allusion was made to these members in order to better illustrate the points I was making. Using specific, although anonymous, examples better represents the concepts than would being entirely theoretical. Who these members are that I am referring to is up to you to guess.
 

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