Obviously, if one gives a definition of the phenomenon of fashion, it should be said that it has to do with fashion, taste, and lifestyle. In fact, fashion is a certain lifestyle or its determining function. Vogue is something of a dominant style in one or more areas of life. Each of the classic concepts reflects the social essence of fashion as it has been in a certain era. The features of understanding of vogue are largely determined by the socio-economic characteristics of the societies in which each of the concepts was formed. Fashion is mainly formed in high spheres, and it is always understood as a phenomenon of class society. This phenomenon has repeatedly been subjected to analysis and study, giving a better understanding of its functionality and value for both a society and an individual. Fashion has a direct connection with many spheres of public life and always has a global scale. If one considers this phenomenon in terms of its functions, it is necessary to say that vogue has a decisive influence on the economy.
Fashion as the Factor of Economic Progress. In many countries of the world, the industry of aesthetics and taste has an increasing impact on the population and begins to occupy a significant place in the national economy. This has happened at all times, since humankind invented concepts such as "taste" and "aesthetics" (Robinson, 1961 p. 377). According to some foreign estimates, "more than 2/5 of the total world production of goods and services accounted for the industry are directly or indirectly related to fashion" (Parmentier, Fischer, & Reuber, 2013, p. 376). Since the beginning of the century, this sphere, which satisfies the tastes of people in music, clothes, food, cosmetics, accessories, as well as in vehicles and even in house-building, has the highest rate of development, affecting the state of the related industries. "Fashion economics involves a turnover of hundreds of billions of dollars and employs no less than 1/4 of total employment in the world economy" (Robinson, 1961 p. 378). According to Robinson (1961), the fashion industry brings to the budgets of developed countries at least "30% of the revenue and generates about 25% of GDP" (p. 378). For example, in France and Italy, 45% of the costs of the family budget goes to the purchase of goods that define the aesthetic needs of people (Merlo, 2011 p. 349). This statistic makes it clear that the economics of human attachments plays an important role in society and, probably, serves as an engine of social progress. According to Pierre Bourdieu's theories (1984), it can be stated that vogue has always stimulated the world manufacture to make a certain product because the population has had a steady demand for it. This, in turn, gives rise to the proposal (p. 59). Thus, fashion turns into the engine of economic progress. Moreover, it affects not only the production of consumer goods but also the production of means of production. It is understandable that many theorists have tried to reveal a fashion phenomenon in their numerous works, and this phenomenon has always had a positive assessment. Theoretically, fashion cannot be negative; on the contrary, it allows people to define themselves in society to allocate their individuality. At the same time, it can serve as a tool for manipulating mass consciousness. Hence, whoever is able to control the fashion trends has "a great power and influence on the economic situation" (Bourdieu, 1984, p. 126).
Gradually, the vogue of punk style has led to the fact that many of the leading fashion designers decided to use it from a commercial viewpoint. They began to produce special collections of high quality and offered a very large profit. Speaking of style in music and fashion, it can be said that it has emerged as a protest against the established norms of society. Of course, "punk" was not a mass phenomenon originally, and therefore, if one classifies it as a fashion trend, it rather served as an "indicator of affiliation" and "was completely anti-commercial" (Ensminger, 2011, p. 33). Consequently, when this style entered the mass and spread around the world thanks to punk rock, it began to take on a slightly different function, which was closer to commerce.
After punk ceased to be the top of the music industry, the vogue of clothing in punk style went out of fashion too. During the late 80s till the early 90s, a new musical direction, which acquired a worldwide popularity for several years, began to gain momentum in the United States. In 1992, a new youth subculture was born as a result of the economic crisis, which affected primarily the young generation's position, which lost hope of a successful career and a solid social status (Ensminger, 2011, p. 110). The protest against the young society was expressed in a creation of a style that met the new harsh realities: "the asceticism of the young" (Ensminger, 2011, p. 112). Young Americans were intolerant to the older generation, their behavior, and traditions. This subculture was called "grunge"; the word means something disgusting, unpleasant, and repulsive (Ensminger, 2011, p. 113). A rude style grunge style ridicules the love for luxury, pathos, bourgeois culture and praises the culture or rather anti-culture of street youth. This style of clothing has also had a considerable popularity and even resembled the punk style. This style offered a trend of "clothing democratization" (Ensminger, 2011, p. 113). Both "punk" and "grunge" arose among the poor and in became the world famous styles affecting many areas of fashion thanks to the music.
Conclusions
The analysis of the phenomenon of "fashion" can be concluded with a statement that it is an objective, complex in nature, social and economic phenomenon associated with a variety of areas of life. The cyclical nature of fashion creates a not constant opportunity for the industry, i.e. it focuses on a periodical update of products according to the public taste changes and a need to increase the volume of production of fashion goods. The relationship between culture, economy and fashion becomes obvious by the example of such trends in culture as punk and grunge. As regards the vogue, it is necessary to remember such a concept as "social classes", as it is one of the major factors of the main trends' formation. Both styles arose in opposition to the existing hierarchy and established norms. The development of capitalist relations and globalization changed the economic relations forever, and this change reflected in the culture and the fashion world immediately.
References
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A Social Critique Of The Judgement Of Taste. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 13 March 2016.
Ensminger, D. A. (2011). Visual Vitriol: The Street Art and Subcultures of the Punk and Hardcore Generation. Jackson, MS, USA: University Press of Mississippi. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com
Merlo, E. (2011). Italian fashion business: Achievements and challenges (1970s-2000s). Business History, 53(3), 344-362. doi:10.1080/00076791.2011.565512
Parmentier, M., Fischer, E., & Reuber, A. (2013). Positioning person brands in established organizational fields. Journal Of The Academy Of Marketing Science, 41(3), 373-387. doi:10.1007/s11747-012-0309-2
Robinson, D. E. (1961). The Economics Of Fashion Demand. Quarterly Journal Of Economics, 75(3), 376-398.
