By Lisette BC Abbott

Let me ask you a question: what do you think of when you're dressing in the morning? Do you think of whether or not your outfit matches? Or whether or not it becomes you? Or whether or not you'd like to lose some weight so you can wear a smaller size? Or do you mp3 software downloads think of the significance of being able to wear whatever you mp3 software downloads wish, without any thought to whether or not you're violating codified or unspoken rules? Chances are you don't think of the latter. Some of you may, but I'd wager the mp3 software downloads majority of us simply think about whether or not our outfit looks good on us.

Being a former academic (I used to teach at the university level), I'm a mp3 software downloads member of several organizations, primarily history and writing organizations. However, the mp3 software downloads ones I have the most fun with are living history organizations. I've mentioned being in the mp3 software downloads SCA, or Society for the Creative Anachronism. Another fun organization, of which I'm not a member–yet, is mp3 software downloads The Society of Early America. Like the SCA, the SEA is mp3 software downloads a living history organization. And as such, they're very careful to mp3 software downloads strive for authenticity in their portrayals of daily life in early America and mp3 software downloads their dress.

Which brings me to mp3 software downloads the reality of the significance of dress, clothing, and material used by the mp3 software downloads different segments of early American society.

Let's do a little time travel, shall we? We'll try to mp3 software downloads get into the mindset of colonial Americans when they dictated and mp3 software downloads followed very exact dress codes. After all, if we're going to mp3 software downloads either participate in or attend a Society of Early America living history tableaux, we'd do well to mp3 software downloads understand why they dress as they do beyond the simple fact of their striving for mp3 software downloads authenticity.

Since early America is mp3 software downloads too-often presented as the Pilgrims sharing Thanksgiving with the Indians, it's sometimes easy to mp3 software downloads forget about the early Scots, Irish, Dutch, Spanish, French, Germans, and mp3 software downloads Africans, among other nationalities, that lived, worked, loved, and died on this mp3 software downloads land alongside the English Pilgrims.

Before the mp3 software downloads puritans came in the 1600s, the Spanish were already here. And following Spain's footsteps were the mp3 software downloads French and the Dutch. And we should not forget that even before the mp3 software downloads Spanish, French, and Dutch arrived, Indians were living on this land. As for mp3 software downloads Africans, we tend to think of their arrival via slave boats in the mp3 software downloads late 1700s or early 1800s. Frankly, that's wrong. In fact, historians believe the mp3 software downloads first boat to bring Africans to America (specifically, to the Jamestown colony) was in 1619. While future articles may explore clothing from mp3 software downloads other early Americans, this article is going to explore the mp3 software downloads most famous, or infamous, segment of early American society–the puritans.

Because the mp3 software downloads puritans strove for simplicity in their dress as a reaction to mp3 software downloads what they perceived as the growing corruption in the English Court, these puritans brought their same ideas of behavior and mp3 software downloads dress when they came to America. However, I must make it mp3 software downloads clear that there are two distinct sets of puritans who came to mp3 software downloads early America. The first, also known as the Pilgrims of Thanksgiving fame, came for mp3 software downloads religious reasons because they were being persecuted in England. But that's not the mp3 software downloads only reason: they also wanted to model a city, that mp3 software downloads "shining city upon a hill" that mp3 software downloads would serve as a visual beacon to those they left behind, namely England. They wanted to mp3 software downloads show that it was possible for a theocracy to effectively run an mp3 software downloads orderly city.

The second band of puritans who mp3 software downloads came, those in the later 1600s, were considerably wealthier and were rather severe in their dress and mp3 software downloads attitude towards those whom they regarded as "different." Whereas the mp3 software downloads earlier group of puritans, the Mayflower Pilgrims, were equally religious, they were more tolerant of others in that mp3 software downloads they cultivated their relationships with the indigenous Indians. The second band of puritans didn't.

Nevertheless, both groups of puritans shared similar dress codes, with the mp3 software downloads Mayflower group being the most severe. The men shaved their heads, thus the mp3 software downloads derogatory name of "Roundhead," and mp3 software downloads the women dressed plainly and refused to wear any type of jewelry or mp3 software downloads other adornment. To do so was considered vain and, thus, indicative of a mp3 software downloads predisposition to evil. Why was such an extreme approach to something as trivial as dress taken? To better understand the mp3 software downloads puritan thought processes, we need to contextualize the timeframe.

Since the English court had been in a series of upheavals (from the Protestant-cum-Church of England's King Henry VIII to mp3 software downloads the Catholic Queen Mary to the Protestant Queen Elizabeth to mp3 software downloads the Protestant King Charles II to the "posthumous execution" of Lord Protector, Oliver Cromwell), the mp3 software downloads court was, in the eyes of the puritans, becoming increasingly decadent and mp3 software downloads immoral.

Already frequently reflecting court rule, court fashions during Charles II's reign were excessive, with pounds of luxurious fabric to mp3 software downloads make one dress that was infused with complicated ruffles, bows, and mp3 software downloads jewels. The length of trains on dresses indicated the wearer's social position. Hairstyles became complicated in structure and mp3 software downloads indicative of wealth. Poorer women wore their hair in conservative ringlets or mp3 software downloads less extravagant versions of the wealthy, while wealthier women wore their hair higher and mp3 software downloads replete with intertwined pearls and flowers. Men also followed court fashion as they wore high heels–or "articulated" shoes, long waistcoats and rabats (complicated cravats with excessive pleats). Men were equally vain about their hair. Periwigs were de rigeur for mp3 software downloads gentlemen. This dress-in-excess was in reaction to the somber and austere puritan dress that mp3 software downloads was the fashion during the Reformation. The flounces, jewels, ruffles, and mp3 software downloads feathers essentially were statements of the freedom that the Restoration symbolized. (While the Reformation is the "reforming" concept of the mp3 software downloads Church as being more austere and focused on preaching during the mp3 software downloads reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary, and Elizabeth I, the mp3 software downloads Restoration is the "restoring" of the mp3 software downloads hierarchical, ritualized services, and of the ceremony within the Church during the mp3 software downloads reign of Charles II. Thus, the Restoration afforded more "layers" between common people and mp3 software downloads God. These layers are reflected in the people's clothes, clothes that mp3 software downloads featured layers upon layers of fabric, flounces, jewels, and feathers.)

Meanwhile, the mp3 software downloads puritans did not disappear. They continued to believe that such excessive dress was evidence of lives that mp3 software downloads had strayed from God. As a result, many puritans fought against the mp3 software downloads Catholic, Protestant, and Anglican Churches. Some puritans even physically destroyed churches and mp3 software downloads accosted church members. However, don't think that the puritans were the only rabble-rousers. Charles II's Parliament was zealous in ridding England of all nonconformists, including the mp3 software downloads puritans.

In any case, the puritans believed they were "purifying" the church. In fact, the original use of the word "puritan" was as an mp3 software downloads epithet, a derogatory term, used by non-puritans when referring to these self-called purifiers of the mp3 software downloads church. In time, the puritans came to adopt this name for mp3 software downloads themselves, and by using it in self-reference, sought to show to mp3 software downloads the world that indeed they were pure, and thus closer to mp3 software downloads God. And what better way to physically show their purity and mp3 software downloads closeness to God than through their dress?

While the mp3 software downloads English were wearing costly gowns made of silks and taffeta, the mp3 software downloads English and American puritans wore simple and plain clothing, often made of linen or mp3 software downloads other subtle materials. Their clothes were often stark in detail and mp3 software downloads could feature simplified versions of the cavalier's "falling bands," long, wide and mp3 software downloads white collars that hung over the dark great coat. Women's version of this collar was the "Bertha collar," and mp3 software downloads while in England the entirety may have been made of lace, in America and mp3 software downloads amongst the devout puritans, this collar was most likely made of linen with lace detailing. As in England, wealthy American puritans were allowed to mp3 software downloads showcase their financial ranking through their clothes. For example, the mp3 software downloads sleeves of well-to-do American puritans featured slashes that allowed white fabric beneath to mp3 software downloads show. However, since they were puritans, they still frowned upon ornate and mp3 software downloads fancy clothing, believing that such clothing was impious. Rather, the mp3 software downloads wealthy most likely fashioned simple and plain clothing from richer fabrics while the mp3 software downloads middle-class and poorer classes used linen and cotton.

As is mp3 software downloads the case today, historical clothing signified many bits of information about the mp3 software downloads wearer. While today the obvious white collar of the priest or mp3 software downloads the dark habit of the nun tells the world that the mp3 software downloads wearer is a religiously-identified person, the rest of us generally don't think about what mp3 software downloads our clothes say beyond the obvious of being professional, demure, sporty, or mp3 software downloads sexy. Nevertheless, like today, the cut and material of a mp3 software downloads piece of clothing can hold much more significance and meaning than mp3 software downloads we usually realize. While we may wear our tee shirts with political protests, the mp3 software downloads puritans displayed their political and religious beliefs by the style, design, and mp3 software downloads even material of their clothes.