What the Cinderella myth teaches us all (and especially little girls) is that shoes can magically transform our lives. Shoes are a force for change, a means of breaking with the past and moving into the future. For long periods in history women’s shoes were kept in the dark under a long dress or crinoline. But although they were so well hidden, they were and still are very informative. Eyes may be the windows to the soul, but shoes are the gateway to the self.
Psychologists have explored the hidden meaning of shoes. Some say that the woman who collects shoes is a frustrated traveller; others suggest she is symbolically searching for enlightenment. A pair of new shoes might not cure a broken heart or soothe a headache, but it will relieve the symptoms and chase away the blues. Even the least fashion-conscious people have been known to blow an entire month’s salary on a new pair.
In fact, the average American woman owns at least 30 pairs of shoes; the passionate collector has hundreds of them. A person buying each new type of her favourite shoe style follows the well-known principle: when you find a shoe you love, buy it in every colour. Foe shoes will never let you down: feet don’t gain or lose weight, and whereas we might not be able to wear our favourite trousers if we gain a few kilograms, we can always wear our favourite shoes.
Shoes have always reflected the wearer’s status and economic position. Aristocratic women of the early 19th century wore paper-thin slippers made of brocade while their maids walked about in heavy black leather boots. The gold sandals worn by Roman empresses just like the contemporary Gucci loafer have functioned to demonstrate class and money.
Shoes not only reflect social history; they are a personal record of our lives. They are like touchstones that make us remember a time, a place, an emotion. Shoes preserve the past because they are mementoes of occasions on which they were worn. A child’s tiny first shoe as well as wedding slippers, often carefully kept in their original boxes, bring back memories as vivid as those in a photo album.
When it comes to shoes, practicality and comfort are not important. The impulse to buy a new pair has nothing to do with need – it is the thrill of slipping into a new shoe and changing into a new person that pushes us to buy. An old shoe may be reassuring, but it is never exciting. New shoes have a talismanic quality, and that probably explains why 88 per cent of all women buy shoes that are one size too small for them. Because, well, does it really matter? Sensible shoes demand respect, but high heels promise the magic of adventure.
5.1.
Shoes at present can tell us more about the wearer than they used to in the age of long dresses.
5.2.
Spending a lot of money on a pair of shoes can actually happen to any one of us.
5.3.
Buying many kinds of one shoe style is less risky than buying many kinds of trousers.
5.4.
To the servants of the early 19th century their leather shoes were an important mark of status.
5.5.
Photos preserve the best of our memories in the best possible way, and so do shoes.
5.6.
In choosing high-heeled shoes, women follow the principle of both comfort and adventure.
Oto moje odpowiedzi
1.F
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mogłby kroś sparawdzic czy jest Ok ??