The spectacular Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles, built between 1678 and 1684 during the reign of Louis XIV, pays tribute to the political, economic and artistic success of France. Le Brun’s 30 painted compositions on the vaulted ceiling illustrate the political successes while the artistic success is displayed in the Rouge de Rance pilasters topped with capitals of gilded bronze based on a new design created by Le Brun and referred to as “the French style”. France’s economic success is revealed in the number and size of the 357 mirrors decorating the 17 arches opposite the windows, demonstrating that French manufacturing could then rival the Venetian monopoly on mirror production.
Strange as it may seem, in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries the mirror was the ultimate status symbol. After Louis raised the bar with the gallery, displaying a mirror was viewed as a mark of refinement, power, wealth and self-confidence. According to antiquarian Tony Victoria, a specialist in 18th and 19th-century French antiques, “At that time the mirror showed where you were in life.” It provided the means for kings and court-iers to measure themselves against the accepted standards of fashion and beauty of the day. Until the 19th century mirrors were very expensive due to the fact of the exceptional amount of breakage that occurred during production.
In the 1980s, as we suffered through tough economic times, Guyanese visitors to Trinidad, were exposed to life in an oil boom. The short 45-minute plane hop could well have been a trip to Shangri-La in another dimension. There, the status symbols of the day ranged from frequent trips to local shopping malls, the acquisition of high-end luxury vehicles, construction of dream houses perched on the sides of mountains, and tales of weekend shopping sprees in Miami, New York, and London. Quite a contrast to what prevailed here. Apart from the obvious high salaried job and residence in an upper-class neighbourhood, at that time local status symbols were membership of the Georgetown Club or the Georgetown Cricket Club, a ten-year US visitor’s visa, a generator, an overhead tank along with a pressure pump, a VCR and a television set.
In today’s world of social media, we witness cleverly designed marketing campaigns, aimed at the younger (more likely gullible) generation, where, most notably in the ever-evolving fashion world, the newest trends or fads are presented as ‘the-must-have-now’ status symbol. Here, as the marketers rev up the hype over the latest edition of the Nike Jordans’ sneaker line or the newest style Gucci handbag, their targeted purchasers become hell bent in their desperation to ‘keep up with the Jones’. These excited fashion chasers are seemingly unaware that their idolised trendsetters are actually paid advertisers for ‘these-soon-to-be-no-longer’, flavour of the month designer clothing, shoes, and accessories.
The pursuit of status symbols is by no means restricted to the young and vulnerable. Indeed, it is often the favoured territory of the nouveau riche in most societies. We are constantly briefed of the race among the Russian oligarchs to purchase an even larger yacht than the latest one launched by one of their own. In the music world, rappers, well known for their affinity for bling (diamonds) have acquired a taste for gem-studded Swiss watches which range anywhere in price from mid-five figure (US$50,000) to high six-figure numbers (US$790,000). Of course, the old monied families of First World societies quietly continue their intragenerational tradition of expanding their art collections; their status symbols are reserved for selected eyes.
Today, we have come a long way from the dark days of the 1980s, and like everything else the status symbols of the time have evolved. The acquisition of a firearm licence and a firearm, the ability to import a vehicle with an engine capacity of over 1500 cc, whether by way of a duty-free concession or not, are among the highly sought-after signs of social status. These are today’s ultimate status symbols.
Is the pursuit and the eventual attainment of a status symbol really worth it? One might argue it is necessary to set goals in life and if one wants to include a status symbol on the list then so be it. However, in the blinkered chase of material trappings, often misplaced as status symbols, one sometimes arrives at a fork in the road, where one must make the decision whether or not to compromise one’s value system in order to continue the drive to the ultimate goal.
It’s here that one is tasked with a thorough self-valuation process. Among the questions one must ponder is if status symbols are mere warning signs to be ignored all together. Isn’t the pursuit of intangibles, like a good reputation for instance, worthier of one’s time and effort? Shouldn’t one follow the moral compass of life? The decision made at the end of it will determine whether for the acquisition of status symbols, the perceived rungs on the social ladder to success and acceptance, is an absolute end all for the individual concerned.
There is a paucity of integrity, accountability and compassion in today’s society that are a direct result of the amount of time and energy channelled in the pursuit of status symbols.
