Clothing presents an inseparable part of the human body. Linking art with clothing synthesizes the spiritual and social nature of human conduct, and it also creates metaphors and symbolic relationships in the anthropogenic environment. The aim of this synthetic view is to help us understand our internal worlds. The body represents the only support or shelter that a person (or humankind) can rely on. Through clothing, a person can make their fi rst step in non-verbal communication towards the world. Clothing not only shows our appearance, but also represents our interior world. We attract attention with the help of our clothing. With apparel, we communicate with others, express acceptance or rejection, or collective attitudes in relation to understanding something that is likeable, sociable, moral etc. Clothing can be interpreted as a transmission of information between a carrier and recipient through symbolic messages in the general or specifi c scope of the clothing culture. In such open communication, a person creates their individuality through appearance. Messages and information about ourselves are visually sent and received.
The aim of the study was to show the principles of nonverbal communication achieved with clothing by using Roman Jakobson’s linguistic method. As demonstrated and established here, clothes and their functions can be translated into verbal and written language. The language of fashion, costume and stage design can be analysed in terms of their function and symbolism. Based on the language function scheme, clothing can be interpreted as the language of communication and as a system. Using purely linguistic methods, examples of various clothing analyses demonstrate the clothing function as a visual sign system, which is equal to the linguistic sign system, language and communication. Different kinds of communication can be achieved through garments, as explained by the examples and discussion selected and described.
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