Chapter Vi

Conclusions, and Implications The purpose of this research was to determine whether or not poetry (i.e., poems, ballads, and songs) could be used as a source of knowledge on historic dress in a social, political, or economic context, using the dress of Scottish Highlanders from 1603 through 1830 as an example, and to triangulate the findings with other sources that portray dress through the written word or visual image. This research cross-referenced the items of dress with social, political, and economic events that occurred in the lives of the Scottish and Highland people. Poetry was a major source of expression for the Scottish and Highland people and represents a valuable resource for studying historic dress; therefore, the main source of documentation for this research were eighteen anthologies containing 3,501 literary documents written from 1603-1830 in the form of poetry (i.e. poems, ballads, and songs). The researcher examined these literary documents and identified 394 poems with male dress references and 248 poems with female dress references over time. The researcher also examined the relationship between dress references and the social, political, and economic events and the contents of the poetry. Finally, the researcher examined the impact of sumptuary laws (i.e., the banning of Highland dress due to The Act of Proscription) on the dress behaviors of the Scottish people during the 18 century. Conducting historical research is exciting but presented challenges, as few extant records exist. This type of research is like a puzzle. The researcher attempts to find many little pieces and puts them together to create a whole picture of a past culture. The process can be frustrating, especially when researching primary documents, such as poems, letters, and portraits, yet the researcher was unable to speak to the writers and artists to know what they were really thinking or to ask them to explain or clarify terminology. There were not many sources available on Highland dress during the time period under investigation. The Highlanders were more worried about preserving their culture and daily subsistence, than preserving information on their dress. However, the Highlanders did use poetry as a form of entertainment and a means of communicating their political opinions, which provided information on their dress, although often unwittingly. However, most Highlanders were illiterate and Lowlanders transcribed their poems. In addition, Lowlanders wrote poetry about the Highlands. Many editors of the anthologies provided definitions or footnotes for some of the dress terminology. Most of these editors were living during the same period of time as the poets; therefore, the