TWOS
"The Wearing of Swords" or, "Why "Preppy Style" Has Become Nothing More than The Wearing of Swords".
By the early 18th Century, in some parts of the Old World, swords had become little more than a form of jewelry, as dueling was prohibited as a Means of Resolving Disputes Between Men (and Often these Disputes Were Over Women, or Even Girls, or Money, or Honor, or other Things of Value At The Time, but Not Directly By Women as Women were not allowed to Own Property or Things), or it it were not, it was done with Pistols and not with Swords, In England especially, because of the Great Revolutions in the mid 17th Century, and thereafter, society had changed in ways that would not reach the Continent until a century later, or in the case of Russia, until much later. It was not only for Gentlemen to wear a Sword - anyone with the means to purchase a used Sword could appear as a Gentleman - whether he be a person of Ordinary Background or a Fallen Noble, who once was a Gentleman. If you looked like a Gentleman of Yesteryear, from all accounts you probably were a Gentleman. And yet students at Great Schools and Universities on the Continent, until the 1840s Revolutions on the Continent, continued to wear Swords, to demonstrate that they were a Better Class of People, which is Similar in Notion to the standards and heraldry worn by the Ivy Students today.
And yet there is a rash of opinion against this type of Coxcombery, a form of Popinjayery not welcomed by everyone, especially those who did attend a Prep, that is, form part of a group who consider themselves Prep, and regard Any Other Talk of Prep as surplus to what is needed, as Prep stands as it is, without commentary, and yet there is an interesting topic here to examine, and so I would write upon it, and invite your comments below also. The rash of opinion on the Internet focuses - perhaps rightly, or perhaps not - upon those who attempt to Profit from or Speak Authoritatively Upon Prep, or Ivy or other ostensibly similar and yet unrelated topics to Pre, such as Mr Fred Castleberry, who is believed to not have attended an Ivy, and yet writes prolifically upon Ivy, as if he did. People have said that he dresses "like a clown" and that he presents himself as "an expert" on the topic of "Ivy", and yet others write that there are many others like him, such as those who did not attend a Prep, and yet present themselves as experts on Prep. It is itself an interesting topic, but too Controversial for the Internet because people do not like being examined upon the Internet, as this is best done in Parlors, by Family and Friends. Faux-Prep, or Faux-Ivy is, of itself, an interesting topic Worthy of Discussion.
Is Modern Prep, Neo-Prep, or Faux-Prep, a type of Coxcombery, similar to the wearing of Swords? And yet a Prep, who is an Authentic Prep, may yet belong to this Cadre of Coxcombs, such as by Not Being a Polo Player, and Yet Being Content to Wear the Signaling-Ornament of a Pony Upon His Shirt, as if he were a Polo Player; this too is a type of Coxcombery. You may leave your thoughts below, and I do not censor them, as I believe that all may speak on this topic, whether Prep or Not Prep.
The Hobo Prep
Always Homeward Bound