As we bid summer farewell, so too do we part ways with our warm-weather wardrobe. For the most part, it no longer serves a practical purpose; shorts and short sleeves do virtually nothing to protect against the East Coast wind’s frigid sting. Naturally, we bundle up to combat the chilly climate with coats, sweaters, gloves, earmuffs, stocking caps, boots and scarves galore.

Last year, around that time when Mother Nature decided 5:00 p.m. was a good time for complete darkness, I noticed a circular red-white-and-blue patch with a silhouette of Antarctica lining my peers’ winter clothes over and over. My modestly sized hometown in Indiana sees its fair share of snow, but I couldn’t recall seeing such an identifiable insignia so frequently. Spurred by curiosity, some Googling eventually led me to www.canadagoose.com, where I saw multiple coats listed for north of $1,000.

I’m no stranger to expensive clothes. But anything above $1,000 for one thing sounds excessive. It better be a damn good coat for Canada Goose to justify prices like that. And to its credit, Canada Goose makes damn good coats and damn good winter clothes. Best known for its iconic down-insulated jackets, Canada Goose is a luxury winter wear brand based in, big shocker here, Canada. Its product line is ergonomic, lightweight, comfortable, durable and most importantly, it keeps you warm. Hefty price tag aside, Canada Goose has some of the best winter wear options on the market.

Ask any Yale student and they will agree that owning a Goose is a symbol of status on campus. But, as is the case with most status symbols, it is difficult to pinpoint why. 

The tempting answer is the price. But, if you’re in the fashion scene, you’d know that there are designer brands unbeknownst to the general public worth way more than the Guccis and Louis Vuittons of the world that are indistinguishable from something you would find at your local Old Navy. There must be something beyond economics that defines the essence of a status symbol. 

Allow me to take a step back for a bit. The art of fashion can trace its genesis to functionality; the clothing choices ancient humans made coincided with what they thought was optimal in their given circumstances. This makes intuitive sense: the first people to wear clothes probably didn’t decide to do it for expressive purposes. But the advent of culture enabled fashion to go beyond utility to the artistic dimension. Clothes became a form of creative expression, a language that can be worn. 

Such is the case today. Clothes no longer just serve a purpose; they have a meaning. Like all art, fashion serves to express something: an idea, a value, an identity. The same is true of Canada Goose. They offer protection from the elements, that much is clear, but meaning? Not so much. To uncover its meaning, we must investigate the history of status symbols. 

Since the dawn of hierarchical civilization, the rich and powerful have clothed themselves to differentiate themselves from common folk. The upper echelons of society have always wanted to be seen as special, superior even, relative to everybody else. What better way to do so than through fashion? Sounds pretentious enough. Crowns were reserved for the king and queen, gold jewelry for the wealthy merchants, and priestly robes for the clergy. On the stranger end: pineapples, windows and even the color purple. 

In other words, I have a thing that means I’m better than everyone else.

I’m not here to suggest that people buy a Goose because they want to look rich. A jacket or coat isn’t just an accessory. It keeps you from dying of hypothermia in the freezing cold. Canada Goose makes high-quality products that last for years, and depending on your financial situation, it can be worth the investment. That being said, it doesn’t change the fact that Canada Goose is still perceived as a symbol of wealth by a good amount of people, regardless of the buyer’s actual intent. 

Today, things are different. Yes, status symbols were initially an accurate representation of one’s actual status. And whenever you see someone wearing something with a Canada Goose logo, it’s pretty safe to assume that person — or their parents — is at least “comfortable.” But in feudal times, status symbols could be reasonably obtained by people with the resources to do so. The average peasant in medieval Europe had virtually no hope of wearing an expensive gemstone necklace. The explosion of commercial enterprise, modern consumer markets, digital retailers, all that stuff enables almost anyone to acquire a status symbol if they really want to. 

Don’t believe me? 

Introducing dopesneakers.co. This website is a marketplace for nearly identical reps — short for replicates — of expensive sneakers from the makers of iconic status symbols the likes of which include Balenciaga, Yeezy, Air Jordan and Dior. You can get $800 shoes for $100. I’m not saying you should — purchasing a counterfeited product with intent is illegal in the state of Connecticut. But if you did, very few people would ever be able to tell the difference. 

So, what does this ease of access mean for the status symbol? If it’s so easy to look rich, then what does the status symbol actually symbolize? 

The answer? Nothing at all. I think that the status symbol is nothing more than an empty label nowadays, or more precisely, a marketing tactic. It is an attempt to separate and divide us along class boundaries just for more profit. When you think about it, the status symbol is the ultimate form of advertisement. Once a product reaches status symbol status it advertises itself; consumers want an item because of the perceived social benefit gained from its ownership, not just for the way it looks or what it means. It is self-sustaining, and it thrives in human social life so long as we remain unaware of the psychological warfare-esque marketing practices employed by some of the most successful businesses. 

I don’t want to speak ill of anybody who happens to own a Canada Goose product. Purchase and wear what you wish; Canada Goose is a good choice if you have the funds for it. But I believe that as active consumers, we should all be more conscious of the unsettling ubiquity of modern advertisements, myself included. Canada Goose has struck a balance. It can justify its exorbitant prices with its high-quality product line and clever self-sustaining social demand. Somehow, someway, Canada Goose doesn’t compete for buyers, buyers compete for Canada Goose. Their brand is not just a brand name. It’s a brand name for successful people. And also a bird, so it has to be fly. So they say.

ZANE GLICK is a sophomore majoring in the humanities in Ezra Stiles College. You can contact him at zane.glick@yale.edu.