Final answer:
Missy's luxurious attire indicates high social status, but there's a critique about the importance of wearing clothes that are fitting. The historical context and societal pressures toward women's fashion expectations are suggested. Clothing choices have significant implications on social perception.
Step-by-step explanation:
The passage describes Missy's attire and appearance in a way that highlights her social status and the luxury of her clothing and accessories. Her white satin dress and voluminous cashmere shawl, along with gold links and the use of expensive scented oil, huile antique, for her hair, point to her affluence. This opulent display contrasts with the sentiments expressed in the quote where Marjorie gives a harsh critique about Bernice's fashion sense, underscoring the importance of wearing clothes that are not only high-status but also becoming. In the broader context, it speaks to the societal expectations and pressure on women to maintain a certain level of elegance and style in their dress, which echoes throughout the various excerpts.
The criticisms mirror societal concerns with modesty, appearance, and the class distinctions that clothing can imply or transcend, as noted in the historical reference to people of different social standings dressing similarly in a way that confuses or undermines traditional class markers. Throughout all these snippets, there's an underlying theme of fashion, taste, and the implications of clothing choices on a person's perception by others and society at large.