# Capes: Sensible garment or fashion statement? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 8, 2022, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524 "2022-04-08T14:53:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/41 "2022-04-09T10:09:05Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > The vast majority of the weight is in the back. Mine is something like 60/40, front vs back. that’s not “vast” > [@](#): > > The weight on your shoulders isn’t going to keep it from slipping off Not on your shoulders, over your chest. You seem to be thinking of a Superman-style cape here, I’m talking about this kind of thing: [![](https://i.pinimg.com/564x/e4/f5/6b/e4f56bd249596ac59a7143a8bd0b4f04.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/564x/e4/f5/6b/e4f56bd249596ac59a7143a8bd0b4f04.jpg) I’m speaking from actual experience here. It does not slip. The tailoring around the shoulder points makes it cup them, and that also helps. > [@Atamasama](#): > > The ties are across your chest sometimes. But a cape will shift as you move, and it will occasionally move uncomfortably against your neck. Once again - only if it’s poorly-fitted. Mine do _not_ do this. the- ties are somewhere between collarbone and nipple-height on my cloaks and my (sadly lost) cape. If that clasp was at my neck level, something’s gone badly wrong. Maybe if someone pulled on the back. But not from just moving around. Once again, I have to ask, who here actually wears capes and cloaks as a regular item of clothing? Because I do, and I’ve never experience any of the discomfort or drawbacks people are talking about. My woolen cloak is my preferred inclement Cape of Storms winter weather/AkrikaBurn desert sandstorm attire for a reason. And my cape got worn for entire weekends of reenactment activity for decades without throttling me once. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/42 "2022-04-09T10:19:33Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Capes seem to be a DC superhero thing. I’m not up on all the superheroes out there, but I can’t think of any Marvel ones that have a cape. Dr. Strange and The Vision. Sometimes Thor does and sometimes he doesn’t. Moonknight. But you are correct that capes are not as “fashionable” among Marvel heros. > [@The\_Librarian](#): > > Isn’t a large parka much more practical? It’s likely we regard parkas as more “practical” because that’s what we’re used to. Also, for riding in things like cars and SUV’s yes, tailored coats are easier to manage IMHO and based on my own experience. But prior to cars and in cultures where capes/cloaks were the norm people probably regarded them as more “practical”. There is definitely a cultural/custom aspect to all this. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/43 "2022-04-09T12:48:40Z")
In at least one version of the Superman story, when Ma Kent was making his costume, she added the cape explicitly because it would look dramatic fluttering in the wind. And she also deliberately made it skintight to show off his build. This was presumably a continuity where it wasn’t a Kryptonian fashion statement, because I don’t think Ma Kent knew anything about Kryptonian culture. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/44 "2022-04-09T14:43:12Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Dr. Strange and The Vision. Sometimes Thor does and sometimes he doesn’t. Moonknight. But you are correct that capes are not as “fashionable” among Marvel heros. Speaking of Vision, though, there’s the Scarlet Witch’s small-bathing-suit-and-big-cape look… ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/45 "2022-04-09T15:46:37Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Fear and intimidation. Plus his head/mask piece would look dumb attached to a coat. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/46 "2022-04-09T15:56:32Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Once again, I have to ask, who here actually wears capes and cloaks as a regular item of clothing? > > Because I do, and I’ve never experience any of the discomfort or drawbacks people are talking about. I have an authentic Kinsale cloak with hood from Ireland. It was custom made and fits as you describe. It doesn’t slip off my shoulders unless I actively flip it back. It is beautiful, warm and comfortable to wear. I love it. I wish I had more opportunities to wear it now without looking like a weirdo. No question, it is a dramatic article of clothing. People notice it and apparently feel it Makes a Statement, even though I’m not sure what the statement is. I usually reserve its use for a night at the opera or other special evening out. Where I live now, I rarely need a coat and the cloak is too warm most of the time. Mine is so long, it is not a practical choice for working outdoors. Easy to step on and get in the way, if working around machinery. It could easily get tangled. Though it performs its intended function of keeping me warm well, it’s much more of a fashion statement. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/47 "2022-04-09T16:00:06Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I don’t really think there’s anything a cloak offers that can’t be done better by a long coat. If it’s windy, you can button it up and stay warm. If you want that effect where it trails behind you as you run dramatically it will do that if you leave it unbuttoned. To wit [![](https://bleedingcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/The-Matrix-Neo-Hot-Toy-6-900x900.jpg) ](https://bleedingcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/The-Matrix-Neo-Hot-Toy-6-900x900.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/48 "2022-04-09T16:03:43Z")
> [@kitap](#): > > I saw the version of Hamlet with Mel Gibson in the theater. At some point one of the characters throws his cloak over his shoulder and fastens it with a cloak pin. I actually out loud said for some odd reason, “so **that’s** how a cloak pin works”. I had the exact same reaction to that scene. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/49 "2022-04-09T16:25:17Z")
An ‘opera cloak’ can also imply an opulent, fashion-statement kind of garment: [![](https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/84236/323245/main-image?.jpg) ](https://collectionapi.metmuseum.org/api/collection/v1/iiif/84236/323245/main-image?.jpg) [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Opera_coat_MET_DT7397.jpg/480px-Opera_coat_MET_DT7397.jpg) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Opera_coat_MET_DT7397.jpg/480px-Opera_coat_MET_DT7397.jpg) [![](https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/collections.lacma.org-images/remote_images/ma-338567-WEB.jpg?HgBB7V9HsWo8sot45paTcubmKKscedZj) ](https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/collections.lacma.org-images/remote_images/ma-338567-WEB.jpg?HgBB7V9HsWo8sot45paTcubmKKscedZj) ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/50 "2022-04-09T16:26:05Z")
I think the main reason to wear a cape or cloak these days is the hope that someone will notice you’re wearing one and ask you about it. Basically the desire to be known as the cape guy or lady. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/51 "2022-04-09T16:28:02Z")
I think that’s true. Although being known as the Cape Lady is not something I aspire to – which is why I wear it rarely now. It attracted far less notice when I lived in California. But there were even fewer opportunities to wear it for its utility. Except Halloween, of course. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/52 "2022-04-09T17:15:16Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > What about a Batman style cape? It would be useful for misdirection and for helping allow for a disappearing trick. That’s actually how the iconic image of Dracula as wearing a cape came about. [https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/battles-batman-and-liberace-a-cultural-history-of-capes.amp](https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/battles-batman-and-liberace-a-cultural-history-of-capes.amp) > [@](#): > > > “The high-collared cape which we now recognize as a hallmark of the Dracula character was first used in the stage versions. Its function was to hide the back of the actor’s head as he escaped through concealed panels in the set to disappear from the stage, while the other actors were left holding his suddenly empty cloak.” > > This practical costume change had a huge cultural impact. Capes were much more versatile and practical than coats. Faster on and off or partially worn, of importance if coming in and out of the cold and not wanting to hang it up somewhere. (Closets were not plentiful in the past.) Able to used indoors if near a draft without having to get and put on a full coat or even taking a sweater on and off. As mentioned could be used as a blanket when traveling. Could be and were used to signal status by color and design. And remember that it was only recently that buttons were on anything other than the clothing of the elite. I also would guess that sealed up comparably they work better for warmth than coats, like mittens are warmer than gloves. The question to me is why they went out of style. ---
**Author:** ![Galactus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galactus/32/3581_2.png) [@Galactus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Galactus)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/53 "2022-04-09T17:32:26Z")
There’s a Seinfeld reference for everything. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bHNqri_0Mbo/maxresdefault.jpg "Frank Costanza’s lawyer. Man with a Cape (Best of Seinfeld)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHNqri_0Mbo) ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/54 "2022-04-09T17:57:58Z")
I always used a rain poncho while camping. You can sit outside and you have your own miniature tent. So you can keep your legs dry while sitting. Also, a baseball type hat with a brim is essential. Put up the hood with the cap under it, and your good to go in the rain. And always remember folks - “Don’t tug on Superman’s cape” ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/55 "2022-04-09T18:32:57Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > The question to me is why they went out of style. Are you sure you’re fashionable enough to know what is in style? I am not, but a quick search on “[vogue.com](http://vogue.com)” revealed that, at least on the opera-cloak side of things, the 2021 Dolce and Gabanna Alta Moda show in Venice featured some “incredibly overstated cloaks”, [https://trendus.igte.ch/Content/Images/PhotoGallery/size1/dolce--gabbana-alta-moda-2021-sovundan-buyuleyici-tasarimlar-49847-31082021092318.jpg](https://trendus.igte.ch/Content/Images/PhotoGallery/size1/dolce--gabbana-alta-moda-2021-sovundan-buyuleyici-tasarimlar-49847-31082021092318.jpg) including apparently among members of the audience: [![](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.vogue.fr%2Fphotos%2F612caa8f2a644adab66eccd5%2F2%3A3%2Fw_2560%252Cc_limit%2F240939338_575012923681918_8439257295314649275_n.jpg&f=1&nofb=1) ](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.vogue.fr%2Fphotos%2F612caa8f2a644adab66eccd5%2F2%3A3%2Fw_2560%252Cc_limit%2F240939338_575012923681918_8439257295314649275_n.jpg&f=1&nofb=1) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/56 "2022-04-09T18:33:52Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > I have to ask - have you ever worn a cloak for an appreciable length of time? Not really, but I’ve owned quite a few full length wool coats, and I live in a country where it rains and the wind blows. I’m happy my coats had buttons when I wanted them to stay closed. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/57 "2022-04-09T18:47:33Z")
Occasional high fashion statement’s notwithstanding, yes: coats pretty much replaced capes and cloaks by the early 1900s. Wearing a cape or cloak now is a “look at me! I am a cape person!!” unusual item. Not something the lines of me could wear no matter how practical I might conclude it is. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/58 "2022-04-09T20:26:22Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > In theory you can wear a coat like a cloak, and I recall some old-fashioned styles where you would take a sleeved coat, wear it on your shoulders (arms not through the sleeves), and have some kind of chain across the front keeping it from falling off. That would be the [pelisse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelisse), worn by [hussar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hussar) regiments. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/59 "2022-04-09T20:40:18Z")
As for applications where a coat would NOT be more practical than a cloak–find me a coat that will work with Tudor or Elizabethan women’s clothing. Go ahead, I’ll wait. I have an ankle length 3/4 circle heavy woolen lined cloak with a hood, made it myself. Pull the hood up, lie down and pull your feet up a tad and instant sleeping bag. Try THAT with a parka. My son had a huge fake fur half circle cloak and we used to wake up in the morning to find him asleep under our sunshade on the big wool rug, sleeping in the middle of a pile of young ladies who did not dress for the weather, all covered over with his cloak. No room in a coat for friends. Why yes, we DID do SCA for many years, how did you guess? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524/60 "2022-04-10T08:58:15Z")
Got to love all the mind readers who just _know_ why people like me wear cloaks. Not enough 🙄 in the world… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/capes-sensible-garment-or-fashion-statement/962524.md?page=4)