WHAT QUALITY MEANS

THE STARS AND STRIPES

The history of Old Glory goes back to early colonial days. The first banner used in the colonies was, of course, the standard English flag, consisting of a red cross on a white field. The flags of the separate colonies followed the same lines except that occasionally a pine tree, or a hemisphere, was figured in the upper left quarter of the cross.

The beginning of the Revolution brought a flood of suggestions as to the design for a new standard. But it was not until June 14,1777, that official action was tak­en, when the Continental Congress passed a resolution fixing the design as thirteen alternate red and white stripes, and thirteen white stars on a blue field. Each star and each stripe represented a state. As each new state was admitted to the Union, a star and a stripe were add­ed, but it was soon realized that the addition of many more stripes would make the flag too bulky. Consequent­ly, after having been increased to fifteen, the number of bars was reduced to the original number. But the number of stars steadily increased, until the present number of 50 equals the same number of states. The story goes that Betty Ross sewed the first flag, and it was at her sugges­tion that five-pointed, instead of six-pointed, stars were used.

While controversy continues as to why Congress se­lected this design, there is good reason to believe that the coat of arms of the Washington family, which con­tains both stars and stripes, furnished the inspiration.

It is interesting to note that, prior to the adoption of an official flag, a banner frequently used bore the figure of a rattlesnake, coiled to strike, with the motto, «Don»t tread on me.»

 

Even the dictionary finds it difficult to explain the meaning of the word quality. It has to use other words like excellence. Why is quality so hard to define? Is it because it is such an abstract word and can mean so many different things? Or because its meaning depends so much on what it describes? How can you define high qual­ity when applied to the things you buy, for example, a pop record, a pair of shoes, a meal in a restaurant? You'll probably have three different definitions of quality for the three different things. Quality is also hard to define because it can be such a subjective word — it means quite different things to different people, even when they use the word to describe the same tiling. A Pink Floyd album may in your view have quality, but your friend may con­sider that the same album is a waste of good money. Yet another problem is that the meaning of quality changes over the years. Things which you think have quality may not be seen in the same way by older people. Just ask your grandmother what she thinks of the Stones? For exam­ple, consider the two ads. Both advertise clothes for men. Advertisers stress the points which they think sell qual­ity to prospective buyers. The selling points that are stressed in 1897 ad are durability, craftsmanship, de­pendability, tradition. What about the ideas of quality in the present-day ad? Present-day ads do not talk about tradition or craftsmanship, dependability or durability.

They stress the virtues of newness, of being different, sometimes of being way out. Cheapness may be empha­sized too, the fact that almost everyone can afford the product. Does this mean that quality in manufactured goods is disappearing now that most things are mass-pro­duced?