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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social institutions > Customs & folklore > Costume, clothes & fashion
Religions constrain the bodies of their members through dress. In
many cases, dress immediately identifies a member of the community
to the outside world and separates them from a society that members
believe is threatened by evil forces. Dress identifies the wearer's
community to other groups and communities, and may also reflect
one's status. Most interestingly, perhaps, dress is a measure of
one's level of commitment to the community. While communities vary
greatly in terms of what is permissible, strict conformity to
internal codes invariably is interpreted as a sign of piety,
whereas deviation implies at best self-indulgence and at worst
contempt for community values. In order to control sexuality,
women's bodies in particular are constrained in religious
communities in terms of emotional expression, diet, and especially
dress.
Religions constrain the bodies of their members through dress. In
many cases, dress immediately identifies a member of the community
to the outside world and separates them from a society that members
believe is threatened by evil forces. Dress identifies the wearer's
community to other groups and communities, and may also reflect
one's status. Most interestingly, perhaps, dress is a measure of
one's level of commitment to the community. While communities vary
greatly in terms of what is permissible, strict conformity to
internal codes invariably is interpreted as a sign of piety,
whereas deviation implies at best self-indulgence and at worst
contempt for community values. In order to control sexuality,
women's bodies in particular are constrained in religious
communities in terms of emotional expression, diet, and especially
dress.
The way a society deals with hair speaks volumes about its structures, its wealth, and its values. How is hair arranged? Is it left long or cut short? How often is it washed? Do men and women treat their hair differently and what does this tell us about gender? This stimulating book contains articles written by the Paris hairstylist Emile Long between December 1910 and December 1920 for an English trade journal. Long's purpose in writing was to keep English coiffeurs informed about the goings-on in the world of fashion and hairdressing in France, and especially in Paris. In doing so he has provided us with a personal cultural history of the world's most fashionable city in a period that stretches from the end of the Belle Epoque, through the First World War, and into the opening year of the Roaring Twenties. His investigation of hairstyles and fashion inevitably leads him to a fascinating discussion of important historical issues: the 'true' nature of Woman; the genesis and democratization of fashion; and popular attitudes towards hygiene. With his engaging literary style Long invites us to think about consumer habits and technology, notions of fashion and cleanliness, and changing ideals of femininity and the social order. Students and scholars of history, fashion and French society will enjoy these rich and revealing accounts of what hair means to identity and culture.
The way a society deals with hair speaks volumes about its
structures, its wealth, and its values. How is hair arranged? Is it
left long or cut short? How often is it washed? Do men and women
treat their hair differently and what does this tell us about
gender?
Drawing examples from a wide range of African cultures, this
ground-breaking book expands the continuing discourse on the
aesthetic and cultural significance of cloth, body and dress in
Africa and moves beyond contextual analysis to consider the broader
application of cloth and dress to art forms in other media. In
blending the concerns of Art History and Anthropology, the authors
focus on the art patronage systems that stimulate production,
consumption, commodification and cultural meaning, and emphasize
the overriding importance of cloth to aesthetic and cultural
expression in African societies. Through this approach they reveal
complex processes that involve a series of actors, including
textile artists, commissioning-patrons and consumer-patrons, all of
whom shape cloth and dress traditions. These individuals not only
influence production, but are a key to understanding the cultural
meaning of cloth and dress and, by extension, the body in
Africa.
Drawing examples from a wide range of African cultures, this
ground-breaking book expands the continuing discourse on the
aesthetic and cultural significance of cloth, body and dress in
Africa and moves beyond contextual analysis to consider the broader
application of cloth and dress to art forms in other media. In
blending the concerns of Art History and Anthropology, the authors
focus on the art patronage systems that stimulate production,
consumption, commodification and cultural meaning, and emphasize
the overriding importance of cloth to aesthetic and cultural
expression in African societies. Through this approach they reveal
complex processes that involve a series of actors, including
textile artists, commissioning-patrons and consumer-patrons, all of
whom shape cloth and dress traditions. These individuals not only
influence production, but are a key to understanding the cultural
meaning of cloth and dress and, by extension, the body in
Africa.
The body has been the focus of much recent critical attention, but the clothed body less so. In answering the need to theorize dress, this book provides an overview of recent scholarship and presents an original theory of what dress means in relation to the body. Identity relies on boundaries to individuate the self. Dress challenges boundaries: it frames the body and serves both to distinguish and connect self and 'Other'. The authors argue that clothing is, then, both a boundary and not a boundary, that it is ambiguous and produces a complex relation between self and 'not self'. In examining the role of dress in social structures, the authors argue that clothing can be seen as both restricting and liberating individual and collective identity. In proposing that dress represents 'a deep surface, ' a manifestation of the unconscious at work through apparently superficial phenomena, the book also questions the relationship between surface and depth and counters the notion of dress as disguise or concealment. The concept of the gaze and the role of gender are approached through a discussion of masks and veils. The authors argue that masks and veils paradoxically combine concealment and revelation, 'truth' and 'deception'. Here the body and dress are both seen as forms of absence, with dress concealing not the body, but the absence of the physical body.This provocative book is certain to become a landmark text for anyone interested in the intersection of dress, the body and critical theory.
The body has been the focus of much recent critical attention, but the clothed body less so. In answering the need to theorize dress, this book provides an overview of recent scholarship and presents an original theory of what dress means in relation to the body. Identity relies on boundaries to individuate the self. Dress challenges boundaries: it frames the body and serves both to distinguish and connect self and 'Other'. The authors argue that clothing is, then, both a boundary and not a boundary, that it is ambiguous and produces a complex relation between self and 'not self'. In examining the role of dress in social structures, the authors argue that clothing can be seen as both restricting and liberating individual and collective identity. In proposing that dress represents 'a deep surface, ' a manifestation of the unconscious at work through apparently superficial phenomena, the book also questions the relationship between surface and depth and counters the notion of dress as disguise or concealment. The concept of the gaze and the role of gender are approached through a discussion of masks and veils. The authors argue that masks and veils paradoxically combine concealment and revelation, 'truth' and 'deception'. Here the body and dress are both seen as forms of absence, with dress concealing not the body, but the absence of the physical body.This provocative book is certain to become a landmark text for anyone interested in the intersection of dress, the body and critical theory.
Clothing the body is one of the most complicated acts of daily
existence. When a nun ponders red shoes, an architect knots his
bowtie, a lesbian laces her Doc Marten's, or a nude model disrobes,
each is engaging in a process of identity-making that is both
intensely personal and deeply social. In an increasingly material
world, negotiating dress codes is a nuanced art, informed by
shifting patterns of power and authority, play and performance, as
well as gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity and race.
Clothing the body is one of the most complicated acts of daily
existence. When a nun ponders red shoes, an architect knots his
bowtie, a lesbian laces her Doc Marten's, or a nude model disrobes,
each is engaging in a process of identity-making that is both
intensely personal and deeply social. In an increasingly material
world, negotiating dress codes is a nuanced art, informed by
shifting patterns of power and authority, play and performance, as
well as gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity and race.
For ninety years, young society women in San Antonio, Texas have
donned custom-designed dresses and trains to take part in the
Coronation of a queen and her court. These royal robes, which weigh
fifty pounds and more and cost an average of $18,000, are highly
embellished with rhinestones and beads. The Coronation is part of
the ten-day, century-old festival celebrating the final battle of
the 1836 Texas revolt against Mexico.
Beads have been used since antiquity, not only to dress the body,
but as measures of value in economic and ritual exchanges. Their
popularity has never waned, and in recent years their trade has
enjoyed a world-wide revival. Beads have deep and multiple
meanings: in many cultures, together with garments, they reflect
age, gender and social status, and are a vehicle through which
people store, exchange and transmit wealth.
This work is a comparative study of the three "great" American wars of the twentieth century: World War I, World War II and Vietnam. The book explores several aspects of American popular culture, like fashion, film and the societal mores of each era. While a number of books have covered fashion during individual wars, this is the first study to compare several major conflicts, drawing some conclusions regarding the lasting influences of wardrobe over an entire century. This book provides short background information for each war, briefly covering earlier conflicts that shaped the hostilities of the twentieth century. Although the emphasis is on women's clothing, participation and service, men are not ignored. Their fashions not only speak to the times, but the enormity of their sacrifices.
Through an examination of the experience of transsexuals, this book
enhances understanding of how gender can and does function in
powerful, complex and subtle ways. The author, who has herself been
surgically reassigned, has conducted extensive interviews with
transsexuals from many walks of life. Her personal experiences,
which inform this book, have given her an access to her subjects
that others would likely be denied. While highlighting how the
gender identity of transsexuals relates to hormonal and surgical
changes in the body as well as to changes in dress, the book
investigates the pressures and motivations to conform to expected
gender roles, and the ways in which these are affected by social,
educational, and professional status. Differences in the
experiences of those who change from male to female and those who
change from female to male are also examined.
"A fascinating account of the powerful roles fur has played in various cultures and of the historical and political forces at work in the play of its meanings." Jonathan Culler, Cornell University"In this well-written treatise, Emberley . . . views fur through widely disparate lenses. . . . Emberley is able to make us understand all the viewpoints she presents. . . . A valuable book on a little-explored subject." Library Journal"This is a strong and intelligent work on a controversial topic. Emberley's book is much more intellectually sophisticated than anything else I've seen on this subject." Valerie Steele, Editor, Fashion Theory"Julia Emberley's book is a complex, wide-ranging, and fascinating feminist critique of the history and meaning of fur and fashion. Particularly unique is her integration of indigenous voices into the debates." Lucy Lippard, author of The Pink Glass Swan: Selected Feminist Essays on ArtFur has been sparking controversies ever since sumptuary laws marked it as a luxury item and as a sign of medieval class privilege. Drawing on wide-ranging historical and contemporary sources, Julia V. Emberley explains how a material good has become both a symbol of wealth and sexuality, and a symptom of class, gender, and imperial antagonisms."
Fur has been sparking controversies ever since sumptuary laws marked it as a luxury item and as a sign of medieval class privilege. Drawing on wide-ranging historical and contemporary sources, Julia V. Emberley explains how a material good has become both a symbol of wealth and sexuality, and a symptom of class, gender, and imperial antagonisms. Emberley documents the 1980s confrontations between animal rights activists and native peoples that pitted Lynx, the organization responsible for the high-profile anti-fur ads in Great Britain, against Inuit and Dene societies' claims for a livelihood based on the selling and trading, consumption and production of animal fur. The fetishization of fur, Emberley shows, extends from early modern paintings and etchings to late nineteenth-century literary and psychoanalytical narratives of sexual fantasy, such as von Sacher-Masoch's novel Venus in Furs. Contemporary advertising and fashion photography, as well as films such as Paris is Burning reveal the ongoing fetishistic practices of the fashion world. From colonial fur trading to twentieth-century globalization of the fur industry, Emberley analyzes the cultural, political, material, and libidinal values ascribed to fur.
This book examines the clothing worn by African Americans in the
southern United States during the thirty years before the American
Civil War. Drawing on a wide range of sources, most notably oral
narratives recorded in the 1930s, this rich account shows that
African Americans demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the role
clothing played in demarcating age, sex, status, work, recreation,
as well as special secular and sacred events. Testimonies offer
proof of African Americans' vast technical skills in producing
cloth and clothing, which served both as a fundamental reflection
of the peoples' Afrocentric craftsmanship and aesthetic
sensibilities, and as a reaction to their particular place in
American society. Previous work on clothing in this period has
tended to focus on white viewpoints, and as a consequence the dress
worn by the enslaved has generally been seen as a static standard
imposed by white overlords. This excellent study departs from
conventional interpretations to show that the clothing of the
enslaved changed over time, served multiple functions and
represented customs and attitudes which evolved distinctly from
within African American communities. In short, it represents a
vital contribution to African American studies, as well as to dress
and textile history, and cultural and folklore studies.
This book examines the clothing worn by African Americans in the southern United States during the thirty years before the American Civil War. Drawing on a wide range of sources, most notably oral narratives recorded in the 1930s, this rich account shows that African Americans demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the role clothing played in demarcating age, sex, status, work, recreation, as well as special secular and sacred events. Testimonies offer proof of African Americans' vast technical skills in producing cloth and clothing, which served both as a fundamental reflection of the peoples' Afrocentric craftsmanship and aesthetic sensibilities, and as a reaction to their particular place in American society. Previous work on clothing in this period has tended to focus on white viewpoints, and as a consequence the dress worn by the enslaved has generally been seen as a static standard imposed by white overlords. This excellent study departs from conventional interpretations to show that the clothing of the enslaved changed over time, served multiple functions and represented customs and attitudes which evolved distinctly from within African American communities. In short, it represents a vital contribution to African American studies, as well as to dress and textile history, and cultural and folklore studies.
Winner of the Association of Dress Historians Book of the Year Award, 2021 In 1939, fashion became an economic and symbolic sphere of great importance in France. Invasive textile legislation, rationing and threats from German and American couturiers were pushing the design and trade of Parisian style to its limits. It is widely accepted that French fashion was severely curtailed as a result, isolated from former foreign clients and deposed of its crown as global queen of fashion. This pioneering book offers a different story. Arguing that Paris retained its hold on the international haute couture industry right throughout WWII, eminent dress historians and curators come together to show that, amid political, economic and cultural traumas, Paris fashion remained very much alive under the Nazi occupation - and on an international level. Bringing exciting perspectives to challenge a familiar story and introducing new overseas trade links out of occupied France, this book takes us from the salons of renowned couturiers such as Edward Molyneux and Robert Piguet, French Vogue and Le Jardin des Modes and luxury Lyon silk factories, to Rio de Janeiro, Denmark and Switzerland, and the great American department stores of New York. Also comparing extravagant Paris occupation styles to austerity fashions of the UK and USA, parallel industrial and design developments highlight the unresolvable tension between luxury fashion and the everyday realities of wartime life. Showing that Paris strove to maintain world dominance as leader of couture through fashion journalism, photography and exported fashion forecasting, Paris Fashion and World War Two makes a significant contribution to the cultural history of fashion.
Between 1886 and 1924 thousands of Japanese journeyed to Hawaii to work the sugarcane plantations. First the men came, followed by brides, known only from their pictures, for marriages arranged by brokers. This book tells the story of two generations of plantation workers as revealed by the clothing they brought with them and the adaptations they made to it to accommodate the harsh conditions of plantation labor. Barbara Kawakami has created a vivid picture highlighted by little-known facts gleaned from extensive interviews, from study of preserved pieces of clothing and how they were constructed, and from the literature. She shows that as the cloth preferred by the immigrants shifted from kasuri (tie-dyed fabric from Japan) to palaka (heavy cotton cloth woven in a white plaid pattern on a dark blue background) so too their outlooks shifted from those of foreigners to those of Japanese Americans. Chapters on wedding and funeral attire present a cultural history of the life events at which they were worn, and the examination of work, casual, and children's clothing shows us the social fabric of the issei (first-generation Japanese). Changes that occurred in nisei (second-generation) tradition and clothing are also addressed. The book is illustrated with rare photographs of the period from family collections.
In 2005, British supermodel Kate Moss went to Glastonbury with her then-boyfriend, indie rocker Pete Doherty. Their unwashed appearance captured widespread attention, propelling the British indie music scene and its signature look-slender bodies clad in skinny jeans-to the center of popular fashion. Using this fashionable watershed as a launching point, Fashioning Indie narrates indie's evolution: from a 1980s British music subculture into a 21st-century international fashion phenomenon. It explores the lucrative transformation of indie style, first into high concept menswear and later into "festival fashion"-a womenswear phenomenon that remade what indie looked like and provided a launching point to reimagine who the ideal subject of indie could be. Fashioning Indie is essential reading for academic and popular audiences, offering an original account of what happens when a subculture is incorporated into the commercial fashion system. As the music and fashions of festivals face increasing scrutiny in debates about diversity and inclusion, and the transformations of indie style coincide with the global expansion of the second-hand retail sector, the book offers also essential insights into the broader culture of popular fashion in the 21st century and the values that inform it.
The childlike character of ideal femininity has long been critiqued by feminists, from Mary Wollstonecraft to Simone de Beauvoir. Yet, women continue to be represented as childlike in the western fashion media, despite the historical connotations of inferiority. This book questions why such images still hold appeal to contemporary women, after three, or even four, waves of feminism. Focusing on the period of 1990-2015, Picturing the Woman-Child traces the evolution of childlike femininity in British fashion magazines, including Vogue, i-D and Lula, Girl of my Dreams. These images draw upon a network of references, from Kinderwhore and Lolita to Alice in Wonderland and the femme-enfant of Surrealism. Alongside analysis of fashion photography, the book presents the findings of original research into audience reception. Inviting contemporary women to comment on images of the 'woman-child' provides an insight into the meaning of this figure as well as an evaluation of theory on the 'female gaze'. Both scholarly and accessible, the book paves the way for future studies on how readers make sense of fashion imagery.
This encyclopaedic reference covers all aspects of modern and traditional perfumery. Each entry includes information on botanical identity, origin, use, history, folklore and examples of the perfumes in which it is a constituent. There are similar entries for modern synthetic ingredients. Detailed descriptions of 200 top commercial fragrances of the present day include their main ingredients, their creators and biographies of those who designed their bottles. The differents types and families of perfumes are listed, together with information on how to choose, use and keep a perfume. There is also a section on home perfume making, which includes an appendix of ancient and modern perfume recipes and formulas. |
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