03 Social Psychological Properties of Dress

03.2 Fashion

03.2.1 Culture

Davis, F. (1992). Fashion culture and identity. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. LC 91-44012, 238 pages, $24.95.

Reviewed by Dorothy Behling, Bowling Green State University

Professor Fred Davis has dedicated his book to the late Herbert Blumer, his mentor in graduate school, and a familiar name to fashion theorists. Blumer's interest (Davis describes it as a "fascination") in collective selection and fashion made a lasting impact on Davis, and this book is the result.
In Fashion, Culture and Identity, the author, a sociologist and professor emeritus at the U. of California, San Diego, tackles such questions as what makes clothes fashion, androgyny and dressing for success, the relationship of class or status to clothing, shifting erogenous zones, the fashion cycle and fashion selection. There is a chapter devoted to anti-fashion and Davis also discusses briefly the difficulty of studying the fashion process, as well as whether the displacement of the old with the new in other areas is comparable to fashion as it relates to clothing.
One of the most interesting areas in the book is a relatively brief discussion near the end where Davis maintains that the two types of models useful for studying dress are what he terms a fashion system model (i.e., a classic model coming from Veblen and Simmel) and a populist model. Davis sees the diffusion of influences moving from a distinct center to the periphery hierarchically ala Veblen and Simmel or ala Blumer moving horizontally. In both instances Davis sees the core image coming from a center "archetypically Paris" and a consuming public with a "Eurocentric culture". He describes the populist model approach and believes that researchers such as Evans and Thornton (1989), Kaiser (1990), Jasper and Roach-Higgins (1987), and Wilson (1985) "are likely to regard the dress and appearance innovations of lay individuals and social groups as constituting the analytical stuff of fashion study". Davis concludes that in spite of the merits of a populist model he is not willing at this point to abandon the fashion system model for that of populism.
Davis' book is well documented. He has obviously read extensively in the area of fashion as well as invested time in interviewing individuals who work in the industry. There is quite a comprehensive list of references, ten pages, which is particularly impressive when you note that the book is just over two hundred pages in length. Herein lies a major problem with the book. Although Professor Davis has some interesting insights into how social and cultural forces are reflected in the clothing that people wear, he did not develop them. Important contributions to the literature are frequently cited, but are not discussed at any length. An additional problem with the book is the style of writing, which is rather turgid, and abounds with very long sentences that frequently force the reader to go back and reread for context.
It appears to this reviewer that Fashion, Culture and Identity could be an interesting book for those individuals who have read extensively on this topic and are longing for an addition to their library holdings in the area of fashion and social change. The list of references Davis provides may also prove useful.

Evans, C., & Thornton, M. (1989). Women and fashion. New York: Quartet Books.

Jasper, C.R., & Roach-Higgins, M.E. (1987). History of costume: Theory and instruction. Clothing and Textile Research Journal. 5(4), 1-6.

Kaiser, S.B. (1985). The social psychology of clothing. New York: Macmillan.

Wilson, E. 1985. Adorned in dreams. London: Dirago Press. Republished by University of California Press, Berkeley, 1987.

McCracken, G. (1988). Culture and consumption: New approaches to the symbolic character of consumer goods and activities. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-31526-3, 192 pages, $27.50.

Reviewed by Geitel Winakor, Iowa State University

This is a collection of essays loosely strung on a central theme. The first and final thirds of the book concern the anthropology of consumption, a "hot" topic since the latter 1970's. The middle third of the book concentrates on fashion theory.
Chapter 1 examines the development of modern consumer society in the West; this section is useful for its historic perspective and the author's review of many works on the subject. McCracken then goes on to discuss "patina" versus newness in consumer goods. He presents a single, rather eccentric case study of consumption. He examines "displaced meaning" as a stimulus to consumer behavior in contemporary cultures.
Although readers looking for general theory of fashion will be disappointed, McCracken presents some intriguing insights on fashion. He compares the "fashion system" to advertising in transmitting and creating meaning and reinterprets the "trickle down" theory. He challenges the semiotic approach to dress, arguing that dress communicates but not in the manner parallel to language.
The book could have been stronger if McCracken were less "ethnocentric"
as an anthropologist. The literature applicable to fashion theory and consumption is voluminous. McCracken lists many references, but omits some key ones that are outside his area of specialization and overlooks implications of some that he cites. For example, he says the Simmel first stated the trickle-down theory, thus ignoring Veblen (whom he lists) and several earlier nineteenth century authors. He could examine how displaced meaning relates to economist Joan Robinson's definition of "utility" as the anticipated want-satisfying power of a commodity, since the purchase decision must be made before the commodity can be experienced.
In his final chapter, McCracken attempts to tie together the various ideas presented in the book. I would like to see him express some of these ideas as testable hypotheses. Where he does propose a specific hypothesis, the passing of time fails to support it. He predicted in 1983 (p. 101) that because women in business were imitating men's dress, men's dress would change to differentiate itself. But men's dress has proved to be remarkably stable. Theories of fashion have not served effectively to explain what has been going on with women's dress in the past 20 years.

Breward, C. (1995). The Culture of Fashion. Manchester: Manchester University Press, ISBN 0-7190-4125-2, 244 pages, $15.00.

Reviewed by Janet A. Gatch, Oregon State University

I found Breward's book to be an interesting and informative fresh perspective that effectively traces the Western evolution of fashion from the Medieval period to the present day. Indeed, this book would make a nice addition to the library of any scholar in textiles and clothing fields. I would not recommend this text as required reading for an undergraduate class due to its theoretical orientation. However, it would certainly be beneficial for graduate students interested in material culture, aesthetics, and fashion theory as well as the historical and cultural aspects of dress and adornment.
I hesitate to label Breward's book as a "scholarly" work. Its content, which seems to be only a synthesis of literature, it written as a narrative, which Breward admits freely in his introduction (p.4). Nevertheless, the text is easy and enjoyable to read and is complimented by several quotes - some that date the historical periods discussed.
Although Breward concentrates each chapter of his book on the fashions of an individual century and begins with a brief introduction and detailed descriptions of women's and men's dress of the period, the remaining portion addresses the cultural factors that had an effect on the evolution of fashion during that period. For example, topics such as clothing consumption, social status, women's roles, the sexual implications of dress, economics, homosexuality and cross-dressing, comfort, and religious influences are discussed in detail. In addition, the acceptable forms of femininity and masculinity, dress of historic "sub-cultures", and the effects of technology on fashion, all contribute to Breward's exciting new look at fashion history.
One large drawback of The Culture of Fashion, however, is its concentrated focus on the fashion history of Great Britain with little discussion of other cultures except for some brief mentioning of France and the United States. Unfortunately, the introduction neglects to inform the reader of this limitation; only later does one catch on to the narrow cultural scope of this work.
In summary, Breward provides a fresh approach to the examination of the evolution of Western fashion despite the book's limited focus on British culture. Not only does the author provide detailed description of dress worn during the centuries from the Medieval period to the present, but his discussions of the cultural factors involved in the evolution of fashion accented liberally by quotes make this book worth a look.

Steele, V. (1988). Paris fashion: A cultural history. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-504465-7, 317 pages, $35.00.

Reviewed by Elaine Pedersen, University of Nevada

The significance and symbolism of fashion in modern society and an analysis of why Paris was for so long the international capital of style are discussed in Paris Fashion. While Steele does not contribute a totally new fashion thesis the data she has collected are detailed and valuable to costume historians and professionals in the socio-cultural aspects of clothing. She provides many examples of political, economic, cultural, social and aesthetic influences on fashionable clothing styles.
A contribution Steele makes to the fashion literature is her research of French literature in which fashion plays a part. She describes how Balzac, Baudelaire, and Proust used fashionable styles to describe characters and society in general. Her in-depth discussion of their literature and their ideas on fashionable styles and fashion adds valuable information to an understanding of fashion in general and social life and fashionable styles and expectations in nineteenth century Paris.
Although Steele presents examples of influences on fashion she states that these factors do not precipitate style changes. Instead, dress style changes are more directly related to earlier styles and internal fashion change. Roots of change in fashion generally precede the historical and/or social events, but she is not always consistent with this idea. For example, she discusses the development of the chemise dress in the late 18th and early 19th centuries and the change in the corset in the 20th century as more related to ongoing style changes than to particular social events such as the French Revolution or World War I. However, while advocating that the primary influence is previous styles she also states that "to understand how fashion really works, it is necessary to identify the motives for fashion change" and "during periods of social revolution, the clothing worn tended to become simpler and more egalitarian…during periods of social upheaval, the normal rules of dress-even the laws of dress could be disobeyed.
As one reads some of the chapters there is sometimes a feeling of too much depth and a resultant loss of author's primary purpose or general thesis statement. However, when finished with the book it is possible to look back at all of the individual sections and realize that each section has added new details on fashion influences and thus, is an illustration of the significance and symbolism of fashion on current ideals of beauty and identity.
Throughout the book Steele raises questions which will need resolution via research. For example, Steele questions the differences between men and women in the fashion world. "We need to explore what there is in the structure of the fashion industry…that would encourage (or discourage) women from becoming fashion designers?" "Is there any validity to the popular belief that female designers create significantly different types of clothing than male designers-more comfortable, perhaps, or less seductive?"

Severa, J. (1995). Dressed for the photographer: Ordinary Americans and fashion, 1840-1900. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press. ISBN 0-87338-512-8, 592 pages, 272 photographs, $60.00.

Reviewed by Elaine L. Pederson, Oregon State University

Dressed for the Photographer is a work anticipated by costume historians for several years. Joan Severa, Curator Emeritus of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin Museum presents 60 years of middle class American clothing styles. Her extensive bibliography gives testament to the wide extent of her research on the topic.
Severa (p. xvii) uses primarily photographs, 20 percent of which are dated, along with information from 19th century women's magazines, letters, and diaries to present decade by decade descriptions of garments worn by "ordinary Americans." One of the author's goals was to present "every known style change during the years between 1840-1900 and to base an intensive study on precise dating of fashion elements, how the clothing looked in actual use, in what combinations it was worn, and just who wore it" (p. xvii). Severa uses her professional knowledge along with information and illustrations on clothing styles presented in 19th century women's magazines to date the photographs. A disadvantage of using a large number of undocumented photographs is that the original purpose of the photograph is unknown as is the identity of the individual photographer who may have used his own collection of garments for the individuals photographed. Also, with undocumented photographs, the actual date of the clothing can never be known and thus one cannot know whether the individual was wearing fashionable garments or was ahead of or behind the current fashion trends.
The overview of each decade found at the beginning of each chapter includes excerpts from diaries and letters, newspapers, and women's magazines. The information found here is quite useful. Severa discusses the economy along with production and distribution of apparel occurring during each decade. This is followed by a thorough discussion of women's garments and accessories, which sometimes includes information of mourning, maternity, and alternative styles. She also provides a brief discussion of men's and children's clothing styles.
The highlight of every chapter is the photographs. Severa uses photographs from a variety of institutions in 17 of the 48 contiguous states. Every chapter features no fewer than 36 photographs. There are a variety of types: indoor studio shots and formal and informal outdoor shots. There are also a variety of clothing styles: best, work, and "play." African-Americans are well represented although other people of color are not. Severa presents an extensive discussion with every photograph. She describes the clothing visible in detail and usually comments on construction features and sometimes fiber content.
The book will be a great resource for individuals interested in 19th century, U.S. dress. Its potential significance as a resource would be enhanced had the author discussed the limitations of the photographs and added more citations to the interesting comments she makes on garments, garment construction, and distribution.

Hethorn, J. (1997). A street guide to gang identity [online]. Available: http://gangid.ucdavis.edu

Reviewed by Marcia A. Morgando, University of Hawaii

This remarkable website addresses aspects of textiles and apparel scholar Dr. Janet Hethorn's seven year study of urban gangs and the appearance cues which serve as their identity markers. Motivated by reports of connections between youth violence and articles of dress, and clearly guided by deep appreciation for the needs of young people to experiment with fashion and style, Hethorn studied gang appearance phenomena in school settings and on the streets. She collected data through observation, photo documentation, and interviews with gang members, other youth, and law enforcement agents who facilitated access to her subjects.
Hethorn's work addresses signs of gang identity in the context of the complex factors which contribute to clothing and appearance symbolism. Moment in time, aspects of the surrounding environment, modes of self and clothing presentation, knowledge and experience of viewers, the influence of fashion, and changes in the means of symbols and in the nature of group-appropriated identity signs and factors identified by Hethorn. She cautions that identity markers be interpreted in the context of these and other factors. According to Hethorn, few appearance cues are entirely reliable indicators of gang membership. Complex motivations are at work in the appearance choices of young people. Other information sources on this topic which provide catalogs of signs and symbols associated with gang membership can be accessed from her site: Online Guide to Gang Signs and Graffiti, and American Gang Gestures.
Details of the report are fascinating. For example, Hethorn finds the most reliable markers are relatively direct references, such as specific gang names or initials embedded in tattoos, graffiti, or accessory items, and hand signs, often in the shape of gang insignia and "flashed" as intentional statements of gang membership. Also, how clothing is worn or arranged on the body may be a more reliable indicator of gang membership than either the colors or style of dress. In addition, gang members are more likely to identify affiliations through characteristic body posture and facial expressions than through other elements of dress. A larger purpose of the report, however, is to challenge stereotypes based on appearance, and to foster a climate of understanding and cooperation among youth, parents, and educators relative to significant matters of dress. Hethorn states that school policies intended to bring about safer learning environments must focus on changing behaviors, rather than altering appearance. Successful dress policies will depend on student involvement in decisions affecting the conditions of their dress.
The site is rich with Hethorn's photography of young people in various forms of street style, some documenting telling features of gang identity, others illustrating contemporary youth styles mistaken for gang markers, still others portraying the ambiguity inherent in clothing and appearance signs. Economy guides the composition; the text was meant to be read in entirety, and the pages are designed to facilitate reading at the computer terminal. Graphics and layout are enormously pleasing, and the site is an excellent reference for students engaged in the study of social aspects of dress, and in sociology and culture studies courses. I find Hethorn's study of gang identity, as well as the mode she has chosen for the report, to be brilliant and daring, and believe this work is of inestimable value as a contribution to the scholarship of appearance and dress.