Why Women Wear What they Wear

by Sophie Woodward, Daniel Miller, Paul Gilroy

Overview

Each morning we establish an image and an identity for ourselves through the simple act of getting dressed. Why Women Wear What They Wear presents an intimate ethnography of clothing choice. The book uses real women's lives and clothing decisions - observed and discussed at the moment of getting dressed - to illustrate theories of clothing, the body and identity. Woodward pieces together what women actually think about clothing, dress and the body in a world where popular media and culture presents an increasingly extreme and distorted view of femininity and the ideal body. Immediately accessible to all those who have stood in front of a mirror and wondered 'does this make me look fat?', 'is this skirt really me?' or 'does this jacket match?', Why Women Wear What They Wear provides students of anthropology and fashion with a fresh perspective on the social issues and constraints we are all consciously or unconsciously negotiating when we get dressed.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781845206994
Publisher:	Berg Publishers
Publication date:	11/01/2007
Series:	Materializing Culture
Pages:	178
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Sophie Woodward is Lecturer at University College for the Creative Arts, and Nottingham Trent School of Art and Design Research Associate.

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter 1: Understanding Women and their Wardrobes. Chapter 2: Hanging Out in the Home and the Bedroom. Chapter 3: But What Were You Wearing? Clothes and Memories. Chapter 4: Looking Good: Feeling Right. The Aesthetics of Getting Dressed. Chapter 5: Looking in the Mirror: Seeing and Being Seen. Chapter 6: Mothers, Daughters, Friends: Dressing in Relationships. Chapter 7: Fashion: Making and Breaking the Rules. Chapter 8: Dressing up and Dressing Down: Can you Wear Jeans? Conclusion.