Popular culture is set of behaviours and values shared by a community in a certain time. This essay aims to examine the change of women’s fashion throughout Australian history and how Australia’s popular culture has helped change this. After reading this essay it will be clear that women’s fashion has evolved in response to the increased rights and independence of women.
During the 1940’s there was a great depression due to the Second World War. Because most men were fighting in the war many women began taking on the men’s jobs. Taking on the men’s jobs meant the women had more independence; this is show through the fashion of this time. During this time women in the work place wore pants suits which were much like the men’s suits but more feminine. Whereas the women at home wore simple knee length dresses for the fact that they were cost effective during the great depression.
After the great depression in the 40’s the 1950’s saw a huge economic boom. Due to this boom everyone had more money to spend; this meant a new fashion trend could begin. During the 50’s teenagers had more of a say in their clothing this resulted in freer and less formal clothing style. During this time women could be see less formally because they had more of a choice in the things they did and what they wore. The freer and less formal clothing style reflected the attitudes of the women in the 1950’s.
Women of 1960’s felt that with their increased independence they should be treated equally. Throughout the 60’s this attitude was shown through protests and the fashion trends of the time. During the 1960’s women wore slim fitting clothing, they also begun to wear miniskirts and other more revealing clothes. This change of fashion was used as a way to empower...
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...as because with little money this style was very cost effective. Women began wearing the same clothes as men which as mainly high-tops or ugg boots and hoodies. By wearing the same style as men women were finally seen as equals.
The evolution of society and its values have greatly impacted the fashions of the times. As women have gained more rights and independence, their fashion has clearly changed to reflect this. The change in over time was a huge improvement because it helped show that as women gain more independence they should be treated and seen equally.
This essay has examined women’s fashion throughout Australian history and how Australia’s popular culture has helped the change. It was mad clear that women’s fashion has evolved in response to the increased rights and independence of women. This has been shown through images and descriptions of each decade.
Their style was introduced in the early 1910s but did not spark until the 1920s. The style was said to be more comfortable, but was not appealing to the more conservative. Before the change of style, most women were dressed modestly; however, women's fashion in the 1920s showcased a more “boyish” and comfortable, look which led to huge controversy and affects how women dress today. Although to society now, these changes may not be seen as a big deal, back then it would split society.
Today we can see items of clothing that are commonly worn that have grown out of this initial innovation of freeing a woman’s body. This can be seen in clothing from the Spring 2017 New York Fashion week (see Figure 2), as the model’s bodies are freed by the more minimal use of material. The lowering of necklines and the increase in skin shown in haute couture over the decades is owed to Art Deco fashion and is symbolic of the rise of women’s rights over the years, as the physical discomfort and restrictions that the tight corsets of previous eras could be considered of women’s place in society. The new style being a stance against the oppression. It dictates that a persons own comfort and style is to the upmost importance, not to contort one’s body into something it is not meant to. Today it is shown in loose and cropped pants, shorts, low necklines, cropped tops, and various other clothing that reveals skin that was once covered. Art Deco fashion is also seen today through “chic garçonne” ideal that emerged out of early feminism that made women want to do the same things that men could, and so adopted smoking, sport, an interest in vehicles, a flirty sense of
The 1920’s was a period of extremely economic growth and personal wealth. America was a striving nation and the American people had the potential to access products never manufactured before. Automobile were being made on an assembly line and were priced so that not just the rich had access to these vehicles, as well as, payment plans were made which gave the American people to purchase over time if they couldn't pay it all up front. Women during the First World War went to work in place of the men who went off to fight. When the men return the women did not give up their positions in the work force. Women being giving the responsibility outside the home gave them a more independent mindset, including the change of women's wardrobe, mainly in the shortening of their skirts.
New fashions were surfacing in both men’s and women’s fashions. Men were wearing Bermuda pants, baggy pants that were cut off at the knee, while women were wearing capris, tight pants that cut off just below the knee. Men were wearing tailored jackets and making a slight move towards the casual dress of today’s workplace. Women were wearing natural shoulders as opposed to the heavily padded ones of the war years. Flat, neck-hugging collars replaced the mannish collars of the late 1940’s. Waists were tightly fitted and skirts were long (Melinkoff 46). The jeans of the time were often lined with plaid flanel and dungarees were worn to the most casual occasions. The sandals of the fifties were not much different than the sandals of today.
The 1920’s was an era of dramatic political and cultural change, where many Americans lived in cities rather than farms. Many inventors came to be noticed as new cars were invented and as music entered the entertainment industry. A new style of music was invented mainly in the African American community, creating the Harlem Renaissance; which was an evolution of music and entertainment in Harlem, New York City. The women of America began to evolve in the 1920s, adding new styles to our fashion industry and changing the way women dress, act, and are portrayed in society for generations. Women were viewed before the 1920’s as innocent housewives, who made little to no money, as they often relied on their husbands’ income.
The social perception of women has drastically changed since the 1950’s. The social role of women during the 1950’s was restrictive and repressed in many ways. Society during that time placed high importance on expectations of behavior in the way women conducted themselves in home life as well as in public. At home the wife was tasked with the role of being an obedient wife, caring mother, and homemaker. Women publicly were expected to form groups and bond over tea with a slice of cake. All the while government was pushing this idealize roll for women in a society “dominated” by men. However, during this time a percentage of women were finding their way into the work force of men. “Women were searching their places in a society led by men;
...d women’s fashion to break free from convention. Bras and corsets were seen as symbols of oppression and conformity. They were discarded by many women as many new fads appeared,(). Women also exhibited their newfound freedom by wearing traditional male clothing such as baggy trousers, men's jackets, vests, over-sized shirts, ties and hats.
Have you ever seen the movie Great Gatsby? You would think the clothing today was totally different from the 20’s. Gatsby’s clothes was fun and colorful. In the 1920’s fashion became a huge thing for women because they were giving the right to vote.
Civil rights and anti-war campaigns moved the younger generation of the 1960s to question their parents’ conservative beliefs. Coupled with the availability of oral contraceptives and you have a generation with a value shift. The shift resulted in more women working outside of the home and a push toward equal rights among men and women. Fashion soon shifted to a more openly sexual style including; miniskirts, long tight pants worn with go-go boots, bell bottom jeans, and love beads. There was even a shift towa...
Women used to dress very conservatively and strict before the turn of the decade. Clothing consisted of fitted dresses, long skirts, and corsets in lady like manners. Since the 1920’s brought women’s rights along, young women decided that they were not willing to waste away their young lives anymore being held down to the rules; they were going to enjoy life. The younger generations of women were breaking away from their old habits and their fashion statements changed their roles in society completely. Women were modeling their lives after popular icons...
Fashion in the 21th century is a big business, as its production employs millions of people and generates billions of dollars in revenue. Fashion has for the past century been, and is still today, used as an indicator of social change and progress, as it changes with the social norms of the society and the political changes of the world (Finkelstein 3).
Fashion is a form people use as a way for self expression. For me, fashion dictates how a person sense of style is; some may be bold and loud or simple and calm in which it also gives others an outlook on how their character may be. Although fashion is a way to express ones’ sense of style it does not tells us who the person is personally. Fashion in the society of the 1900s has changed female gender roles then and now by the way their roles changed during the time.
“For as long as men and women have been wearing clothing, there has been a hierarchy based on garments. The clearest example arose when the sexes were segregated into skirts and pants: women would only wear dresses (a symbol of submission) and men would only wear trousers (proof of domination). Women’s clothing was created to impede and hamper movement (through tight or many layered skirts), while men enjoyed the ease and comfort of pant legs.” (Meza, Echazarreta) Women’s fashion throughout the ages can be used to trace the history of equality between men and women. As women achieved greater independence, they claimed the right to choose what they wore, and that included women being able to wear pants. There are three things that were instrumental in making it socially acceptable for women to wear pants, they include: the invention of the bicycle, WWII, and influential women.
middle of paper ... ... It also analyzed the influences of modern dresses. As Palmer and Clark (2005) mentioned earlier, both decades are the classic era in fashion history.
To begin with, I shall look at what fashion is; it is a currently popular style or practice involving clothing, footwear or accessories. It mostly refers to the current trends in looks and dressing style of a person (Cumming 234). In most cases, fashion is confusedly related to costumes; when a person talks of fashion they are seen to mean fashion in terms of textile. Fashion is seen to originate from the Western world and it is copied by other places. In this paper, we shall look at how fashion affects lifestyles and the group of people who are affected most. The paper further investigates how media is used to transmit fashion from one region to the other. Although it has been seen to affect people’s lives many people have different perspectives on fashion and dressing.