Through the Wardrobe: Women's Relationships with Their Clothes

Description

Relating to clothes is a fundamental experience in the lives of most Western women. Even when choice is fraught with ambivalence, clothing matters. From considerations about dressing for success, to worries about weight, through to investing particular articles of clothing with meaning bordering on the sacred, what we wear speaks volumes about personal identity - what is revealed, what is concealed, what is created. This book fills a gap in the existing literature on the ambivalence of fashion and dress by drawing on a wide range of women's experiences with their wardrobes and providing empirical data noticeably absent from other studies of women and dress. Navigating what is clearly a contested realm in feminist scholarship, contributors provide rich case studies of the reality of women's relationships with clothing. While on the surface concerns about fashion or dress may appear to reflect gendered patterns, in fact clothing may be used to challenge ascribed meanings about femininity.

Ali Guy is at the University of Teesside. Eileen Green is at the University of Teesside. Maura Banim is at the University of Teesside.

'A valuable contribution to the study of dress and identity and ... a thought-provoking and interesting read.' Contemporary Sociology '(This book) is well worth dipping into since it raises some important questions and seeks to examine areas that are rarely discussed in academic texts.' Costume 'An excellent resource for students interested in issues surrounding clothing and identity. Its accessibility and the inclusion of wide-ranging topics are likely to ensure a broader readership.' Feminism and Psychology