Fashionable 1920's Female Body example essay topic

The 1920's, a period that saw dramatic changes in dress, was perhaps the first modern decade of the twentieth century. The corseted woman of the previous decade, with her hobble skirts and huge hats, looked as if she came from another world when compared to the modern woman of the 1920's. The result was extreme. Fashionable 1920's female body evolved from the elaborately trimmed dress with its high waist position and ankle length skirt at the beginning, to the simple, hardly decorated, shapeless tube with a hip level waistline and a skirt barely covering the knees at the end of the decade. The initiation of the new fashion boom all began with their change in social aspects and attitudes along with their new way of life. The women's independence movement of the 1920's resulted in a dramatic change in dress as shown by the desire to look youthful, boyish, flat-chested, and at the same time want her independence and freedom.

The 1920's was the new decade of the century. This was the Jazz Age, the decade of the flappers. 1920's opened with an explosion of color, wailing sounds, fast rhythms of jazz, and energetic dancing. Everyone was into learning the latest dance, the Charleston. It was attitude, a period of escapism, a youthful reaction against the dark and serious clothes. These were the days to rebel.

From 1920-1930, the world was one big party, aptly described by the phrase The Roaring Twenties. (Presley, p 3) Women slowly began joining socialist party's with the influence of increasing local socialist women's organizations and a national magazine of that day, Socialist Woman. One major question, which arose to many women's minds was, once economic base of sexual oppression was corrected, would equality follow (Zinn, p 45) That argument became sharper as the women movement of the early twentieth century grew, as women spoke out more, organized, protested, paraded for the vote, and recognition as equals in every sphere, including sexual relations and marriage. Women, conscious of women's oppression and wanting to do something about it, were going to college and becoming aware of themselves not just housewives. Like Katie Richards O Hare said, Socialism is needed to restore the home. (Zinn, p 47) Tuesday, November 2, 1920, was the most unusual Election Day in American history.

On August 10, the nineteenth amendment to the United States Constitution had become law. This enactment granted American women the right to vote on an equal basis with men. This is where it all began. At one point in the 1920's, women were regarded as inferior to men.

According to the social standards of time, a woman's place was in a home. Her life was pretty clear: marry, bear children, raise children, keep house, and stay clear of husband's business work. After many years, long struggles for women suffrage had reached its inevitable end. At last, in voting booths, women were full-fledged citizens on a par with men. The ballot was still only one step towards full emancipation of American women. In the beginning, women were discriminated against in jobs and in professions.

Many places of employment were closed to females, including universities and colleges. As time went by, women slowly gained their independence and freedom, even if they were confined to certain areas. If a women accepted outside work it had to be a school teacher, librarian, typist, or sales clerk; all respectable jobs fit for a lady. The so called lower class women worked in factories or as a seamstress. There were very few women doctors and lawyers.

Some women achieved fame and success on stage, as writers, artists, concert musicians, or operatic stars. Eventually women were accepted for all work. The male detractors did not then realize it, but social structure of the United States was changing drastically, even more than it had during the war. Transformation in costume linked to various consequences of war, and further changed in people's way of life, with new attitudes of mind and new modes of production. The transform of the social scene resulted in women contributing to industrial war effort, and after the war taking on an ever widening range of work, gaining civil and economic rights, and playing a greater role outside their homes. Therefore, the 1920-1929 costume adapted to suit this new way of life.

For the so-called new woman, leading her freer life, training to work, enjoying sports, and dancing; the clothes had to be functional, light, and comfortable. The new style ignored the waist and the breast, shortened the skirt, cropped the hair, and got rid of the corset for the suspender belt. The clothes became simpler like men's; lace was no longer popular, embroidery simple, hat trimmings dwindled, and the flowers and feathers disappeared. The new ideal was androgen, girls striving to look as much like boys as possible. This new fad awaited the men returning from war. During the 1920's, bodies were finally released from clothing, which pretty much controlled them.

The theorem of clothing had drastically changed for the first time in 600 years. (Squire, p 169) For the first time in over a century women were able to move and breathe freely. Hems rose gradually to the knee, legs were encased in flesh-colored silk stockings, and arms were bare. In July, 1920, a fashion writer reported in the New York Times that the american womans has lifted her skirts far beyond any modest limitation. (Allen, p 88) For the first time in history, women's body came into public view in the Miss. America Pageant in 1921 at Atlantic City.

(Petrow, Video) In 1924, something called flattener came out and was intended to abolish the bust. Dresses became tubular and low waisted, there were no curves of the body shown which denied all femininity. Black and white were the most popular colors of the decade. In 1925, hemlines were the shortest in history. (Herald, p 62) In 1926 designers were making garments suitable for both men and women; which had to be simple, sporty, comfortable, and appropriate for both sexes. (Beard, p 2) Some of the major reasons as to why women were so into changing their dress and getting into the major fads, like smoking and drinking, was because of Hollywood stars and big designers like Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli.

(Laver, p 235) These two women were part of the whole artistic movement of that time. Schiaparelli introduced good working class clothes into polite society. Her simple clothes had an elegance which made everyone admire and copy them. Coco Chanel was known for her classic cardigan style suit; and Irene Castle popularized the bobbed hair style accompanying the cloche hat. The Hollywood big silver screen played a big role model as to how women dressed also. The women looked up to their role models like Clara Bow, the so-called It girl and Joan Crawford.

In magazines they had the fashionable Gibson Girl all dressed up with the latest style. The flappers too were the heroine of the decade, always in style with the short skirt, turned-down hose, and rouged knees; sort of like the like the Gibson Girl. The cutting of women's hair was the most drastic action of rebellion against the state of subjection. The bob, which in most cases cropped close to the head like a man's, became extremely popular and by 1924 was in full fashion. Some women enhanced the style with the popular cloche hat, which tightly fitted to the bobbed head.

Even shorter hair in the shingle style, which could be adapted to any shape of the head, rivaled the bob. The early form of the shingle was short and exposed to the hair line at the back of the neck. In 1925, the common hair was being cut to follow the shape of the head with perhaps a slight fringe and soft waves at the sides. In 1926 and 1927, the bobbed hair cut and shingle were not enough; what appeared was the extremely short boyish style known as the eton crop. The hair was straightened and cut well above the ears, which was later modified by longer pieces curled forward onto the cheeks. By those days between the new masculine attitudes, clothing, and hair cuts, the only way to distinguish a young women from a schoolboy was the rouged lips and penciled eyebrows.

The vogue of rouge and lipstick in 1920 alarmed parents of the younger generation; but those who thought it was immoral were soon applying it regularly and made no effort to disguise the fact. The manufacturers of cosmetics and the owners of beauty shops rose. The big characteristics of the 1920's makeup fad was the use of pale powder, cream rouge, blush for circles on the cheeks which looked like apples, and the brows were plucked and penciled in thin arches. (Retro Magazine, p 1) Lips were painted very red, emphasizing the cupid's bow of the upper lip, and de-emphasizing the width of the lower lip, creating a rosebud pout.

This was the dream period, as one lady said everyone looked beautiful. (Petrow, Video) Women came into the public eye, which shocked them all with their youthful, boyish looks. There was a change in everything; from their clothes, to make-up, to hair, and even their freedom and independence. The women in those days fought hard to get what they wanted, and if they did not get it, the would not give up; they were tough. They had the attitudes of the men. Women got into sports and working, doing what they only dreamed for.

They were having fun. These were the good old days, it was the decade not to have missed. FASHIONS OF THE 1920 S.