Research Summary of the article “Men and Women: Dressing the Part” by Paoletti, Jo B. and Brush Kidwell, Claudia
The article focuses on the issue of gender inequality and its relationship with people’s dress code. First, the authors begin by recognizing that in most cases clothes bring out people’s physical features that demonstrate if someone is female or male. However, in the article, Barthes (2007) reveals that fashion cannot be looked at from the perspective of gender. In demonstrating this argument, Barthes (2007) indicates that in the past when women began wearing trousers, there were special types for women. However, the society evolved and designers came up with trousers that fitted feminine features. The implication of the article is that if women were in able to compel designers to develop trousers that reflected their physical features, then it is easy to change clothing that predominantly associated with a particular gender. Another aspect that the article addresses is the issue of why it is easy for women to wear masculine clothes while men cannot put on skirts. Barthes (2007) indicates that this tendency could be as a result of gender activism that empowers women. Considering that a lot of debate has found that the society oppresses women, as such, for women to wear male clothes could part of gender activism. Lastly, the article reveals that when people decide to inter-change gender roles, then the issue of fashion as a case of feminine or masculine features will diminish.
Reference
Barthes, R. ed., 2007, Men and Women: Dressing the Part, The Fashion Reader, Oxford: Berg.
