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Ideas On Gender And Sexuality In Contemporary Fashion Images

Introduction

Gender or sexuality is a more of a social rather than biological creation. Brod (1995) asserts that gender is a mixture of social interactions and social relations. Gender is created by society and reflects the way people conduct relationships. It is an aspect that is exhibited in people's day to day lives. There are numerous gender codes that are deemed as acceptable in society. These codes may come in the form of character traits, behaviours and material aspects. In this regard, society expects that different genders should own or long for different material qualities in cars or items of clothing. (Pleck, 1981) This is the point where ideas about fashion depict society's gender relations. These ideas will be examined in detail in the subsequent portions the essay.

Fashion images and depiction of crisis in masculinity

Brod (1995) asserts that in the past, masculinity was clearly defined in the workplace. In the twentieth Century, most men were considered as breadwinners and women were expected to be home makers. However, industrialisation changed this as work became more mechanised. Men were not the only ones who could provide labour. With time, more and more women began penetrating into positions that were previously considered masculine. They started doing clerical jobs and others even took over as the main providers in their families. Eventually, what was considered a male domain had now been changed/. Many philosophers have suggested that this is the source of gender struggles that have been become a common feature in today's society.

Kimmel (1996) explains that the shift in masculinity has created unclear images about the male gender. For instance, one may expect men to show elements of their emotions yet at the same time claim that there should be strong and heroic. Men who may not depict these types of behaviour may be considered a socially deviant. This gender crisis has been depicted in fashion images. Before the crisis, fashion images mostly focused on women as objects of consumption while men on the other hand were objects of production. Most fashion items concentrated on women as their most important clients. However, with the introduction of technology, there was a shift from that point of view. Men were now considered as important consumers. Marketing plans and depictions also depicted masculine fashion items.

Fashion as a depiction of power and authority

Perhaps the most outstanding aspect of the corporate world can be seen in the ‘suit'. The male suit is box in shape and creates a regular shape of any wearer hence hiding some of the natural curves associated with individuals. Consequently, individuals appear similar to all others indifferent parts of the world. This means that the suit wearer represents the acceptable and cohesive image of masculinity. No matter which part of society one belongs to, when they wear male suits, they portray an image of masculine authority and de-emphasise their own individual aspects. Most movies and advertisements trying to show individuals in positions of power such as powerful CEOs or influential mangers, usually wear suits to transmit those ideas.

For example, there was a movie in the year 1971, called ‘I became secret hippy'. In this movie, the main actor enters the room dressed in a t-shirt and jeans and long hair. However, before embarking on his task, he gets his hair shaved and then changes into a black suit; it happens to be an FBI uniform. The reason why a suit was chosen for this role was in order to convey na image of authority and power which is normally associated with this national institution. One can therefore deduce that the suit in that scenario was used to depict masculine identity and power. It was also supposed to hide the actor's individuality as there is more focus on the institution he represents. (Jones, 19995)

With regard to the movie mentioned above, the suit was also used a symbol of transformation within the masculine gender. For example, the person who has walked in was dressed in a t-shirt and jeans. Observers can interpret this to mean that he must be a low life or ‘hippy'. But after he changed into his suit, he quickly became a symbol of authority. Fashion images in this sense can transform one form being a rebel to a respectable member of society through the suit.

In modern day, the female suit has also been introduced in the corporate world. These days, women transcend bureaucratic systems to become authoritative figures within the respective organisations. Most of them can be seen wearing skirt suits or trouser suits. Although images of women in suits are not as distinct as men's images, most experts still agree that women in suits portray an image of power and authority. However, women's suits are not as regularly shaped as their male counterparts. Perhaps this is meant to show what society deems acceptable. Because most women are yet to penetrate into the corporate field, those who have, normally stand out and they must depict this through their curvy clothes. (Burnham, 1985)

Fashion images as objects of sexual preferences

As the gay community began growing in the 70s and 80s, they needed a symbol to depict their sexual inclinations and solidarity among gay crusaders. The community chose a fashion item that would assist them to achieve this; the earring. At that time, male images of those wearing earrings were translated to mean that the respective individual was gay. Other even added more meaning to the earring by choosing which side of the ear they wore it. It was generally assumed that gay men who were feminine that masculine wore their earrings on a particular side of their ears while the masculine gay men chose another side. One of the most outspoken gay individuals; Elton John epitomised this fashion accessory to date.

However, with the passage of time, there was an introduction of the ‘hip hop' culture in most media images. This culture made it acceptable for men to wear earrings as a nothing more than than a fashion statement. However, when images depicting men wearing earrings in present day are analysed, most of them used it as status symbols since most of those earrings are diamond studded. Others may want to appear like wantons or rebels of society through the earring. These days, most individuals rarely use earrings to bring out their sexual inclinations since this is something that has gained a level of acceptance among most members of society so there is no need to stand out. (Hollander, 1994)

How fashion depicts order in society

There are numerous images in various advertisements on the use of fashion as a means of portraying the masculine identity in certain well know institutions. Most uniforms such as those ones worn in the Navy may be used to indicate the kind of homogeneity and standardisation prevalent in certain institutions. St Gelais (2003) claims that most of the elements portrayed by men in uniforms include; their conformity to order while at the same time their masculinity. Masculinity is brought out by the fact that most men in the past have had to suppress their individuality in order to conform to their roles. This has been the image present in most people' minds and still continues tp persist today when one sees a man in uniform.

How fashion depicted women as weak

Goffman (1979) claims that most fashion images simply bring out images of what society considers normal. While one must not underestimate the power that fashion images in the media have to change society's perspectives on gender, it is important to put in mind that most of these elements already existed in people' minds. Most fashion images tend to bring out women's dependence on men. For example, it is possible to find that in some cases; women's fingers in fashion are usually shown just barely pushing an object or caressing it. While on the other hand, fashion images showing men's hands will mainly depict them as holding something in their hands. For example, when advertising a man's watch, it is quite likely that the marketer would display a man holding a briefcase or something on that hand containing the watch. However, if it was an image depicting a woman's watch or any other wrist accessory, it would be quite likely that that woman was brushing her hand against, say a desk.

IN line with those fashion images, most fashion images that happen to have both a man and a woman doing the same scene would normally indicate a woman snuggling close to a man as if to solicit some form of protection. Goffman (1979) argues that fashion images depict the relationship between men and women as that one that exist between parents and their children. Fashion images normally depict women as individuals who may not have as much control of their present situations as others would. This is the reason why a woman would most likely caress something while men would be grasping something. It shows that they are in more control of their situations than women. Additionally, women are seen as needing more protection from men since they snuggle against men in most fashion images.

Goffman (1979) argues that the reason why such a depiction does not seem to annoy anyone or the reason why those fashion images may even encourage viewers to purchase whatever items are being advertised is that they remind us of hat we already know. The author calls this the principle of resonance. He asserts that fashion images simply package themselves in such a way that they reach an observer's train of thought and bring out their desired effect by providing a stimulus. He adds that fashion images normally show what has been going on within a person's head and are simply a form of resonance.

How fashion images highlight existing gender relations across history

Many philosophers have argued that fashion images show how men relate to women in society at any given time in history. They insist that in the twentieth century, most fashion images indicated the spiritual

• religious
• artistic
• creative
• educational
• occupational
• political expectations for either genders

It is therefore possible to find that men or women are expected to wear certain fashion items. For example, in the 1950s, most fashion images highlighted the consumerism culture that had taken over most individuals as that time. In the past decade, most countries were involved in the World war and this had made them regard fashion as a luxury that only the elite could afford. However, in the 50s, most fashion entered the mass market and most fashion images were tailored to appeal to this new audience. The female gender took up precedence in this era as most women took centre stage in the fashion images at that time. These were mostly seen through photographs and cinema. (Pleck, 1981)

However, in the 1960s, fashion images displayed a social transformation that had occurred. At that time, the fashion images were invaded by sexual images. Society opened up to the use of sex as an instrument of fashion and advertising. This saw the popularisation of seemingly explicit images of women in minis. This was the point when actresses like Marilyn Monroe took up the scene. Women began being idolised as symbols of femininity. That decade was also quite extreme because there was introduction of the space suit which was characteristic of the scientific transformations occurring at that time. (Hollander, 1994)

In the 1970s, most fashion images became realistic again. The extremes of the sixties were neutralised by the realism of the seventies. At that time, gender roles were redefined; because of women movements and other demonstrations, women were more empowered and they had the ability to express themselves. Fashion images reflected those new ideas. Most women on photographs, magazines and other forms of mass media could be seen wearing erotic costumes. They reflected confidence in their sexuality and most of them had limited inhibitions. However, in the street, most women would be seen wearing denim jeans. This became a sort of ‘uniform' for the entire world. Because women were now getting into non-conventional jobs and they needed to wear something more comfortable.

In the 1980s, there was more emphasis on women as symbols of beauty. The concept of perfection through supermodels was epitomised during this decade. At that time, fashion became more global. Consequently, most fashion images characterised global trends. There was also introduction of individuality when depicting women in fashion. Images of classical beauty were not as common in this decade as they were in other decades. (Kimmel, 1996)

In the 1990s, fashion trends became even more realistic. This was a reflection of the fact that most fashion items gained inspiration form the streets. Globalisation also affected ideas on sexuality. This was because of the fact that definitions of attractive women included other non- conventional groups like Latinos. This decade saw the success of supermodels such as Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks who represented non-conformist definitions of attractive women. An example of how issues of attraction changed can be seen below with interracial symbols of beauty.

Source; Garfnet (2006): Peter Lindberg and British Vogue; retrieved from http://www.garfnet.org.uk/ accessed on 28th April 2008

How fashion images challenge traditional concepts of sexuality and gender

There are certain philosophers that claim fashion images challenge what society perceives as normal images of gender and sexuality. Mass media has spearheaded some of the major transformations within society. In the past, society had clear divisions on what was and what was not accepted by society in fashion. These days, the lines are not that clearly defined and some have attributed h to fashion images.

Women emancipation occurred in the twentieth century after the realisation that women were taking less active roles on society. Men were perceived as the takers while women were considered as recipients. They were to be objects of affection and were expected to seduce. Men on the other hand were expected to be more assertive and to be objects of power. This brought about the differences and unfairness that existed in society with regard to sexuality. Women began fighting against the inequalities that existed at time and this brought about changes in sexual hierarchies. (Brod, 1995)

In light of these facts, one can argue that there must have been some factors that caused the uproar and female protests on sexuality. One of the factors was the depiction of women in fashion at that time. (Burnham, 1985)Most women were not happy with the objectification of women in most fashion images. This is why most sociologists argue that gender is not a biological issue; it is a projection of what people think of themselves. This implies that it is also transitory. The way people perceived themselves gender wise can change over their lives because their behaviours can change. However, these perceptions are usually common to moots members of society because they are some authors assert that one's gender is determinant on;

• institution
• practices
• causes

These are all factors that created by society and inherently determine one's gender and sexuality. In light of these arguments, one can therefore assert that gender is mostly binary, that is men and women have distinct gender roles and expectation as highlighted through fashion images. However, there is a need to ask oneself whether those clear cut distinctions are the only allowable ones. As a matter of fact, some philosophers beg to differ with that assumption of a hierarchal notion of gender. They claim that gender is not as obvious as it may seem. Such authors maintain that fashion does not simply highlight pre-exiting notions of sexuality; it also brings out some challenges to existing notions. (Kimmel, 1996)

Fashion determines how people look and view themselves, consequently, when there is uncertainty in gender, fashion acts as a way of enhancing those differences. For example, in the past, trousers were distinctly masculine but through fashion images and other factors, this was challenged and eventually became the norm. Additionally, a lot of singers, models and photographers have stirred a lot of reactions through depictions of women/men in unconventional gender roles. Madonna was one such individual who challenged gender roles through her fashion.

Conclusion

Society's interpretations of masculine and feminine behaviour change with time. Gender roles have been distinct to given periods in history. These time frames are also linked to certain fashion images. Therefore fashion images have indicated what society deemed acceptable in terms of gender and have also caused changes in this regard.

Reference:

Brod, H. (1995): Masculinity as masquerade; In A. Perchuk & H. Posner (Eds.): The masculine

masquerade- Masculinity and representation pp. 13–19; Cambridge: MIT Press

Burnham, L. (1985): Paul McCarthy- The evolution of a performance artist; High Performance Journal, 8, 1, 37–43

Hollander, A. (1994): Sex and suits; New York: Knopf/Random House

Pleck, J. (1981): The myth of masculinity; Cambridge: MIT Press

Kimmel, M. (1996): Manhood in America: A cultural history. New York: The Free Press

St-Gelais, T. (2003): Vanessa Beecroft: In search of lost bodies, or, on the mechanics of bodies;

Parachute Journal; 112, 60–73

Jones, A. (1995): Clothes make the man- The male artist as a performative function; Oxford Art

Journal, 18, 2, 18–32

Goffman (1979): Gender Advertisements; New York: Harper and Row

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