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300 Years of Criticizing Women for Their Style
NEWSLETTER
10/8/20262 min read
I’ve been diving deep into women’s fashion history lately. I’ve upped my knowledge and enjoyed the process, but I’ve also had a surprising experience. Learning more about the history of fashion has made me feel freer in my own style.
We know the appearance of women today is often judged, and I saw this same occurrence constantly in all the historical resources I consumed. In the early 1800s when dresses were slim and necklines low, women were ridiculed for being lewd and overly sexualizing themselves. Fast forward to the mid 1850s, when the skirts of dresses were giant domes, and women were being judged for using too much material in the skirts. Men complained that they couldn’t even hold a woman's hand or dance with her. Regardless of the time period or the style of dress, there has been judgement of women’s clothing.
I found this realization of constant judgement freeing. Irritating, ridiculous, and infuriating of course. But also freeing! Why? The consistency of judgement, regardless of the style, made it clear to me that the expectation is an unachievable standard that is rooted in a complaint outside of fashion. Our style is never going to please everyone and there will always be complaints. I’m not going to play a game where the cards are so obviously stacked against me. I don’t have to give any consideration to these types of complaints anymore. How freeing!
That doesn’t mean ignoring all discussion about fashion. Fashion can be interesting to talk about and carry important meaning. So what is valuable vs judgmental noise? Valuable discussion focuses on the clothing and leaves room for conversation. What is the inspiration for that jacket? What do you think of the pairing of stripes and polka-dots together? Judgmental noise makes comments past the point of clothing, often judging someone’s character, and is absolute in its claim. It’s slutty to wear a skirt that is shorter than your fingertips. Women over a certain age shouldn’t show midriff. Clothing is a form of personal and cultural expression, so flexibility and curiosity are essential ingredients to be able to consume it properly.
While I sunk days of my time researching historical fashion (as if learning more about clothing is a hardship for me) before I arrived at this conclusion, that kind of research might not be on your to-do list. It’s my hope that I can create a shortcut for you. To see that the ridiculous expectations on women’s clothing have been prevalent for centuries and give you the chance, without the extra research, to also free yourself from their obnoxious demands.
