So you love fashion, but does that mean you're compromising your feminist values? Absolutely not, argues Sarah Charms
"Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society." Mark Twain
Clothes may make the man, but what about women? Well, women aren't allowed the simplicity of 'clothes', women are given fashion to deal with. If clothes make the man, then fashion can make the woman into any sort of strange persona that is required of her each season. Looking at Marie Claire magazine (Aug 2006 Issue) to find out 'Key looks for the new season' I see that Autumn/Winter 06 requires women to choose from looks such as 'Rock Star Glamour', 'The Gentle Goth' or 'Costume Drama'. Hmmm...
Feminists may choose to influence society with their views and beliefs through feminist activity, or perhaps simply through their day to day living. But, as Mark Twain points out, such influence can't be affected whilst naked (it's a shame, but that's just the way of the modern world, folks!). So, if a feminist is concerned with the way in which her clothing may affect her influence as a feminist, how should she dress?
Throughout history, women have portrayed themselves as serious forces to be reckoned with by wearing more masculine attire. Suffragettes would add an anarchic twist to their practical dress by donning mannish ties, and women during the Second World War were forced to step into the vacant mens jobs, and mens uniforms, in order to aid the war effort. The hard-line feminists of the 1970s called fashion and femininity into question by choosing boilersuits as their protest wear. The suited business women of the 1980s were thought to 'have it all', the power, the money, and the shoulderpads.
This masculinisation of dress and attitude can be seen to have worked well for these women; they have furthered the women's movement immensely and brought us to where we are today. But some feminists, such as Ariel Levy in her recent book Female Chauvinist Pigs, would declare this masculinisation is a negative thing for women. Levy suggests that as women become more like men in order to be more powerful in a man's world, women aren't elevated as a whole. This is because these masculinised women in the workplace are seen as extraordinary in their success, they are women who are exceptional because they are 'like men'. Back to Mark Twain's "Clothes make the man"; apparently women felt that if they needed to affect society, then they needed men's clothes.
It was during the 1980s that some feel a great chasm within feminism began to form, resulting from the 'Porn wars' between those feminists who rallied against pornography and 'sex positive' feminists. The conflicting views within feminism in these porn battles were never really resolved, which meant that some feminists felt forced to pick a side. And how best to express your side through fashion? The resulting fashion choices have given us the two stereotypes of how a feminist might look. Firstly there's the 'man-hating' feminist with short hair and dungarees, a sort of asexual being that seeks out this look in order to be impossible to objectify. Then there's the feminist who will profess to revel in her female sexuality, she isn't afraid to wear a skirt or show some cleavage... this is the confrontational look of the 'Lipstick' feminist (or to give the derogatory title, the 'Fuck me' feminist).
Long after the porn wars have been forgotten, the two stereotypical looks live on, bringing to mind the words of fashion photographer Carlos Clarke (who's work was somewhere between art and porn) 'Fashion's a greater threat to women than pornography, with it's demands she conform to a freakish shape'. It seems that the two stereotype looks have become more important, and forced the shape of feminism, to a far greater degree than the original argument ever did. The two stereotypes of the feminist look have been rather damaging to the feminist cause. The first 'asexual' look has led many to think feminism is dowdy, old fashioned, and out-of-touch as a movement. The second 'sexual' look has admittedly brought women as empowered beings into the spotlight, but sadly this empowerment is only through skin-deep raunchiness. Such raunchy 'empowerment' can be seen in the likes of the Pussycat Dolls, who when asked by Kate Spicer of The Times what their message was they replied "Inside every woman is a Pussycat Doll, which makes you feel sexy and empowered. You wake up everyday and put on a little bit of gloss, mascara, a little blush and look cute... It's about being inspired by the best a woman can be.".
The deluge of female stars who are being lauded for being empowered, although the empowerment comes from the attention they receive for being sexy (PCD, Madonna, Christina Aguilera etc.), is something which greatly worries Ariel Levy. Levy claims that such women are the 'Female Chauvinist Pigs' of her book's title, that they further instill the idea of women as eye candy and not much else.
Should fashion as a means of self expression really have to express one's sexuality? Not at all, and nowadays whether a feminist is on this side or that of the porn debate is by the by when it comes to the way she looks. Today's feminists know that those old stereotypes have long been thrown out of the window. It's only the clueless (who believe that bra burning ever took place) that still believe feminists come in an easy to read package. The 3rd wave of feminism in the 90s advocated a feminism for all, with 3rd wavers reacting to what they felt was a policing of their sexuality, and a realisation that there were different levels of 'resistance'. As Kathleen Hanna, of the band Bikini Kill, wrote in 1991 in the zine Jigsaw "To be a stripper who is also a feminist...These are contradictions I have lived. They exist, these contradictions cuz I exist. Every fucking 'feminist' is not the same, every fucking girl is not the same, okay???".
Nowadays, feminism is a pick and mix affair; we are able to establish ourselves as anti-porn and yet wear revealing clothes, or we can be against the objectification of women and yet fill our house with kitsch Pin-Up pics. This is a reason why 3rd wave feminism often gets a knock or two for being self involved with no thought for a bigger picture. But feminism embraces the idea of 'The personal is political' and so if you can apply choice elements of feminism to the way you live in order to allow yourself to be content and strong as a female, then feminism is working. So, if you are a feminist concerned with clothes; dress as a man, or a porn star, or a 'gentle goth' if that's what makes you happy. Dress as you like, then go out and smash a few stereotypes by telling people you are a feminist. And don't listen to Twain, go naked if you want! In fact, I can guarantee you'll have a definite influence on society that way!
Sarah Charms edits new magazine Uplift. Visit www.myspace.com/uplift_magazine to get hold of the fabulous first issue.
