Fashion Industry Capitalism vs The People

1920's

This timeline commences 100 years ago in the 1920s. With the post-war climate of the 20s came the rise of the flapper girl. These women broke away from the social norms of the Victorian Era by wearing shorter skirts (which was considered knee length at this time), cutting their hair short and veering away from the boundaries of only marital sex (Rosenberg, 2020). This was consistent with a small aspect of first wave feminism. First-wave feminism had a fairly simple goal: have society recognise that women are humans, not property (Soken-Huberty, 2022). The rise of the 1920s flapper reflected this shift toward the Western world desiring a more slim physique (Howard, 2018). Although women were intending to increase their freedoms, they also were forging a basis for the male gaze to burgeon and flourish. The rise of hemlines and the growth of sexual promiscuity abetted the idea that one's attractiveness corresponded with one’s sexual prowess. The ideal body type at this time was very thin and so sparked an eating disorder epidemic among young girls. According to a study in the journal of communication (Kantor and Harrison, 2006), “the highest reported prevalence of disordered eating occurred during the 1920s and 1980s, the two periods during which the ‘ideal woman’ was thinnest in US history”.

1960s - 1970s

Until the 1960s, shape-wear was marketed as the most efficient way to achieve the idealised physique. Although conscious eating had always been coaxed to some extent, at the turn of the 1960s it was promoted much more. Corsets were hence replaced by diets and exercise (Howard, 2018). And although there was this general belief that women had been freed from the confines of corsets, societal pressure to adhere to these unrealistically small body types still remained. Ultra thin models such as Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton rose to fame in this period, reinforcing that looking super thin and very young were desirable traits. Emma McClendon, the Fashion Institute of Technology’s associate curator of costume notes that what remained of womens’ confinement was the “notion that in order for your body to be truly fashionable, you had to probably change it some way” (Howard, 2018). 

1980s - 1990s

In the late 80s, the popularity of thinness remained, however, a more athletic and healthier look came about exemplified in forms such as of Cindy Crawford, Kim Alexis and Demi Moore. With this decade also came the introduction of the concept of supermodels. The healthy ideal did not last long as the ‘heroin chic’ look came into popularity. Burgeoned by the waif figures of the likes of Kate Moss, popular commercials and advertisements favoured women who looked malnourished and vulnerable. The media glamorised unhealthy body types and behaviours. This was criticised heavily by many, including president Bill Clinton (Helmore, 2020).  Ironically, around that same time, the World Health Organisation began sounding the alarm about the growing global obesity epidemic (WHO, 2022). As various images denouncing obesity flashed across media screens as a part of public health outreach efforts, so did images of stick-thin models. Hence igniting the war on obesity. Larger body types in this time period were now labelled as unhealthy and being overweight became a public enemy. Despite that the measures used to attain ultra-thinness in many cases were likewise damaging, to be overweight was seen as a manifestation of laziness and unhealthiness, whereas to be slender was believed to epitomise health. Very little was done to combat the eating disorder epidemic that accompanied the obesity epidemic. This truly illustrated society’s reverence for being ‘skinny’ and phobia of being considered ‘fat’. 

The 2000s

Coming into the 2000s, the thinness epidemic reached demographics younger than ever before as an effect of globalisation and easier access to mainstream media. Nearly a third of children aged 5 to 6 in the US select an ideal body size that is thinner than their current perceived size when given the option, and by age 7, one in four children has engaged in some kind of dieting behaviour, according to a Common Sense Media report published in 2015 (Howard, 2018). A large contributor to this negative influence on body image from a young age was the media. Magazines at this time were one of the biggest instigators of these toxic mentalities. Women and mens' bodies were constantly scrutinised under the public eye and publicising an image without photoshop was considered career ending (unless it was a criticism). Widespread acceptances of these detrimental mindsets could also be seen in most media sources such as tv, film and advertising. The term 'guilt-free' was coined in advertising to suggest that consumers should feel guilty consuming any sort of product that contained calories. Many magazine publishings promoted fad diets, exercise routines and even diet pills.

The toxic diet culture & fatphobia of early 2000's chick flicks

The Gaze

The use of media to determine the way that society looks at bodies creates a patriarchal feminine body, the ideal women's body for men. The idea of the gaze was originally developed by Michael Foucault when looking into the surveillance of bodies. The surveillance of bodies can be best described as a metaphorical gaze. Not only is the gaze an in-person act, but it is also surveillance that is utilised on all forms of media that allow ordinary women to compare themselves to beautiful women.

The Internalised Male Gaze - 'Performing Women'

The internalised male gaze can be referred to as women unconsciously ‘performing’ to a standard for an audience, a male audience.  From a young age, girls are taught that approval from men is important for their own satisfaction, not only is this an unconscious trait happening in daily life, but it is a trait that has been taken onto social media and the way we use it. Social media site Instagram is the perfect example, originally formed for individuals to share experiences with friends, now used as individuals platforms to edit photos, posted at the ideal time to gain a good amount of interaction.

Women are constantly objectifying their own appearances, and their actions, from the perspective of a male audience. However, this audience is non-existent. It is an unconscious desire for attention from males. It is how the patriarchal structure of society exploits women and makes women feel insecure.