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Overview
This is the first work to survey dress around the world, drawing together issues of consumption, ethnicity, gender and the body, as well as anthropological accounts and studies of representation. It examines international western style dress, including jeans and business suits, headwear and hairdressing, ethnicity and so called "ethnic chic," clothes for the tourist market, the politicization of traditional dress, "alternative" dressing, and T-shirts as temporary markers of identity. It also considers dress and environmental issues, touching on adventure gear, the "green" consumer and the possible impact of "smart" clothing.
Synopsis
Maynard (English, media studies and art history, U. of Queensland) explores dress around the world, finding that so-called "Western" clothing has made significant inroads but that traditional dress, especially that which expresses an interpretation of faith or specific ethnicity, still holds attractions in certain places and times. She examines the role clothing plays in expressing taste, lifestyle choices, and perceptions of the body, and shows through photographs and illustrations how "Western" and traditional dress can be on bodies in the same family, place and time or even on only one body. Distributed by Palgrave. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Editorials
From the Publisher
"Using excellent sources and inspiration from a range of disciplines, Margaret Maynard is able to build another major step in our understanding of current developments in 'world' dress, global dress and its manufacture and consumption. Her study of the political use of dress was especially fresh--as indeed is her text on the well worn topic of hair and headress."-- Lou Taylor, University of Brighton