Origin - In the 1970s women’s swimsuits became even more revealing and risque. Swimsuits were being used as a tool to sexualize and objectify women more and more. Because there were fewer boundaries on what women could wear designers began experimenting with swimsuits more. Designers were beginning to show off all of the different parts of women. They were making some suits that showed women’s stomachs and some that showed almost their entire side. Designers were coming up with all different kinds of ways to show off the different curves of women.
Purpose - One of the main purposes of the swimsuits of this decade was to experiment. Designers were experimenting with different styles, fabrics, shapes, and sizes of swimsuits. There were all different types of swimsuits coming onto the seen in the 70s. Designers and women were also experimenting with boundaries. Women were already wearing more revealing suits such as the bikini but people wanted to see how far they could go. Many swimsuits showed more skin than in previous decades and many of them showed different parts of women. There were some swimsuits that had the side of the suits cut out. This style was new and women hadn’t shown their sides much before this suit.
Value - The swimsuits of this decade are directly correlated to the feminist movement and to the status of women. They show that boundaries were being pushed. Boundaries were being pushed in swimsuits, everyday fashion, and everyday life. The swimsuits also show that women were being sexualized more in the 70s than they had been previously. Swimsuits were being used as a tool to sexualize women. The suits were more revealing and the images of the women wearing the suits were more sexual. This shows that women were being sexualized more and more especially as media expanded.
Limitations - The swimsuits can tell us that women were being sexualized more and that boundaries were being pushed in fashion. The swimsuits cannot tell us about people’s reactions to the boundaries being pushed. We don’t know how many people were against the new more revealing swimsuits and how many people did not like them. The women wearing swimsuits in the images that were spreading are all young white women. We do not know what older people were wearing or if they approve of the new swimsuits. We also do not know if all of the races in America were wearing these swimsuits or if it was just the young, wealthy, white women.
No comments:
Post a Comment