Relationship between Fashion and Identity: Analytical Essay

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In this essay I will investigate how the punk movement formed a new era of relaxed male masculinity and a further blurring of gender stereotyping. Additional factors which come under discussion are the strong political views and an awareness of social issues held by the group, which is not always seen within fashion trends. Men felt comfortable to express themselves freely without being restricted by societies ideals and beliefs. The key talking point is how men begin to construct their identity as they transition from a teenager to a youth and their relationship with fashion and clothes. As Barker clearly points out “Youth is an especially formative stage of development, where attitudes and values become anchored to ideologies and remain fixed in this mould for life”. (Chris Barker, 2007, p. 408)

I will look to further understand and discuss what came before punk and how men’s masculinity and their dress codes have changed. Historically “until about the 1950’s the transition from boyhood to manhood was marked by the casting off short trousers and wearing long ones” (Entwistle, J., 2000, p. 141). My work will investigate the term “identity” and how masculinity has been defined by this as “clothes are particularly well suited to expressing and resolving the complexities and tensions of contemporary identity” (Twigger Holroyd, 2017, p. 53)

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You will see I have referenced several resources such as the handbook of fashion studies as well as the face of fashion: cultural studies in fashion to help me further. To understand the viewpoint of society during the punk era I have spoken directly to Marc Maslin who lived through the era during his youth and still holds the ideology and rebellious nature of the punk movement at his heart today. In addition to this I have also analysed a newspaper article from 1978 that he appeared in.

In order to uncover the importance of the punk movement the first point of reference is to understand what a subculture is

The defining attribute of ‘subcultures’…is put on the distinction between a particular cultural / social group and the larger culture / society.” (Thornton,1996) Often the originators of any subculture stand alone, isolated, and outside of their peers.

Then coming together, often through a shared choice in music and ideals, is what now forms a subculture and fashion trend. “Youth cultures and subcultures have used fashion to express their own distinctive identities and to mark themselves as different to, or in opposition to, mainstream culture.” (Chris Barker, 2012, p. 426) Once the group has come together the power of a subculture is released and takes on new meaning.

To understand how identity is constructed during the youth stage we must first dissect what “Youth” means. “Youth is a social category that emerged with changing family role generated by the development of capitalism” (Chris Barker, 2012, p. 426)

To correctly analyse the origins of the punk subculture we need to look at the political landscape in the UK during the 1970’s. In Margaret Thatcher’s 1978 conference speech she told delegates “When the rule of law breaks down, fear takes over. There is no security in the streets, families feel unsafe even in their own homes, children are at risk, criminals prosper, the men of violence flourish”. (Newstatesman, 2019)

During the 1970’s teenagers were finishing school and due to the politics of the time, including the high percentage of unemployment, the youth didn’t envision a future for themselves. However, taking onboard these fears they decided to rebel against the system, conformity and the rules it held. The youth acted against the act of matching their attitudes, beliefs and behaviours to those of society’s norms and politics. They expressed their anger and discomfort of this through the clothes they encapsulated. A quote from (Worley, 2015, p.34) stipulates that “Punk was about fighting back and having a sense of pride in your class and where you came from”. Punk had become a way of rebelling and standing up to the view that society held.

“Most studies of contemporary fashion emphasise female fashion and marginalise attention to only male dress” (J, Craik, 1994, p. 178) I agree with this quote; for many years’ men had largely complied to a series of “uniforms” in their clothes such as wearing a suit to work. However, clothes and fashion has always and still does display status and power. If anything, Punk rebelled against this by not displaying their wealth and actively destroying the clothes they wore. Historically contemporary codes of women’s fashion have revolved around achieving “a look” as an image to be admired, men’s appearance however has been calculated to enhance their active roles such as occupation and social status.

If we accept that the punk movement was in opposition to the political and governing bodies of the time then the expression in the clothing was of disgust to that which was considered normal and socially acceptable. Gender identity was also heavily manipulated. Men & Women often wore the same clothes with cross dressing being perfectly acceptable and usual. One of the lasting changes within men’s & women’s fashion was a new respect for the expression of all kinds of gender types. Punk also dispelled the general view that “there is no men’s fashion; that men dress for fit and comfort, rather than for style. “(J, Craik, 1994, p. 178) This is a pair of bondage trousers (1977) from the SEX store created by Malcolm McLaren & Vivienne Westwood which clearly shows anything but comfort. “widely accepted fashions can be generated out of lower socialeconomic groups, in particular youth and music subcultures” (Appleford, K, 2013, p. 103)

During this time period there was also a law in place called the “Suss law” which permitted police officers to arrest anyone under suspicion of having committed a crime. This was taken advantage of during the Punk era as the police force unlawfully used this to arrest and search individuals who dressed as part of the Punk culture. This led to people being discriminated against as the police were using a form of racial profiling to determine whether someone was suspicious based purely on their appearance. This law was active from 1824-1981. This law only enhanced the rebellious nature of the movement. Men were being stopped because they did not conform to society’s position on masculinity. Pumphrey (1989) argued ‘definitions of masculinity are coded through clothes and the associated politics of style.

Clothing articulates ideas to your peers about gender. Here I will explore the role it plays in constructing “masculinity”. To uncover the importance of masculinity in relation to fashion it is essential to consider the concept of masculinity.

Figure 2. The Gazette August 26th, 1980

On August 26th 1980 Marc received a show of distaste for the way he chose to dress. Marc stated he ‘…got off the tube station at Sloane Square to walk up The Kings Road…I had the famous cowboy willy t-shirt on with a leather jacket over the top…the police still came along in a green transit van, piled me into the back strip searched me and took me to the police station and arrested me, with me proclaiming my innocence as the t-shirt hadn’t been displayed. I then had to go to court and paid a fine of £25’ (Marc Maslin, 2020) £25 nowadays would be the equivalent of around.

£110. Marc faced aggressive and quite abrupt treatment from the police force for wearing one of Vivienne Westwood’s more subdued prints, although he was being well mannered and acting appropriately.

The author of the article has highlighted the way he chose to dress himself and the shock factor this had on the general public at that given time by pointing out aesthetical features such as studded leather wrist bands, ring through nose as well as stating he has 15 ear rings on one side. They also added in a speech bubble stipulating that he sure likes to shock people.

The article starts off by stating in capitals that he has “violet hair” showing clearly that in 1980s even something like unnatural hair colour was seen as shocking.

It’s also interesting that the article mentions “the immaculate lounge of his semi-detached home” (The Gazette, August 26th 1980). This shows that the reporter actually made a note that his home was “immaculate” insinuating that Marc’s sense of style gave a very different impression of the type of home he came from and values he held. Tim Dant explains “wearing clothes is social in that what people wear is treated by those around them as being some sort of indicator of who they are”

This also shows that homophobia was still very prevalent in the 1980’s and that someone obviously felt offended enough by a suggestion of a gay reference on a t-shirt that they complained to the police.

For Marc, the Punk movement was about, ‘anti-establishment, giving the working-class kids, a forum to express their anger at the current political situation.’ (Maslin, 2020). Punk was a way to give people a voice and a chance to rebel in what was a very in your face and shocking way. Many of the general public in Marc’s mind view Punks, himself included, as ‘distasteful scum’ (Maslin, 2020) with the media misinterpreting and generalising. This distaste extended to the police force.

“a single garment may be read in different ways by different viewers and in different contexts. Furthermore, a single outfit, or even a single item, can combine multiple perhaps conflicting meanings and messages.” (Twigger Holroyd, 2017, p. 53) A print like the cowboy one Marc was shown wearing would not get you a second look if you walked down the Highstreet wearing it today, especially in London. The article clearly shows that over the course of 30 years the general public have become a lot more accepting or at least desensitised to explicit images. The print in question that landed Marc in trouble wasn’t even a photograph it was a cartoon like drawing.

From the academic reading conducted and interpreted, I can conclude that there is indeed a clear link between fashion and identity. The punk subculture shows this in many ways.

Firstly, men chose to display their identity through the clothes they wore and deliberately worked against the mainstream ideals. The punk movement created a fashion statement that was unique and without historical references. It did not take its inspiration from a different era or look to their elders for guidance.

The time strengthened the understanding of Youth. This period after childhood but before adult responsibilities are taken on has become embedded in culture and is now a right of passage for todays youth. Fashion targets this group, entrepreneurs are born from this group and many successful designers have their origins in this age group. Fashion from the streets started with the Punk movement and now forms a hugely successful part of the men’s global fashion industry.

We now all except that there are much more than just simple terms of Men & Women. Men can now comfortably wear a jacket from a women’s range for example and many designers show their collections as one rather than defining them as Menswear or Masculine. I have shown that the punk movement was instrumental in the acceptance of different gender types. Men embraced their own masculinity safe in the knowledge that they were part of a subculture which in turn gave them their own identity. The group constructed their own identity where they did not feel the need to follow that which society was dictating.

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