Suitable
The Sartorial Revolution and the Fashioning of Modern Men
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12 185 Ft (11 605 Ft + 5% VAT)
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12 185 Ft
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Product details:
- Publisher OUP USA
- Date of Publication 1 September 2026
- ISBN 9780197842485
- Binding Hardback
- No. of pages352 pages
- Size 243x165x27 mm
- Weight 694 g
- Language English
- Illustrations 84 halftone images; 8 page color insert 0
Categories
Short description:
How did black suits become so ubiquitous? Why has men's clothing been so plain since the American Revolution? In Suitable, American historian and costume designer Chloe Chapin offers a deeply researched and groundbreaking explanation for why American men's fashion was standardized from the time of the nation's founding and how it became an invisible form of social and political power.
MoreLong description:
The surprising story of how the plain black suit became a symbol of masculinity, democracy, and modernity.
How did black suits become so ubiquitous? Why has men's business clothing been so plain for the last 250 years? How did a style adopted by the Founding Fathers to differentiate themselves from European contemporaries become the dominant style for men around the globe?
Suitable traces the shift from the colorful, flamboyant attire of the eighteenth century to the plain dark suit of the nineteenth century, characterizing this style evolution as a "Sartorial Revolution." In this book, American historian and costume designer Chloe Chapin traces the evolution of masculine style from the American Revolution through the Civil War and shows how men's suits shaped relationships of gender and power. Drawing on a wealth of visual and written sources, she shows how the plainness of suits symbolized new ideals of rationality and democracy and played a crucial role in framing the lasting identity and authority of American men. This richly illustrated book analyzes fashion history's impact on gender dynamics and emphasizes the dynamic relationships between bodies, clothing, and personal identity.
Suitable demonstrates the significance of fashion beyond mere appearance, illustrating the key role modern men's suits have played in shaping the modern world.
Prepare to appreciate the founding fathers as fashion icons. From American city streets to the courts of Europe, from the work of tailoring to the business of politics, Suitable brilliantly explores the relationship between sartorial and political revolutions through the now-ubiquitous form of power dressing, the dark suit. With a designer's eye for detail and a scholar's sensibility to the nuanced intersections of social status, gender, and race, Chloe Chapin makes an invisible uniform of masculine authority visible and legible. Suitable exposes nothing less than the role of fashion in the rise of modern democracies. You'll never look at a suit the same way again.
Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction Brotherhood
Chapter 1 The Sartorial Revolution
Chapter 2 Black, White, and Wool
Chapter 3 The Armor and Straitjacket of Masculinity
Chapter 4 Suits on the Street
Chapter 5 The Suit and the State
Conclusion What Suits Hath Wrought
Notes
Bibliography
Index
