By the 1820s women’s fashion had moved away from the classically influenced empire style and returned to the corseting and full skirts of the previous era. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, however, it was the bustle that defined fashion. The conservative Victorian era is known for a prudish societal focus on moral values, especially female purity. Ironically, the fashionable silhouette of the day, although covering most of woman’s body, amplified the hourglass proportions of the bust, waist, and buttocks, eroticizing and idealizing an extreme version of the feminine form. Some liken the allure of this extreme silhouette to the interest in a woman known as Saartjie “Sarah” Baartman, who was exploited as a sideshow attraction called the Hottentot Venus. Baartman was considered an exotic curiosity because of the exaggerated scale of her posterior in relationship to the rest of the frame, a genetic characteristic of the Khoisan people of South Africa, in particular the women. Thus, a fascination with novelty and the uneasy suppression of sexuality could be seen to come together in the Victorian bustle.
The early bustle of 1870s can be described in terms of the lightness of material and lack of decoration. It was often created through the manipulation of the fabric that was draped in the rear, using pleats, flounces, and bows. The front of the silhouette had the appearance of an apron. For a short time, from 1878 to 1883, the bustle disappeared in lieu of a more natural, flat-backed dress. The cuirass bodice, a long waisted bodice that extended below the hips, and the polonaise, a princess sheath dress, achieved this slim shape. The period from 1883 to 1893 constituted the revival of the bustle. This new bustle had the look of an upholstered shelf, due to its large, almost horizontal protrusion. It was further accentuated with heavier fabrics and more ornate decoration. By the end of the 1800s, though, the bustle had been reduced to a small pad that carried into the Edwardian era.
Parallel to mainstream fashion, a movement emerged in the 1860s and 1870s known as artistic and, later, aesthetic dress. In protest against crinolines and restrictive corsets, as well as the idea of mass-produced clothing, a group of artists, writers, and actors, most famously associated with Dante Gabriel Rossetti and William Morris, promoted this looser, distinctly bohemian style that embraced many medieval and Renaissance sensibilities.
With the decline of the bustle, sleeves gained more prominence, culminating in the mid-1890s with gigantic leg-o’muttons offset by a tiny waist. The American artist Charles Dana Gibson captured the ideal in his satirical illustrations of the modern woman. Although she became an icon of the era, the “Gibson Girl” was meant to caricature the sense of competition, independence, and athleticism that defined this new woman – not necessarily traits that were encouraged for genteel ladies. The embellished blouse became a signature of the Gibson Girl, featuring details like lace inserts and trim, embroidery, appliqués1, faggoting2, tucks, and pleats. She also sported shirt collars with ties, bows or cravats. She wore these tops over skirts shaped like a bell or an inverted tulip. Tailored travelling suits were a fashionable and practical variation of the new look.
5. Ответьте на вопросы:
→ What do you know about Saartjie Baartman?
→ What do you know about Victorian era?
→ Can you describe fashion of the 19th century?
→ Who became an icon of the era in the end of the 19th century?
6. Переведите следующие предложения письменно.
1. В 1860-е годы в моду вошли кринолины из овальных обручей, которые создавали определенный силуэт юбки.
2. Он изменил пропорции платья с кринолином, предложив завышенную линии талии и отказался от пышных складок на талии.
3. Женский костюм имел профильный силуэт и множество драпировок.
4. Костюм стиля модерн постепенно изменялся, и становились модными съемные рукава до локтя из гипюра.
5. Характерной чертой силуэта женского платья является значительно расширенная, гротескная линия плеч вследствие очень пышных рукавов «фонарик».
7. Переведите следующие слова, используя пример: buttons, pleats, flounces, crinolines, embroidery, faggoting, tucks, collars, bows, cravats, ties, tulip, trim, blouse, sleeves, suits.
8. Прочитайте и переведите текст письменно.
Riding habits consisted of a high-necked, tight-waisted jacket with the fashionable dropped shoulder and huge gigot sleeves, worn over a tall-collared shirt or chemisette, with a long matching petticoat or skirt. Tall top hats with veils were worn.
Shawls were worn with short-sleeved evening gowns early in the decade, but they were not suited to the wide gigot sleeves of the mid 1830s.
Full-length mantles were worn to about 1836, when mantles became shorter. A mantlet3 or shawl-mantlet was a shaped garment like a cross between a shawl and a mantle, with points hanging down in front. The burnous4 was a three-quarter length mantle with a hood, named after the similar garment of Arabia. The paletot5 was kneelength, with three cape-collars and slits for the arms, and the pardessus6 was half or three-quarter length coat with a defined waist and sleeves.
For evening, voluminous mantles of velvet or satin, with fur trim or fur linings in cold climates were worn with the evening gown.
9. Составьте рассказ о моде 19 века, включающий в себя следующее:
→ Идеал красоты
→ Виды и формы одежды
→ Мужская одежда
→ Женская одежда
→ Обувь
→ Головные уборы, прически, украшения, косметика
Unit 5
EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY
1. Прочитайте следующие слова и словосочетания вслух и переведите их письменно:
extent,