Ethics, Fashion, and Film in the 1950s and 60s

Author

Sara Miner, Utah State University

Date of Award

5-2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Departmental Honors

Department

Communication Studies and Philosophy

Abstract

To truly understand the nature of identity, autonomy, and morality in the 1950s and 60s, one must look at what artifacts of humanity have been left behind. More specifically, clothes and fashion capture, represent, and immortalize the human experience through each stitch and seam. By analyzing clothing from an anthropologic lens, one can discover the socio-cultural reality of a time long past. Known for intense culmination of social and political movements, the 1950s and 60s contain many radical shifts. Ranging from social movements like Civil Rights, Women’s Liberation, Black Feminism, and others, to the political metamorphosis as a result of post-war American life through the invention of credit, Vietnam War, and the first televised presidential debate, period is rich with symbols of change and evolution, much like many others in history. As a significant ideological machine in the articulation of notions of freedom, individuality, autonomy (which are each profoundly linked to commodification and consumerism), Hollywood fashions are deeply implicated in western cultural discourses around notions of individualism and free expression. Hollywood offers fantasies of freedom through the desire for and consuming of the images and materials of fashion. Notions of individualism and freedom were not invented by Hollywood, but reflect the Enlightenment traditions of individualism, autonomy, and self-determination. By understanding the economic effects of capitalism and consumerism, the societal effects of autonomy and gender, and the cultural effects of adornment and dress, one can see how clothing becomes a language of expression, access, conformity, and counterculture during this period. And although sometimes at odds with the public spotlight, through diamonds, ruffles, and stardust, clothing is a means by which one can declare identity and even fight for individual autonomy.

Recommended Citation

Miner, Sara, "Ethics, Fashion, and Film in the 1950s and 60s" (2023). Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects. 965.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/honors/965