The Powerful Tool of Expression Named Fashion and Its Influence In Representing Modern Asian Women
In life, almost all individuals want to represent their appearance in a way that reflects their values and personalities, a popular tool to do so is through fashion. There have been deep-rooted histories for Asian women to dress modestly, however, many have begun hybridizing such modesty into new constructions of contemporary fashion that fuses traditional and modern values. In this blog, I relate the way modern Asian women dress as the corporeal—the materialistic gadget that manifests women’s incorporeal identities, wills, ideals, and agencies. Through the use of clothing, corporeal representations blend with women’s incorporeal agencies. I will discuss the ways some Bangladeshi middle-class modern women have begun fusing traditional and modern beliefs within their choice of clothing. Next, I will compare this to my autobiography as an Iranian woman by connecting this to the ways many women living in Iran have used fashion to protest against the constraints of the Iranian government that has chosen for them how they are obligated to dress, this is based on my own experiences living in Iran.
In the article “Bangladeshi New Women’s Smart Dressing: Negotiating Class, Culture and Religion” by Nazia Hussein, She explains that Bangladeshi new women are represented in the media as educated, bold and desire freedom, through stylized clothing and “make-up in the workplace, as opposed to playing roles of mothers and housewives” (Hussein 102). Bangladesh women’s traditional normative clothing practices include the sari and the salwar kameez (105). Hussein explains the generational shifts that have occurred as the once more commonly worn sari has become “termed as ‘ethnic’ dress suitable for occasion wear only” (105). Traditionally kameezes were worn until soon after young girls hit puberty as that was the usual time they would get married. But, with the societal shifts “South Asian women began to marry later” (105) [causing them to be faced] with a dilemma of what to wear when they were single adults. Now, for many women, they believe that the salwar kameez is more suitable for their modesty beliefs (105). However, the most commonly worn attire in Bangladesh is “jeans and trousers paired with shirts” (106).
Photo 1: Illustrates the difference between the Salwar Kameez and Sari
The hybridization that occurs is through finding suitable attire that combines “desexualized” western clothing such as long sleeves and “embellishments and accessories” (106) that represent Bangladeshi aesthetics. This way of using western clothing but incorporating traditional ideals is seen as the “strategic and political nature of developing their self-defined identities” (107). For instance, As Thirty-year-old Naz states, the style of the salwar kameez is “constantly changing and we have to keep up to date”, kameezes have shifted as they are now sleeveless or short-sleeved, tight-fighting and traditional scarfs are worn on the side rather than covering the chest (107). The way of dressing is seen as symbolic of one’s class and aesthetic and is a “site where they demonstrate their agency”(115). Through subtle changes that occur through generations, Bangladeshi women are representing themselves in a way that they believe fits their modesty needs.
In Bangladeshi culture, beliefs of dressing modestly are imposed by the surrounding culture rather than laws that require it. On the contrary, women living in Iran have been obligations to wear hijabs by law following the Iranian revolution. If they defy this law they can face harsh punishments which include “jail time, fines, even 74 lashes with a whip” (Bucar 2018) by the hands of ‘morality police’. Many middle-class secular Iranian women have become increasingly dissatisfied by laws that make hijabs compulsory. This is shown through hashtag campaigns such as “White Wednesdays” where women wear white hijabs on Wednesdays to share solidarity with other women who disapprove of compulsory hijabs or don’t wear them at all. Although, due to its dangerousness, Iranians have utilization fashion to protest and express themselves. This is through dressing within the law but still incorporating western and modern fashion. From my experience of living in Tehran, I noticed a dichotomy between the young generation and older as well as different classes. The older generations (as well as lower/working class) tend to be more traditional, whereas some of the younger generations have started testing the limitations of what a hijab is. Since there is no definition of what a hijab is in the penal codes, many have begun hybridizing traditional hijabs and western ideals by wearing looser scarfs that reveal more hair, jeans, western brands, designer and more. Although this may be looked down upon by certain religious people, it is nonetheless abiding the law making it a sort of loophole that many Iranian women are comfortable taking part in. Below I have provided some photos of the dichotomies seen through the streets of Tehran:
Photo #2: Dichotomies of Iranian women’s fashion between different beliefs of modesty
Conclusion
The agencies and beliefs of women are shown through their fashion as they make choices that reflect their political and cultural beliefs. Although in Bangladesh, “Sexualized” western clothing is still seen as unacceptable, they are shifting the narratives as they wear other “desexualized” western clothes but still fitting within respectable fashion. They find “ a ‘good balance’ between respectable national cultural clothes and fashionable western clothes” (101). Similarly, Iranian women continue this narrative as they dress within the modesty boundaries of the state but with hybridizing it with western clothing, allowing their agencies and desired aesthetics to shine through while not fearing the morality police. Although I dream of an Iran where women have the choice of wearing a hijab or not, I also believe that it will not be an overnight shift, rather it takes small protests and actions that normalize westernized aesthetics. It is important to note that protestors of compulsory hijabs in Iran are not hateful of the hijab itself, but rather the government that polices their bodies and chooses for them. Below I have gathered some photos that show how many young Iranian females have decided to represent their incorporeal ideals within corporeal structures of clothing.
Photo #3: How some Iranian women dress that incorporates western styles but is still seen as legal
