This link will go to a site that will show clothing that Europe and Northern America ussed to wear around the 1800's.  As one can see, the clothing is very cumbersome, layered, and veils the body from veiw.  To keep women chained to men and dependent for the littlest thing, influencing what is appropriate dress is an insidious and moral inducing way to keep women subjegated.  The clothing were rarely appropriate for the weather, no matter what type it was, the clothes were cold in winter, hot in summer, and tangles and rips in everything and anything.  The only way to be comfortable was to stay indoors in winter, close to the house in shelter in summer, and far away from nature all year-round to aviod tangles and rips.

What the author is saying is that whoever controls what one is supposed to wear has control over society to a certain extent.  An example of how America imposed and ran over another cultures dress code is the Native Americans and later the Japanese.  Both of these groups were considered inferior and uncivilized due to many reasons but one that was the same for both cultures was how they dressed.  Today, the Native Americans and the Japanese wear clothing that is acceptable to European white and rarely their traditional garments.  Tyranny is not always directed at controlling the women of America, it has been used, effectively, to curtail, change, and subvedrt other cultures due to the unwillingness of white male of European descent to recognize and aknowledge other peoples customs and dress.  Arrogance, and feelings of superiority of the white males have lead them to make choices that deliberatly curtail women's freedom and subjegate them, just like how the Americans broke the Native Americans under their heels, and again with Japan after WWII.

   This text deals with many events that women were starting to deal with in the 1910's with the changes in the economy, war, and fewer restrictions placed upon themselves.  Fashion was changing, work opportunities were growing and the women were adapting with varying degrees of glee.  Men had been saying for years what to do and how but now the women were starting to make their own decisions and they were minimizing the number of clothes and granting themselves more mobility and greater ability to breath.

Women were now working in a place that several hundreds of years ago was male only, and all parts were performed male, the acting world.  Even though women had been working in this field for years, few men, even or especially today, were aware of the ladies work in playwriting.  Though few knew, women wrote and acted as they pleased to make a living.  While many thought that all women were trying to act demure while at the same time as infringing on "male" domains, this may not be so true in this particular area.

This is the era that is the great transition between the old and the new styles and fashion of women.  The older generation horrified, the younger exalted by the change and each experimenting their with their own style and ideals.  Jazz at the same time started and women enjoyed dancing to it, before most of the dances were deliberate and formulated but with Jazz one could do many other things and actually create one's own dance. The 1920's was an explosive and stunning transformation of American culture that has directly resulted, and impacted the present culture in this country.  Showing off knees, arms and wearing make-up, ohhhh such horror, such slutty behavior, yet how did they get away with it?   The answer, men wanted looser women, they enjoyed partying with the women, and the economy boom changed the clientel to merchandise.

The clothes worn today from casual day to day wear is so different and against the early colonial american clothes that many would call it scandalous.  Think of what you are wearing right now.  Would your great-great-great grandmother faint if she saw you in your modern clothes?  Are you wearing three or more layers, do your clothes reveal your figure, do you see any skin other than your hands, and face?  If you answered yes to any then your ancestor would have a fit.  While I personally enjoy skirts, dresses, and long flowing clothes, I don't want to wear more than one or two layes and I certainly don't want to half sufigate myself in a corset.  There are many great things with becoming more modern but personally I think the most satisfiying after doing this research is the wide range of clothes that are now available for women to wear and at the same time be able to join the workforce.  The reason is simple, because those two accomplishments are linked irevocably together with the freedom that women have gained in the last fifty to hundred years.