Thomas Conner
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gendering: gauchos in elevator shoes

1/22/2016

7 Comments

 
Picture
Once upon a time, men commonly wore high-heeled shoes. Not necessarily like those pictured here, but definitely big, chunky, elevating heels. This interesting BBC story asks: why did men stop wearing them? (As a rule, that is. In certain contexts, of course, some men still do.)

Participation! Read the story and consider the stated reasons for this change. Put this into conversation with Judith Butler's ideas about gender performativity. What is it about the structure of a shoe that signals gender? How do other elements of fashion contribute to gender construction?

7 Comments
kapostol@ucsd.edu
1/24/2016 05:54:07 pm

Heels used to represent how powerful and elite a person was. Men used to wear high heels because it allowed them to secure their stance. Women were viewed as weak. They believed that incorporating the heel would add masculinity to their outfits. Soon after, hegemonic beliefs changed and heels started to look foolish on men.

Reply
Thomas Conner
2/19/2016 11:20:41 am

Indeed! So what changed the hegemony? What does it take to make the counter-hegemonic the new hegemony?

Reply
Jason Ma
2/27/2016 12:58:50 am

Within Ancient Egypt, high heels were used as a symbol of status. I also remember from an art history class that the Egyptians used a technique in their art called "hierarchy of scale" where taller figures were more important/had more status, just thought that might have something to do with the way it was viewed.

However, within Ancient Rome, high heels were used to distinguish prostitutes from other women. My guess is this has relevance in terms of the change in hegemony. There is definitely a difference in status associated with this piece of clothing here.

In modern society, high heels are used often as a way to look more beautiful. It's also sometimes used as part of formal dressing (in which it is part of a gender-specific cultural norm).

I guess one thing to take out of it is that different cultures have different views towards the same thing. The Egyptians thought it was a symbol of power with a person being higher or above other people. The Romans may have viewed it as something disempowering, and within the United States, it can be viewed as a commodified object of beauty.

Clayre
1/27/2016 12:40:29 am

Participation :

The structure of a shoe determines its, either, masculinity or femininity through certain qualities. Stereotypically, woman are more precise and delicate and so women's shoes are thought to be more decorated, while the "strong, hard working man" is symbolized by sturdier, functional, structurally industrial yet fashionably simple footwear. Other elements such as color and size reflect the characteristics (by the social norm) which qualify any person or object or behavior as a woman's or a man's.

Reply
Xinyi Zhan
2/17/2016 03:41:51 pm

Women are regarded as delicate and in need of protection, so the heels designed for them are thinner and more delicate although at first women tried high-heel shoes in want of men's power or strength. Many elememts like color, style and acssesories in modern fashion show basic difference between gender. For example, men prefer dark color like black and dark blue while women have much more choices of light colors.

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Thomas Conner
2/19/2016 11:23:54 am

I understand from speaking to women about the experience that wearing high heels is not for the weak. It's difficult, it takes training, it can hurt! How does that square with what you're describing here? Why do strong men get the comfy shoes and women have to totter about on spikes?

Reply
Melissa Supsup
2/24/2016 03:33:42 pm

I actually had a conversation about this with my mom's friend who is a business woman. I'm an international business major and I was curious about this. I asked why business women are expected to wear heels to work? She replied, "Because it represent femininity. Women are supposed to look sophisticated, pretty, and professional." I replied, "But why high heels? They're a pain." And she ended the conversation by saying, "Because it's what society created." This conversation was more than a year ago before I did my college applications. To realize that even adults are aware of these "social norms," I feel that people conform to these things because this is the society we live in.

In comparison to men, they get to wear sturdier and more comfortable shoes yet they still seem "more professional". Shoes portray the inequality between men and women in terms of what it symbolizes and how this symbolism reflects our society.

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  • thomasconner
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