Professor Offers A History Of Lingerie, In Brief

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It’s Valentine’s Day, the holiday of chocolates, flowers and lacy underthings. But before you surprise your sweetheart with fancy lingerie, consider that the original intent of these garments was modesty.

"Throughout the ages, underwear has served a number of functions, including cleanliness and warmth, but its most basic purpose has always been to promote the modesty of the women who wore it," said Mary Cotton, emerita professor of human environmental science.

Before retiring from the University in 1993, Cotton and several of her graduate students endeavored to document and recreate the evolution of women’s underwear. Their research has inspired numerous lectures and museum exhibits, offering a revealing insight into the functions and fashions that shaped women’s lives.

In particular, Cotton’s work focused on the period from 1860 to 1920, when high fashion first became widespread among American women. As different styles and silhouettes came into popularity, women had to adjust their figures to fit and fill the dresses.

That means fashion capitals such as London and Paris not only determined the cut of women’s clothing, but they also dictated the garments women wore underneath. Such pervasive influence gives new meaning to the schoolyard chant, "I see London, I see France.."

Ever fickle, the burgeoning fashion industry demanded a new look for each era, said Cotton. When wide hips and full figures became fashionable in the 1860s, women piled up to 14 layers of heavily-starched and ruffled petticoats beneath their skirts. The combined weight of these

garments could exceed 30 pounds.

As slimmer silhouettes became popular at the turn of the century, women abandoned their voluminous skirts and cinched their corsets ever tighter. With laces and stays, the average woman strove to reduce her waist by as much as five inches.

"It stands to reason that it wouldn’t be healthy to get a 22-inch waist down to a 17," said Cotton. "But women started their daughters early — lacing them into corsets by the time they were 12 or 13, hoping to shape them into respectable young women."

A common myth of the day claimed women were too frail to support their own weight without the help of a corset. But the restrictive garments interfered with moving, breathing and eating, and women were bound to complain.

By the 1920s, corsets had loosened. So had the social mores that dictated feminine dress and behavior. As women began to act more like men, they also began to look more boyish. Flappers bound their breasts with tight brassieres and used girdles to slim their hips.

"Underwear can act as a second skeleton or a second skin," Cotton said. "As fashion became more simplified, women discarded the extra framework and padding that had given contour to their clothes and adopted a more realistic silhouette."

Just as fashion played a role in women’s undergarments, so did the availability of new materials, Cotton said. Modern Valentine shoppers will find racks of satin and lace, but at one time, lingerie was a no-frills affair.

In the early 19^th century, women sewed corsets and petticoats from the only material available — plain, heavy muslin. But the advent of the Industrial Revolution enabled undergarments to be manufactured outside the home. Factories used more refined, lightweight materials and added details like lace, ribbons and pleats.

By the turn of the century, manufacturers had produced a wide array of items and styles. The retail industry responded by creating separate lingerie departments to advertise and sell these garments.

Finally, social roles have also greatly affected women’s underwear. As women moved out of the home and pursued a greater variety of activities, their clothing had to become less restrictive.

Today’s women may condemn corsets and bustles for promoting an unreasonable ideal, but Cotton cautions that modern women may not be as free as they think. The modern equivalents of these garments still sell at department stores and continue to represent society’s ideal of beauty and femininity.

In addition, Cotton reminds us that women are still striving to shape their bodies for the sake of fashion.

"We look back and think it’s preposterous that women allowed themselves to be cinched into these corsets, but today women are willing to starve themselves or undergo liposuction or get breast implants," said Cotton. "Rather than using our clothes to shape our bodies, we’re using diet, exercise and plastic surgery."