UPPSALA UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION SCIENCE DIVISION OF MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION MASTER THESIS IN MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION STUDIES D-LEVEL, SPRING TERM 2007 FASHIONING THE FEMALE An Analysis of the “Fashionable Woman” in ELLE Magazine – Now and Then Author: Heidi Marie Nömm Tutor: Ylva Ekström ABSTRACT Title: FASHIONING THE FEMALE - An Analysis of the “Fashionable Woman” in ELLE Magazine - Now and Then Number of pages: 57 (including diagrams and figures, excluding enclosures) Author: Heidi Marie Nömm Tutor: Ylva Ekström Course: Media and Communication Studies D Level, Master Thesis Period: Spring term 2007 University: Uppsala University Division of Media and Communication Department of Information Science Purpose/Aim: The purpose of this master thesis is to investigate how fashion can function as a communication channel and how the modern Swedish woman is represented in ELLE magazine within two different fashion decades, in 1992 and 2007. Material: Swedish ELLE magazines No. 1-4 1992 and No. 1-4 2007. Method: A complementary combination of quantitative content analysis, semiotics and critical discourse analysis. Main results: A number of differences, as well as similarities can be recognised between the fashions of 1992 and 2007. The latter one is characterised by women looking serious, sometimes even austere while 1992 shows often happy women. The fashion styles are much more casual, colourful and more accessorised by jewellery etc. in 1992, while the clothing in 2007 is often tight, body hugging and reveals more skin. Concerning ethnicity, 2007 only shows white women, often very feminine and wearing mostly dresses and rarely pants, whereas 1992 is characterised by ELLE’s effort to show a more multicultural and diversified picture of the female. The semiotic analysis has lead to the conclusions that women in 1992 were more natural and “real” whereas the female picture ELLE is presenting often has fictional or unnatural elements. The fashion styles often seem un-wearable in 2007, however also rather artistic. The woman of 2007 is living a more expensive and extravagant lifestyle than in 1992 where women were more often depicted “average”. Keywords: Fashion, communication, representation, lifestyle, cultural studies, feminism, ELLE magazine, femininity. 2 CONTENTS CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................ 3 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 5 1.1 Fashion as a field of research ............................................................................................ 5 1.2 The purpose of study ......................................................................................................... 7 1.3 Questions of research ........................................................................................................ 7 1.4 My material and sample .................................................................................................. 8 1.5 Previous research on fashion as communication .............................................................. 8 2 FASHION IN THE 20th CENTURY .................................................................................... 11 2.1 Short overview of the history of fashion ....................................................................... 11 2.2 Fashion photography ....................................................................................................... 13 2.3 ELLE magazine .............................................................................................................. 13 3 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ......................................................................................... 14 3.1 Traditional feminist media studies .................................................................................. 14 3.1.1 Historical review of feminist media studies ............................................................. 14 3.2 Constructing and representing femininity ....................................................................... 15 3.3 Fashion as a communication system ............................................................................... 17 3.5 Fashion as discourse ........................................................................................................ 18 3.4 Fashion and lifestyle ....................................................................................................... 20 4 ANALYSING THE CONTENTS - Methodology ................................................................. 21 4.1 Content analysis .............................................................................................................. 21 4.1.1 Finding your images ................................................................................................ 22 4.1.2 Devising your coding categories ............................................................................. 23 4.1.3 Coding the images .................................................................................................... 23 4.2 The semiotics of fashion ................................................................................................. 24 4.2.1 The concept of signs ................................................................................................ 24 4.2.2 Denotation and connotation ..................................................................................... 24 4.2.3 Fashion as myth and ideology .................................................................................. 26 4.2.4 The aspects of signs ................................................................................................. 26 5 COUNTING THE CONTENTS – Quantitative analysis ...................................................... 28 5.1 Fashion and looks ............................................................................................................ 28 5.1.1 Hair ........................................................................................................................... 28 5.1.2 Eyes .......................................................................................................................... 30 5.1.3 Complexion .............................................................................................................. 30 5.1.4 Clothing .................................................................................................................... 31 5.1.5 Fashion colours ........................................................................................................ 31 5.1.6 Shoe fashion ............................................................................................................. 32 5.1.7 Jewellery .................................................................................................................. 32 5.1.8 Make up .................................................................................................................... 33 5.1.9 Accessories ............................................................................................................... 33 5.2 Body language and physical characteristics .................................................................... 34 5.2.1 Body Proportions ..................................................................................................... 34 5.2.2 Visible body parts .................................................................................................... 34 5.2.3 Nudity ....................................................................................................................... 35 5.2.4 Facial expression ...................................................................................................... 35 5.2.5 Eye contact and line of sight .................................................................................... 35 5.2.6 Grade of activity ....................................................................................................... 36 5.2.7 Race / ethnicity ......................................................................................................... 37 5.3 Surroundings and environment ....................................................................................... 37 3 5.3.1 Setting 1: Natural environment or photo studio? ..................................................... 37 5.3.2 Setting 2: Rural or urban environment? ................................................................... 38 5.4 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 38 6 READING THE IMAGES – Qualitative analysis ................................................................. 40 6.1 The fashionable female in 2007 ...................................................................................... 40 6.1.1 The distant snow queen ............................................................................................ 40 6.1.2 The “immaternal” woman ........................................................................................ 42 6.1.3 The objectified female ............................................................................................ 44 6.1.4 The metropolitan lifestyle woman ........................................................................... 46 6.1.5 Summary .................................................................................................................