Psychology of Clothes:  Motivations for Dressing-up and Dressing-down

Professor Bobbi Owen owenbob@unc.edu

This seminar seeks to help students articulate their own motivations for dress and then apply the ideas they discover to the ways in which individuality and/or group attitudes are expressed through clothing.  The class will utilize both traditional and innovative instructional methods, meeting in the classroom as well as “on location” in some places where clothing is worn on campus!  Fast fashion and slow fashion (disappearing couture crafts) will be considered with the documentaries The True Cost, Handmade with Love in France, and Covered providing some context. The films English Vinglish and Wajdah will also provide context. The semester will be divided into two parts. The first will focus on approaches to weddings and indications of marriage that occur in different cultures. The second will be dedicated to defining (and understanding) the concept of pious dress in different places and times.

Over the semester students will:

• Develop a vocabulary concerning motivations for dress and for articulating their own preferred clothing forms;
• Understand (some of) the reasons others choose to dress in particular ways via code-shifting (or not);
• Learn to use and document research methods;
• Write and speak with increasing proficiency about this topic.

NOTES:

• Privilege Cards to attend productions by the PlayMakers Company can be obtained for students registered for DRAM 470 and 470H. Complete information can be found here.
• Links to the course page can be found here (bobbiowen.info)
• If it becomes necessary to change the syllabus, advance notification will be provided.

Course schedule:

Texts:   

Group projects/seminar paper: See separate documents for Project #1, Project #2, and Seminar Paper.

Plagiarism and Honor Code:  All exams and written work must be submitted with a statement that you have complied with the requirements of the Honor Code in all aspects of the work.  Details can be found at http://instrument.unc.edu (most recently revised on July 25, 2017).