Chloe Chapin, "Suitable: The Sartorial Revolution and the Fashioning of Modern Men" (Oxford UP, 2026)

About this episode

Chloe Chapin discusses her book on the evolution of men's fashion and its impact on gender and power dynamics.

How did black suits become so ubiquitous? Why has men's business clothing been so plain for the last 250 years? How did a style adopted by the Founding Fathers to differentiate themselves from European contemporaries become the dominant style for men around the globe? Suitable: The Sartorial Revolution and the Fashioning of Modern Men (Oxford University Press, 2026) traces the shift from the colorful, flamboyant attire of the eighteenth century to the plain dark suit of the nineteenth century, characterizing this style evolution as a "Sartorial Revolution." In this book, American historian and costume designer Chloe Chapin traces the evolution of masculine style from the American Revolution through the Civil War and shows how men's suits shaped relationships of gender and power. Drawing on a wealth of visual and written sources, she shows how the plainness of suits symbolized new ideals of rationality and democracy and played a crucial role in framing the lasting identity and authority of American men. This richly illustrated book analyzes fashion history's impact on gender dynamics and emphasizes the dynamic relationships between bodies, clothing, and personal identity. Suitable…

People in this episode

Guest: Chloe Chapin

Topics covered

• fashion history
• masculine style
• gender dynamics
• sartorial revolution
• American identity

Keywords

• black suits
• business clothing
• style evolution
• fashion and identity
• rationality and democracy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Oxford University Press

Books & works: Suitable: The Sartorial Revolution and the Fashioning of Modern Men

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