Evolution and Analysis of Western Women

沈曉棠

Abstract：Profile refers to image，silhouette，outline，etc.In fashion design，it refers to the outline of the front or side of the garment that the human eye sees when it does not see the details.Clothing profiles can be classified into alphabetic，geometric and figure types according to different classification methods.This paper mainly studies the evolution of Western women's clothing profile in the 20th century on the basis of alphabet.

Key words：20th century，women's clothing，profile

1、Evolution of Western Women's Clothing Profile in the 20th Century

From 1900 to 1914，the fashion rules were strict and rigid.Those who did not obey these rules might be excluded from society，because clothing represented a person's age，status and social stratum.So this period of women's clothing profile is S-shaped，slightly broadened shoulders，chest with tight corset，waist tightening，buttocks with buttocks cushion to shape women's S-shaped features.

In 1914，the outbreak of World War I，the war is to promote people to wear comfortable，convenient，which means that the body-bound corset is no longer suitable for the new way of life.So a new profile called "Boy Style" appeared.The profile of this period is flat chest，flat buttocks，wide shoulders and low waist，basically showing H-shaped.

By the 1940s，when World War II broke out，many women began to work in the army to maintain their families，so clothing became more functional.This period of clothing outline form military appearance，thick shoulder pads formed a square shoulder，with the use of knee skirts.

At the end of the war in the 1950s，women were encouraged to be housewives.During this period，the typical symbols of women's dress profile were soft broad shoulders，thin waist with bra and plump buttocks.The overall appearance was X-shaped.This type of dress profile not only showed the body characteristics of women's curves，but also the elegance of women.

In the 1960s，with the rapid development of economy，people's ideas were more open，and people's dress taste was greatly improved.During this period，clothing changed rapidly.The main shape of clothing was type A，with shirt skirts of different lengths，especially type A miniskirt，which was the best representative of this period.

The tremendous increase in tourism in the 1970s made fashion globalized，and the influence from all over the world could impact the fashion field.During this period，the outline of clothing was more relaxed and slender.

The 1980s were the period of economic prosperity and consumption.During this period，the clothing outline was dominated by large shoulder pads and military-style shoulder pads.The waist was slightly close to the body.The lower half of the body was pants or straight skirt，and the whole body was small T-shaped structure from top to bottom.This outline of the clothing with masculinity，showing the characteristics of women's independence，desire for social status，career success.

After the 1980s，the Internet began to spread，fashion began to globalize，people's ideas became more open.In this period，women usually wear trousers with narrow shoulder shirts，plus a small number of prominent jewelry can not only show the fashion and taste of wear，but also reflect the skillful and simple women wear.

2、The Social Phenomena Reflected by the Change of Clothing Profile

At the beginning of the 20th century，it was the flourishing period of the industrial revolution and the flourishing period of economic development，so people in that era enjoyed luxury and paid attention to the quality of life and dress.S-shaped clothing profile is not only conducive to designers in their shoulder，waist，pendulum and other positions for rich decoration，but also can perfectly reflect the beautiful，graceful figure of women.Although S-type clothing restrained the human body's freedom and unchanged human activities，women at that time did not have to work or work，and their body movements were less and lighter，so S-type women's clothing would become the mainstream of the times.

With the outbreak of the First World War，great political turmoil has taken place，and people's living conditions can not be stable，and the clothing profile has also changed.Faced with the reality of the harsh war caused by political turmoil，people first consider clothes strong and durable，convenient and dirty.Because of the need for post-war construction，a large number of women took part in the work，and they pursued more freedom and comfort in clothing.H-style clothing is relatively loose and comfortable from top to bottom.It completely gets rid of the shortcomings of S-type clothing，X-type clothing and other types of tight and constant activities.It is in line with the background of political turmoil and constant war at that time.Therefore，H-type clothing will become popular in the 1920s and 1930s.

After World War II，the economy gradually recovered and ready-made fashion began to spread.Unified，standardized，standardized fashion more in line with everyone's dress requirements.Because it represents the advanced civilization，and at the same time can increase the distinct corporate image，so the profile of professional wear is popular for a while.

In the late 20th century，the shape of clothing began to diversify and liberalize.During this period，the economic development has been increasing，the network has become popular，information transmission is rapid and universal，and people's ideas have been further liberated.Especially，the characteristics of women's psychology of independence.Because of the unprecedented ideological change，the outline of women's clothes in this period not only absorbed the characteristics of men's concise and atmospheric outline，but also integrated the characteristics of women's dignified and elegant outline.Therefore，the clothing outline of neutral style caters to people's inner ideological characteristics and expressions.In this way，the clothes with neutral profile can not only show their ability and shrewdness，but also reflect their pursuit of personality.

To sum up，the development and evolution of clothing profile are closely related to the social economy，politics，culture and ideology of a period.

（作者單位：齊魯工業大學（山東省科學院）藝術設計學院）