Fashion in Focus ─ Concepts, Practices and Politics

The study of fashion has exploded in recent decades, yet what this all means or quite where it might take us is not clear. This new book helps to bring fashion into focus, with a comprehensive guide to the key theories, perspectives and developments in the field.

Tim Edwards includes coverage of all the major theories of fashion, including recent scholarship, alongside subcultural analysis and an in-depth look at production. Individual topics include:



men’s fashion, masculinity and the suit
women’s fashion and the role of sexuality
children, the body and fashion
the role of celebrity and designer label culture
globalisation and the production of fashion.


Fashion in Focus is the ideal companion for students in the arts and social sciences, especially those studying issues such as fashion, gender, sexuality and consumer culture.

Tim Edwards is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Leicester. He has published and researched widely in the areas of masculinities, sexuality, fashion and consumer culture. He is the author of Cultures of Masculinity (2006).

1. Fashion Foundations 2. The Classical Tradition – Early Perspectives on Fashion 3. The Clothes Maketh The Man – Masculinity, The Suit and Men’s Fashion 4. The Woman Question: Fashion, Feminism and Fetishism 5. Who Are You Kidding? Children, Fashion and Consumption 6. Express Yourself – The Politics of Dressing Up 7. From Rags to Riches – Fashion Production 8. Desiring Subjects – The Designer Label and the Cult of Celebrity. Conclusion: The Fashion Invasion