Crystal Palace And the Great Exhibition Science, Art And Productive Industry, the History of... Book

P.4 – I hope to present an introductory guide to the cultural significance of fashion, from its emergence in the mid-fourteenth century to its final explosion in the mid-twentieth century that locates itself within these broader historical debates. In terms of method, each chapter incorporates a chronological narrative of changing form, using the analytical approaches pioneered by traditional art historical fashion history. This narrative is then both problematized and substantiated by an engagement with critical debates drawn mainly form recent cultural histories, but also including comment from economic, design, and art history and literary theory.

p.5 – As the main purpose of the book is to broaden the parameters of fashion history by engaging with other disciplines, the text uses direct quotations as a way of exposing the student to the possibilities and uses of a wide variety of historical discourses.