Drömmen om kvinnan : konstruktionen av hegemonisk femininitet och kvinnans plats i den borgerliga kulturen i svensk och brittisk modepress 1830–1855
(2025) HISS33 20251History
- Abstract
- The dream of woman : the construction of hegemonic femininity and the woman’s place in bourgeois culture in the Swedish and British fashion press, 1830–1855.
This thesis investigates the construction of hegemonic femininity in British and Swedish fashion periodicals between 1830 and 1855, a period often overlooked in history research. Through an intersectional lens, drawing on theories of fashion as a social institution and symbolic language, the study explores how fashion periodicals functioned as normative media, shaping bourgeois ideals of womanhood, class and racialized beauty. This thesis explores how femininity was idealized and regulated through fashion periodicals in the mid-nineteenth century, with a focus on the themes of the... (More) - The dream of woman : the construction of hegemonic femininity and the woman’s place in bourgeois culture in the Swedish and British fashion press, 1830–1855.
This thesis investigates the construction of hegemonic femininity in British and Swedish fashion periodicals between 1830 and 1855, a period often overlooked in history research. Through an intersectional lens, drawing on theories of fashion as a social institution and symbolic language, the study explores how fashion periodicals functioned as normative media, shaping bourgeois ideals of womanhood, class and racialized beauty. This thesis explores how femininity was idealized and regulated through fashion periodicals in the mid-nineteenth century, with a focus on the themes of the pleasing woman, the moral function of fashion and the woman’s role within the household. It analyzes how clothing trend, visual imagery and editorial content worked together to define and enforce bourgeois ideals of feminine virtue, appearance and domesticity. This thesis reveals how clothing became a performative tool through which femininity, moral and social status were expressed and negotiated. Fashion was not only and aesthetic practice, but also a moral language, closely tied to virtues like modesty, passivity and restraint. The periodicals instructed their readers on how to manifest these virtues through appropriate dress, reinforcing the woman’s role as a reflection of her household’s status. The concept of “the duty to please” (behagsplikt) merges as a central mechanism in this gendered order, aligning with broader moral ideals and domestic ideologies. While both countries emphasized similar ideals, differences in tone and expression are noted. British magazine employed a more dramatic and moralizing rhetoric, while Swedish periodicals conveyed similar messages through a more subdued, nuanced language. Fashion illustrations further reinforced hegemonic femininity by depicting the ideal woman in domestic setting, with fair skin and modest attire. Racialized and class-based distinction were also evident, highlighting the exclusivity of the hegemonic feminine ideal. Ultimately the study concludes that the hegemonic femininity promoted in these magazines was a multi-layered construct that demanded both internal virtue and external elegance. It was a femininity deeply rooted in Christian morality, racial hierarchies and class structures, reinforcing the woman’s role as a passive, moral centerpiece of the bourgeois household. The magazines served not only to reflect but also to discipline and produce the ideal woman – elegant, restrained and devoted to her household. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9199251
- author
- Rodéhn, Ella LU
- supervisor
-
- Emma Hilborn LU
- organization
- course
- HISS33 20251
- year
- 2025
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- mode, genus, moral, ideal, dygd, behag, skönhet, hegemonisk femininitet, behagsplikt, borgarklass, 1800-tal, modemagasin, visuell kultur
- language
- Swedish
- id
- 9199251
- date added to LUP
- 2025-06-18 16:26:52
- date last changed
- 2025-06-18 16:26:52
@misc{9199251,
abstract = {{The dream of woman : the construction of hegemonic femininity and the woman’s place in bourgeois culture in the Swedish and British fashion press, 1830–1855.
This thesis investigates the construction of hegemonic femininity in British and Swedish fashion periodicals between 1830 and 1855, a period often overlooked in history research. Through an intersectional lens, drawing on theories of fashion as a social institution and symbolic language, the study explores how fashion periodicals functioned as normative media, shaping bourgeois ideals of womanhood, class and racialized beauty. This thesis explores how femininity was idealized and regulated through fashion periodicals in the mid-nineteenth century, with a focus on the themes of the pleasing woman, the moral function of fashion and the woman’s role within the household. It analyzes how clothing trend, visual imagery and editorial content worked together to define and enforce bourgeois ideals of feminine virtue, appearance and domesticity. This thesis reveals how clothing became a performative tool through which femininity, moral and social status were expressed and negotiated. Fashion was not only and aesthetic practice, but also a moral language, closely tied to virtues like modesty, passivity and restraint. The periodicals instructed their readers on how to manifest these virtues through appropriate dress, reinforcing the woman’s role as a reflection of her household’s status. The concept of “the duty to please” (behagsplikt) merges as a central mechanism in this gendered order, aligning with broader moral ideals and domestic ideologies. While both countries emphasized similar ideals, differences in tone and expression are noted. British magazine employed a more dramatic and moralizing rhetoric, while Swedish periodicals conveyed similar messages through a more subdued, nuanced language. Fashion illustrations further reinforced hegemonic femininity by depicting the ideal woman in domestic setting, with fair skin and modest attire. Racialized and class-based distinction were also evident, highlighting the exclusivity of the hegemonic feminine ideal. Ultimately the study concludes that the hegemonic femininity promoted in these magazines was a multi-layered construct that demanded both internal virtue and external elegance. It was a femininity deeply rooted in Christian morality, racial hierarchies and class structures, reinforcing the woman’s role as a passive, moral centerpiece of the bourgeois household. The magazines served not only to reflect but also to discipline and produce the ideal woman – elegant, restrained and devoted to her household.}},
author = {{Rodéhn, Ella}},
language = {{swe}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Drömmen om kvinnan : konstruktionen av hegemonisk femininitet och kvinnans plats i den borgerliga kulturen i svensk och brittisk modepress 1830–1855}},
year = {{2025}},
}