{"title":"Helen Bradley Foster","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"new-raiments-of-self-book-helen-bradley-foster-9781859731895","title":"New Raiments of Self","description":"This book examines the clothing worn by African Americans in the southern United States during the thirty years before the American Civil War. Drawing on a wide range of sources, most notably oral narratives recorded in the 1930s, this rich account shows that African Americans demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the role clothing played in demarcating age, sex, status, work, recreation, as well as special secular and sacred events. Testimonies offer proof of African Americans' vast technical skills in producing cloth and clothing, which served both as a fundamental reflection of the peoples' Afrocentric craftsmanship and aesthetic sensibilities, and as a reaction to their particular place in American society. Previous work on clothing in this period has tended to focus on white viewpoints, and as a consequence the dress worn by the enslaved has generally been seen as a static standard imposed by white overlords. This excellent study departs from conventional interpretations to show that the clothing of the enslaved changed over time, served multiple functions and represented customs and attitudes which evolved distinctly from within African American communities. In short, it represents a vital contribution to African American studies, as well as to dress and textile history, and cultural and folklore studies.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51606116008209,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":51606117712145,"sku":"CIN1859731899G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52140208390417,"sku":"NLS9781859731895","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1859731899.jpg?v=1751460907"},{"product_id":"wedding-dress-across-cultures-book-helen-bradley-foster-9781859737422","title":"Wedding Dress across Cultures","description":"Although the Victorian white wedding dominates western bridal dress and large portions of former colonial empires, marriage rituals vary significantly throughout the world. The Japanese, for instance, combine both traditional ceremonies with receptions utilizing western approaches to dress. In the Andes the bride will personally create a multi-layered dress to showcase her weaving skills. Berber brides in Morocco wear binding clothing that covers their faces, a notable contrast to Canadian prairie-province brides whose stylized gowns individualize and enhance body shape. This engaging book examines the evolution and ritual functions of wedding attire within the context of particular cultures. It raises questions as to the relationship between contemporary wedding attire and traditional values. It discusses the changes international migrations have had upon the wedding dress of several ethnic groups. It provides insights into numerous societal relationships to weddings, such as the ban on bridal-produced embroidery in dowries in India, the challenges individual values have to larger societal ones in themed weddings, and the relationship between the return to pre-western attire and identity politics. Exploring these issues, the authors provide unusual insights into the centrality of dress in shaping individual identity as well as its importance in reflecting cultural values and ideals.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52133720752401,"sku":"NLS9781859737422","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781859737422.jpg?v=1757532737"},{"product_id":"new-raiments-of-self-book-helen-bradley-foster-9781859731840","title":"New Raiments of Self","description":"This book examines the clothing worn by African Americans in the southern United States during the thirty years before the American Civil War. Drawing on a wide range of sources, most notably oral narratives recorded in the 1930s, this rich account shows that African Americans demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the role clothing played in demarcating age, sex, status, work, recreation, as well as special secular and sacred events. Testimonies offer proof of African Americans' vast technical skills in producing cloth and clothing, which served both as a fundamental reflection of the peoples' Afrocentric craftsmanship and aesthetic sensibilities, and as a reaction to their particular place in American society. Previous work on clothing in this period has tended to focus on white viewpoints, and as a consequence the dress worn by the enslaved has generally been seen as a static standard imposed by white overlords. This excellent study departs from conventional interpretations to show that the clothing of the enslaved changed over time, served multiple functions and represented customs and attitudes which evolved distinctly from within African American communities. In short, it represents a vital contribution to African American studies, as well as to dress and textile history, and cultural and folklore studies.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52333160956177,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52333161578769,"sku":"NLS9781859731840","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781859731840.jpg?v=1758153903"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-helen-bradley-foster.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}