Fashion alters appearances. And appearances can be deceptive. A judge, secure in gown and wig, may make pronouncements that would have him laughed out of court were he dressed in T-shirt and shorts. The businessman, guilty of insider dealing, will nevertheless as look sober as a judge in his dark and respectable suit. Clothes also perpetuate sexual stereotypes - from Madonna in her corset to George Michael in his Levi 501s. Today's designer labels and logos define status and aspiration. The days of the great Paris couturiers like Chanel, catering for an exclusive clientele are gone. The author takes a look at the tyrannies and taboos of fashion to show how others see us and how we see ourselves. The author also edited The Directory of Twentieth Century Fashion and he wrote A Woman of Style.