Emma Seckel
Block 1-2
April 10, 2013
Clothes Make the Woman
And occasionally the man, but we don’t care about that as much.
An illustrated look at the role of fashion in Austen and Collins.
Nearly 100 years separate Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey (written circa 1798) and Wilkie
Collins’ Man and Wife (1870). This sizeable gap in time is apparent
in the fashions worn by the female protagonists of each novel.
Northanger Abbey is set in the Regency era, Man and Wife takes
place in the Victorian Era. Clothes and fashion play an important role
in both novels, whether to inform a thematic topic, as in Northanger
Abbey, or to aid in characterization, as in Man and Wife.
A mid-late Victorian day-dress
The Regency and Victorian periods present dramatically different fashion cahracteristics,
especially in terms of silhouettes. Many of these differences can be
explained by the contrasting social and historical influence of each
time period.
The Regency era in England spanned from the late 1700s to
around 1825, and was a period of enormous influence from France—
particularly in terms of the impact of the influence of Napoleon and
Josephine Bonaparte.
In the aftermath of the French Revolution, no one
wanted to appear to be a member of the French
Regency gown worn by
Josephine Bonaparte
aristocracy, and people began using clothing more as a form of individual
expression of the true-self than as a pure indication of social status. (“1795-1820
in Western Fashion”)
Skirts became slimmer and waistlines rose to what we now call an ‘empire waist’—a reference
to the ‘Emperor’ and ‘Empress’ Napoleon and Josephine—and “tightly laced corsets were
temporarily abandoned in favor of [this] high-waisted, natural figure” (“1795-1820”). These
flowing, unstructured dresses were designed to show off a woman’s
natural shape, unlike the large and concealing dresses of earlier and
later eras (“1795-1820”). This shift from voluminous dresses to
slimmer ones may also be attributed to the increasing influence of
Classical Greece in an age of exploration and discovery. After
“James Stuart's travels to Greece in the early 1750s, intellectual
curiosity quickly led to a desire to emulate” this aesthetic (“Greek
Revival”). This revival mainly involved interior design, but no doubt
influenced other elements of style as well, potentially influencing a
Regency gown
return to a more flowing silhouette.
Jane Austen’s novels are all set in the Regency era—think of those high-waisted white
dresses you see in every adaptation of her work. As is the case today, clothes were integral in
telegraphing societal standing during both Austen’s and Collins’ time. Indeed, clothes play a
significant part in Northanger Abbey, particularly given that one of its thematic topics is
consumerism; for example, Mrs. Allen is always concerned with having the most fashionable
gowns, and only tends to recognize others for their own attire (Austen). Of her, Austen writes:
Dress was her passion. She had a most harmless delight in being fine; and our
heroine's entree into life could not take place till after three or four days had been
spent in learning what was mostly worn, and her chaperone was provided with a
dress of the newest fashion. (Austen)
Indeed, Mrs. Allen “never appears in the text without Austen pointedly reminding us that she
can’t think of anything but clothes, can’t offer any social advice that isn’t about how to dress to
advantage, and can’t recognize anything about anyone else’s character except their fashionability
[sic]” (Horning).
Northanger Abbey’s main female character, Catherine Morland, also spends a great deal
of time thinking about what she will wear, but Austen condemns this, claiming that “dress is at
all times a frivolous distinction, and excessive solicitude about it often destroys its own aim”
(Austen). Similarly, Isabella Thorpe is constantly concerned with being dressed in the most
fashionable style, but ultimately the reader comes to perceive her as a vain and shallow character
(Austen). In these ways, Austen again uses fashion to support a thematic topic regarding the
dangers of consumerism and materialism.
Clothes continued to play a role in defining societal status into the Victorian period.
While Regency fashions were influenced by a more natural view of women and their bodies,
Victorian fashion presented quite a contrasting approach. Indeed,
clothing evolved to hide and reshape women’s bodies. The early
Victorian era was characterized by the iconic dome-shaped skirt—
Dome skirt
almost entirely the opposite aesthetic to the clothing of the
Regency era. This was achieved with what was called a ‘cage’—a dome made of starched cloth
and boning. By the time of Man and Wife’s publication, however, skirts were not quite so wide
and did not require as much support; by about 1867, skirts were only full in the back, creating an
unnatural and exaggerated back view. This was called a ‘bustle’, and was
made of starched fabric and sometimes metal. (“Mid-Late Victorian
Fashion”). In fact, many significant changes in fashion occurred very
quickly in the years after 1860, primarily because of the ready availability
of the newly invented sewing machines and synthetic dyes (“Mid-Late
Victorian Fashion”). Additionally, “late Victorian women embraced the
Bustle
sharper tailored jacket fashion which gave them a different posture with a
more confident air reflecting the ideals of early female emancipation” (“Mid-Late Victorian
Fashion”).
Throughout Man and Wife, Collins uses fashion not to promote his themes, but rather as a
way to inform characterization. When we first meet the young Anne and Blanche in Man and
Wife, they are dressed in white to symbolize purity and innocence (Collins). Later, Lady Jane is
described as “tall and elegant; beautifully dressed, in the happiest combination of simplicity and
splendor”, directly correlating her beauty with her dress (Collins). Throughout the novel, Collins
continues to rely on fashion to instantly describe his characters. Take the following passage as an
example:
She was young, she was pretty, she
was plump, she was fair. She was not the
least embarrassed by her prominent position.
She was dressed in the height of the fashion.
A hat, like a cheese-plate, was tilted over
her forehead. A balloon of light brown hair
Mid-late Victorian gowns
soared, fully inflated, from the crown of her head. A cataract of beads poured over
her bosom. A pair of cock-chafers in enamel (frightfully like the living originals)
hung at her ears. Her scanty skirts shone splendid with the blue of heaven. Her
ankles twinkled in striped stockings. Her shoes were of the sort called “Watteau.”
And her heels were of the height at which men shudder, and ask themselves (in
contemplating an otherwise lovable woman), "Can this charming person
straighten her knees?"
The young lady thus presenting herself to the general view was Miss
Blanche Lundie. (Collins).
The way Collins sets up this passage also illustrates the importance of fashion to Victorian
society, particularly as a status symbol; he describes Blanche’s dress to the reader before
revealing her name, thereby exhibiting how clothing was one’s chance to make a first
impression. Collins’ illustration of fashion as a symbol of social status continues throughout the
novel, as when he claims that one woman is “evidently a servant by her dress” (Collins).
Although Collins seems to dislike Victorian men’s dress, claiming that at the garden
party “the butterfly-brightness of the women in their summer dresses shone radiant out of the
gloom shed round it by the dreary modern clothing of the men”, he uses men’s fashion in a
similar way to how he uses women’s fashion—to distinguish his characters from inconsequential
extras. For example, Collins describes Patrick Lundie with the following passage:
The manner of this gentleman was distinguished by a pliant grace and courtesy
unknown to the present generation. The attire of this gentleman was composed of
a many-folded white cravat, a close-buttoned blue dress-coat, and nankeen
trousers with gaiters to match, ridiculous to the present generation. […] At his
lower extremities, he exhibited the deformity which is popularly known as "a
club-foot." But he carried his lameness, as he carried his years, gayly. He was
socially celebrated for his ivory cane, with a snuff-box artfully let into the knob at
the top. (Collins)
Not only are Sir Patrick’s clothes described in a way entirely contrary to the descriptions of
men’s dress in general, but another thing stands out as well: The way Patrick carries himself,
combined with his dress and fashion, allows people to forget his physical deformity. This
illustrates quite clearly the great importance and power of fashion in the Victorian era.
Both Northanger Abbey and Man and Wife illustrate the ways in which fashion played a
pivotal role in signalling social status and power. Jane Austen, however, also relies on fashion to
inform her thematic topics. Collins, on the other hand, uses descriptions of his male and female
characters’ clothing to add depth to his characterizations. Today, despite constantly changing
silhouettes and trends, fashion remains an influential part of society, leaving its mark on
literature, film, and other elements of style.
Works Cited
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Austen, Jane. Northanger Abbey. New York: Knopf, 1992. Gutenberg.org. Web.
Collins, Wilkie. Man and Wife. London: Oxford UP, 1995. Gutenberg.org. Web.
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Horning, Rob. "Northanger Abbey and Antisocial Pleasure." The New Inquiry. N.p., n.d. Web.
03 Apr. 2013.
"Northanger Abbey Themes." Grade Saver. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.
Nunn, Joan. "Victorian Women's Fashion, 1870-1900: The Skirt." The Victorian Web. A & C
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