ABSTRACT
This chapter considers several facets of the fashion system, including trends in clothing, fashion imagery, fashion writing, and the use of fashion by individuals. It draws on psychodynamic theory from a range of schools and shows that language used by the fashion industry similarly mediates the individual's relationship with and understanding of fashion. Themes emergent motifs can subsequently be interrogated, making use of the tools of psychodynamic theory in order to ascertain some general insights into the ways in which unconscious impulses are expressed through fashion. Whilst it is useful to have an awareness of broad themes that influence fashion, the application of psychodynamic theory comes into its own when considering the individual. The image has become highly prized in contemporary culture, and nowhere is this more evident that within the fashion industry. The contraceptive pill liberated women from the inevitable consequences of sex, and clothing peeled back from the body in fashions that revealed as much as they covered.
