History 238pc - Colloquium: Topics in World History-The History and Psychology of Clothing
Colq:T-Psychology of Clothing
Spring
2025
01
4.00
Christopher Rudeen
TU TH 10:50 AM - 12:05 PM
Smith College
HST-238pc-01-202503
Seelye 202
crudeen@smith.edu
The course draws on materials from many fields beyond psychology: fashion studies, gender and sexuality studies, and the history of science. As a broad, interdisciplinary survey, the course arms students with an array of means by which to analyze clothing—both today and in the past. What led early psychologists to engage with the question of dress? How did these psychologists think about clothes? And why is fashion no longer a serious topic, but a shallow discussion in popular culture? The class engages with these questions and more as it focuses on the interaction of dress and psychology over the last 150 years. Enrollment limited to 18. (E)