Women's suffrage and Western women's fashion through the early 20th century

, wearing the "freedom suit." Prior to Women's Suffrage Movement, women's fashion was dominated by Victorian styles, which included grand gowns. They were characterized by being considered unsuitable for physical labour. These garments reinforced traditional gender roles, and women were generally seen as physically weaker than men and discouraged from participating in labour or sport. However, the response to these garments was mixed, with limited adoption due to social resistance and criticism from those around them. Despite initial challenges, early efforts at clothing reform laid the groundwork for the development of women's fashions later during the suffrage movement and resurfaced in the early 1870s, with more radical reforms replacing milder proposals, such as the Civil War medic Dr Mary E. Walker's argument that women and men were anatomically similar and should therefore wear similar clothing by prioritizing functionality and comfort, and these changes highlighted the growing shift toward equality and empowerment for women. Nonetheless, at the turn of the century, it remained the case that “from society lady to factory "girl," every woman wore a hat, stockings, shoes, and gloves in all seasons.” == Women's fashion during the women's suffrage movement ==

In light of the First World War, women commenced employment in factories to aid the war effort, beginning in jobs that the men were no longer able to undertake, as they were serving in the front lines of the war. As a result, the dress reform began, a reform that saw female activists argue clothes should offer convenience, rather than comfort, so that they could do labour jobs more efficiently. Accordingly, fashion became less restrictive than the Victorian era dress and required less fabric to make, saving the much needed resources. An article written by Laura Doan states, the newly found freedom of women is considered to have been a catalyst for the commencement of women including more masculinised fashion and style in their own dress. The flapper's simplistic, straight-lined style was popularized by Coco Chanel, who's somewhat ironically remembered as "fashionable without being forward," as a way of liberating women the impractical designs that hindered modern women's ability to engage in physical activities. "The newfound freedom to breathe and walk encouraged movement out of the house, and the Flapper took full advantage.” Many men did not fully accept the changing styles in women's fashion. At the same time, typical female fashion retained, to a great extent, a traditional feminine style, corresponding to the relatively rigid beauty standards of the time. == Women's fashion post-women's suffrage movement (1920s–1930s) ==

During the progressive era, female fashion in the United States changed shifted to adopt traditionally masculine styles. and thus, magazines at the time capitalised on the popularity of French designs by selling sewing patterns mimicking these styles. The popularisation of the flapper style was due to film, radio and the media. Adrian was a popular designer for Metro-Goldyn-Mayer during the 1920s-1930s, dressing silent film actresses including Clara Bow, Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo and Joan Crawford: which influenced American women's fashion. Social conservatives criticised this style, associating it with what they viewed as a decline in female morality. The flapper became stereotyped as a woman who "smoked, drank, swore, drove fast, professed free love, and used makeup," and exercised sexual independence. == References ==