avocets
Avocets
rss 2.0 subscribe to this page
search


view all
•  projects
•  owners
•  tags

Moseley, Rachel. "Trousers and Tiaras: Audrey Hepburn, a Woman's Star." Feminist Review 71 (2002):37.
 
In this paper, Rachel Moseley examines the effects of the “Hepburn Look” in the 1950s, on the premise that Audrey Hepburn’s identity is forever bound to her clothing. Her female fans in particular looked to her to inspire their own Cinderella stories, as she often acted in her movies, and more specifically, it was her clothing that often pushed the narrative in the proper direction. Moseley describes in detail the pivotal train station scene of Sabrina. Upon her return from Paris, Sabrina waits at the station, in a scene filled with reminders of her newfound sophistication. She has a new poodle, Givenchy suit, and confident pose. The camera pans on her as it would on a fashion model, but her performance goes beyond simple a two-dimensional icon; her new attitude has spawned a new femininity, as expressed by the relationship between her body and her clothing. Yet her dress is not just an object for others, but it is an addition to the narrative, and the scenes are fixated on its details.
Moseley cites studies claiming that women forever tie their feelings about Hepburn to her clothing, and often describe their own Hepburn-like Cinderella stories in terms of their clothing and makeup. Though she projected sophisticated exoticness in some respects, in others she seemed attainable for the average female audience, in a way that other stars at the time did not. Hepburn’s short haircut, androgynous body, and effortless style offered an inspiration to free-spirited women.

Moseley, Rachel. "She's Everybody's Dream Girl." The Observer online edition. March 7, 2004

 

Moseley, who is somewhat of a scholar on Hepburn and her effect on popular culture, discusses the actress’ resonance with “ordinary women,” an obsession that began in the 1950s and continues strongly to this day. The way that films can influence all aspects of one’s life is evident with the female response to Hepburn, particularly the interviews Moseley quotes with such ordinary women. Hepburn is described as being “modern because she was different, but still obtainable.” In the post-war period, she represented a historically specific time period: she was feminine liberation and modernity, all while remaining lady-like and suitable to the more containing “standards” of the day. Hepburn’s appearance in films was simply more possible than many other stars of the period. Even Givenchy’s designs, beginning with Sabrina, were deceitfully simple.

Though Moseley admits that Hepburn has never been historically associated with women’s liberation movements, her trademark style was marked with low-maintenance flair such as flat shoes and short haircuts, which appealed strongly to busy women in the mid 20th-century. Even qualities that would seem to inspire a backlash among women, such as her extraordinarily thin frame, were just seen as “part” of her, rather than something to be directly imitated. The goal was simply the recreation of elegance, which Hepburn exuded effortlessly throughout her career.