Stilettos and Women's Liberation: What have they got in common?

Feminists were flat against them. Flappers were out to shake them. While Dior made them a household name. This International Women’s Day we trace the twentieth century woman’s stride to freedom and the shoes she wore along the way.

 

Who knew the well-trodden path to women’s liberation would follow the rise and fall of the high heel?

Stepping out

Comfortable, practical, and ready-for-duty heels stepped out on the very first International Women’s Day on March 19^th, 1911. Over 30,000 women gathered at the largest street demonstration in Europe, joining thousands across the globe.

1925 Sears Catalogue (Source: flickr)

Following this chorus of confidence, the heel rose in stature to enhance the glamour of the Roaring ’20s. 

The high heel gave the illusion of longer and more slender legs. And a racy frock demanded a statement shoe. 

 

Heels at war

However, it couldn’t last. The captivating allure of the 1920s faded against the harsh realities of two World Wars and the Great Depression.

The high heel trend plummeted along with spirits to a more practical, low and wide heel. 

The heel revival

Post-war in the 1950s, good times were breaking through.  The high heel revival began again. Fashion designers like Christian Dior were going even higher with their first 5-inch stiletto heel.

It was a shaken, but battle-strong woman who stepped in to this new free world.

She’d gained her confidence and independence while the men were off to war. She had demanded her right to vote, fiercely fought by The Suffrage movement in most Western nations, and her traditional role in society was dramatically changing. 

The stomping 60s

Heel fashion, like the political and social state of the time, shifted significantly in the 60s and 70s. It was no longer about height and style, but about statement and freedom. And with that came the chunky platform shoe.

At the time, her role of mother and housewife was shrugged off for that of career woman. The introduction of the pill brought freedom to plan pregnancies and gain ‘control’ over her body and future. So women flooded universities and the workforce – in industries not previously broached – in fields of medicine, politics and business.

The rising trend

Manolo Blahnki Stilettos (Source: Vogue.com)

Designers like Manolo Blahnik brought back the sky-high stiletto in the 1980s and 90s.

The modern woman found stature and authority in her lofty heel. She fought for equality in the workforce, and challenged the traditional perceptions of her role and value across all levels of society.

The heel had earned its entitlement on catwalks, department store shelves, and then the wardrobe of every woman. She was confident. She was on her way.

The Heel Debate

Now I know what you’re thinking. It’s sexist to equate high heels and women’s liberation, right?

And you would be right, according to the views of the feminists of the 1960s and many still today.

Feminist groups were flat against it. Overly erotic or a form of ‘self-harm’, they saw heels as a male-invented shackle aimed to slow the progress towards women’s freedom, both literally and figuratively.

In the last 20 years, feminist views have receded – or indeed popular view has demonstrated acceptance – that the wearer of the heels does so for themselves, and not simply to appeal to the opposite sex.

So why is that one person’s view of the oppression from a patriarchal society, so vehemently opposed to someone else’s pursuit of personal expression?

I guess it’s because the feminist movement, or path to women’s liberation, is all about freedom of choice.

And women aren’t just women, they’re individuals. Individuals who have the freedom to walk-it-out in whatever they choose –stilettos, flip flops, sneakers – you name it, girlfriend.

 

Celebrating freedom

So, whether you’re liberating the flats or the heels from your wardrobe today, there’s much to celebrate as we approach International Women’s Day.

Since that first march for freedom in 1913, we’ve benefited from the patient tread of courage and determination by ordinary women that saw extraordinary progress, change and transformation.

While the debate continues about women in leadership and on boards, and the need to turn our efforts to ending poverty for the global poor wages on. I’m grateful to follow in the footsteps of those who’ve gone before me… and consider my swagger for those who’ll follow behind.

But it seems for now, the high heel – like women’s liberation – is here to stay.

 

International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated each year on the 8^th of March. IWD is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women in the past, present and future. For information and events:  https://unwomen.org.au/iwd/about-international-womens-day

 

By Kirryn Zerna 

Paris

At The Copy Collective, when we want fashion advice or retail marketing copy we turn to our resident fashionista, Athina ‘Tina’ Antarakis. This young lovely has relocated from Barcelona to Paris, just in time for the frenzy that is Paris Fashion Week. Tina tells us:

“Contrary to popular belief, life in Paris is not an endless loop of fashion shows and sunset drinks sipped within alarming proximity to a shimmering Eiffel Tower.

Oh wait. That’s right. Actually, it is, but perhaps not quite in the way that you might think.

Yes, there are the famous, high profile fashions shows- and wondrously inspiring ones at that - but since Fashion Week turned into a crazy circus, where celebrity bloggers and stylish attendees have become almost as important as the show itself, those of us who like our fashion  less frenzied tend to look to our local street or neighbourhood bistro.

The paparazzi may be nowhere in sight, but back in the real world the Paris fashion show is very much a daily occurrence. Whether the ensembles are bright and blingy, chic yet conservative, or - believe it or not, sometimes even a little dull and dowdy - totally depends on which part of town you happen to be in or the metro line you hop on that day, such is the diversity of cultures and fashion creeds here in the world’s fashion capital.

Spending time in Paris certainly reminds you that there are still plenty of people out there in our increasingly-homogenised world who are not afraid to make an effort or to express themselves a little differently. I love to be taken by surprise by someone sporting a sequinned top, sky-high heels, or bright red lipstick in the middle of the day - anything goes and why shouldn’t it? We are in Paris after all!

Surely, there are still plenty of French people dressed in their uniform of monochromes and neutrals but that can be lovely too, especially when you are close enough to notice the little details. I love to see contrast stitching on the reverse side of a coat lapel or the care with which a tie has been matched to a pair of socks.

And while some may say that Parisian women are generally rather boyish in their style of dress, all slim pants, loose-fitting tops, and flat shoes and boots, they are almost always supremely fashionable and very nicely put together indeed.

And as for that view? Well, I have been lucky enough to find one, as my current abode has a most fortuitous aspect of a certain Parisian monument. I don’t know about you, but I think that makes it almost obligatory to raise a glass or two of something bubbly of an evening, in honour of discovering that there is still plenty of opportunity to stand out in the City of Lights, it’s just a matter of finding your corner to shine in."

Now that’s what I call F for Fabulous. 

If you want to read more about the adventures of Tina in Paris, visit her here .