A Sociological Analysis of Bra Wearing

• Main Authors: Si-Chi Chin, 覃思齊
• Other Authors: Chung-Hsing Sun
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2003
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/04019164299108785094

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 社會學研究所 === 92 === The main idea of this research is to comprehend the meaning of bra wearing for women under the current cultural structure. The thesis consists of two parts. First, the way in which the modern bra developed in Taiwan. Second, to analyze women’s bra wearing behavior. In this way, we will see how women—the agency, acts under the historically cultural confinements—the structure. A combination of historical texts, interviews, and participant observations is used to understand the issues above. The study finds that the elaboration of diversity of modern bra was due to the development of Capitalism. Most of the advertisement marketed the bra wearing as a “decent” and “formal” manner. Women are always told to cover the breasts, especially the nipples. This social rule makes women consider the bra wearing as a “natural habit” for aesthetic reasons. However, most women ignore the social construction of this “habit”. The study also discovers that the bra wearing behavior can be partly explained by the stage theory. Different wearing patterns are found in both front stage and back stage. In fact, bra wearing can also endow women with a feeling of empowerment, and this wearing behavior changes according to different life courses.