A Philosopher Looks at Clothes
Published on 5. June 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
210 pages
978-1-009-27771-6 (ISBN)
Description
Clothes are much more than just what we put on in the morning. They express our identity; they can be an independent statement or the result of coercion; and they have deeply entrenched historical, political, and social aspects. Kate Moran explores the connections between clothes and philosophy, showing how clothes can illustrate and pose philosophical problems, and how philosophical ideas influence clothing. She discusses what it might mean for an article of clothing to be beautiful; how we communicate with clothes; how we use clothes to navigate our social existence; and how our social existence leaves its mark on our clothes. She also considers the curious relationship between philosophers and children's clothes, legal restrictions on clothing, textile waste, and labor conditions of textile workers. Her absorbing and engaging portrait of our clothes helps us to understand an important and underexplored aspect of our lives.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 127 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
276 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-009-27771-6 (9781009277716)
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Schweitzer Classification
Person
Kate Moran is Professor of Philosophy at Brandeis University. She is the author of Community and Progress in Kant's Moral Philosophy (2012) and Kant's Ethics (Cambridge, 2022).
Content
List of figures; Preface; 1. Fashion, function, and fine art; 2. Clothing, identity, and communication; 3. The social life of clothing; 4. Legislation and appropriation; 5. Gender and clothing; 6. Children's clothing; 7. The ethics of clothing production; Notes; Index.