The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
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The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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Fashion designer Cristobal Balenciaga's "chemise" dramatically altered womenswear in 1957. Since Christian Dior's New Look in 1947, women wore extremely narrow waists, full wide skirts, and fortified busts. The supple shaping of Balenciaga's chemise, which draped in a long unbroken line from shoulder to hem, replaced the hard armature of the New Look. The chemise was a hit not only in couture fashion, where Yves Saint Laurent showed an A-line silhouette in his first collection for Dior, but also in Middle America, where Americans copied the simple shape which required far less construction and was therefore cheaper to make. Uncomfortable in the body conformity of the New Look, women rejoiced in a forgiving shape and the chemise, or sack dress, became a craze. The craze was parodied in an I Love Lucy episode in which Lucy and Ethel pine for sack dresses but end up wearing feed sacks.
Chappell, R. "The Chemise—Joke or No Joke … " Newsweek. May 5, 1959.