Clothing: A Social History (Chapter-8)

Why did Mahatma Gandhi's dream of clothing the nation in khadi appeal only to some sections of Indians?

Winston Churchill described Mahatma Gandhi as a 'seditious Middle Temple Lawyer' now 'posing as a half naked fakir'. What provoked such a comment and what does it tell you about the symbolic strength of Mahatma Gandhi's dress?

Suggest reasons why women in nineteenth century India were obliged to continue wearing traditional Indian dress even when men switched over to the more convenient Western clothing. What does this show about the position of women in society?

In 1805, a British official, Benjamin Heyne, listed the manufactures of Bangalore which included the following:

• Women's cloth of different musters and names

• Coarse chintz

• Muslins

• Silk cloths

Of this list, which kind of cloth would have definitely fallen out of use in the early 1900s and why?

Give any two examples of the ways in which European dress codes were different from Indian dress codes.

What were the sumptuary laws in France?

Explain the reasons for the changes in clothing patterns and materials in the eighteenth century.