Psychodynamic reflections on the fashion system

This chapter is included in an edited collection which looks at a range of contemporary cultural phenomena through the lens of psychoanalytic theory.

Specifically, psychoanalytic theory is used to interpret the fashion system including discussion of trends; fashion imagery; the body in fashion and the reluctance for psychologists to engage with fashion as a subject.

Publisher's text about this book:

Synopsis:

The main purpose of this book is to look at a range of ubiquitous phenomena that make up our daily life and to ask not so much "whether" but "what" psychoanalytic thinking can add to our current understanding of these phenomena. Could there be another layer, below the obvious surface-layer, that needs to be explored further? And if so, can psychoanalytic light reflect upon and illuminate some of the new contours and shapes perhaps previously not fully seen or appreciated? What interim conclusions can we reach as a result of this reflection upon our modern world?

This book is linked to its immediate predecessor Psychoanalytic Perspectives on a Turbulent World but it differs significantly in tone, light and composition. This new book no longer addresses itself to the complex and troubling issues such as war, conflict, the global financial crisis and our struggle with leadership, instead, it tends to focus on the lighter side of life.
Description:

‘We need all the help we can get in thinking about the unthinkable, and this kind of analysis goes below the surface of our fears and prejudices to explore the dynamics of some of the crises that facing our societies at this time. The contributors explore the delusional thinking that affects the world of work, the money markets, consumerism, traumatized societies, and climate change. A powerful response to this age of uncertainty.’
- Tim Dartington, PhD, author of Managing Vulnerability: The Underlying Dynamics of Systems of Care

‘With this fascinating book, Halina Brunning demonstrates again her great ability to invite the reader to look underneath the surface of a range of ubiquitous phenomena that make up our daily organizational lives. The psychoanalytic perspective of the authors in this volume on what often seems obvious or even banal reveals disturbing and often frightening insights. There is, for example, murderousness in mergers, toxicity at the employee–customer interface, burnout even at the executive level, a perverse dynamic in the use of money and in the fashion industry, and apocalyptic fantasies behind our perception of climate change.’
- Dr Burkard Sievers, Professor of Organization Development, Schumpeter School of Business and Economics, Wuppertal, Germany; Past-President of the International Society for the Psychoanalytic Study of Organizations