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Author: AgProv

Oct 22nd 2016 at 9:06:27 AM

@alnair20aug93:
Creator/GeorgeMacDonaldFraser, in his ''Literature/{{Flashman}}'' novels, has Flashman note that he was born and got his early education in the time-period where the pendulum was turning, and the free and easy, rather licentious, social mores of the Georgian era were dying out. To be replaced by what we later came to know as the suffocating social strictures and prudish mores of the Victorian period.  Flashman lives through the latter years of this transition period, and notes, gloomiliy, that the relatively free fashion style of the Georgians - loose dresses for women - is gradually being supplanted by layer upon layer of additional clothing and tight lacing. He does note that one thing appears not to change with the fashions and social attitudes: low necklines and  plenty of visible decollletage. I think at one point Flashman does reluctantly gree that a woman might show as much udder as she likes - but it's perhaps best if she keeps her legs covered. In his world-view this made things more'' interesting'' later, in private. so the victorians were preserving long-established social standards concerning what was considered appropriate for a woman to put on display - they weren't inventing it out of nowhere? (Bared legs for women only became "acceptable" in the 20th century lageely after WW1. Although a Georgian trend dseplored by the Victorians was men only wearing knee-britches, with stocking legs from the knee down - full-length trousers put a stop to THAT sort of thing...)