Why did writer George Sand (Aurore Dudevant) dress in male attire? When researching Sand’s letters, Arts in Letters learned that by wearing men’s clothes, this feminist in trousers was actually committing an act of protest, challenging not only societal norms but also Parisian law.
In Paris in 1800 a law was passed prohibiting women from wearing pants in public without obtaining a permit to do so. Permits were only granted to women whose jobs prevented them wearing skirts or who participated in sports that couldn’t easily be done in skirts, such as riding horses. So even though men’s clothing was often more practical, better made, and less expensive, it was illegal for women to wear. This also applied to feminized versions of menswear, as Sand would wear.
Permits could also be obtained for ‘health reasons.’ Really? Imagine having to get a note from your doctor saying that you had a medical condition that made wearing pants better for you than wearing skirts. Permits were only good for six months, so you’d be making regular trips to your doctor to get that note. Sand never received any type of permit, so every time she appeared in Paris dressed in trousers, she was tempting Fate.
The Parisian law was finally repealed in 2013. Yes, in Paris, one of the most important fashion centers in the world, it was illegal for women to wear pants in public in the for all of the 19th and 20th centuries! Do you think Parisian designers were aware that by offering pantsuits, they were aiding in a crime? Gives a whole new meaning to the term ‘fashion accessory.’
