WGST 07 First-Year Seminar Why the Devil Wears Prada: Economics of the Fashion Industry
Women have a dynamic relationship to clothes and fashion. With the onset of behavioral economics, this topic is now becoming of interest for economists. The result is a fascinating new research agenda that gradually replaces purely sociological viewpoints (trickle down, self styling). Such a view has been neglected in standard economic theory; the course aims in particular at incorporating cognitive and feminist views into economic theory. We will discuss movies such as The Devil Wears Prada, The Overspent American, Coat of Many Countries. We will also read and discuss journal articles and book chapters such as The Theory of Leisure Class by Veblen, The Affluent Society by Galbraith, The Language of Clothes by Lurie, and Orlando by Woolf.
Professor Gick
11-hour