The Changes in Subcultural Style(1) : Zoot Style

하위문화맥락에서 본 패션형태의 변화(1)­Zoot Style을 중심으로

This study about the Zoot Style is the first part of a series of research, which is to examine various subcultural styles in 1900s. The main concern of this research is to investigate the origin of a style, the way how it developed, and the reason it appealed to people. Subculture is a marginallized culture which the subordinal groups in the social structure developed as a means of reaction against the dominant groups of a society. The clothes and decorations of these groups can be regarded as the central expressions of exclusiveness, loyalty and identities for their groups. In 1990s, the distinction between the subcultural style and high fashion tend to be blurred, because it has gained more influence on the high fashion. Zoot Suit, adopted and diffused by Cap Calloway in 1940s, is the code of a subculture formed by a special race, class, space, gender, and generation identities. It develops as a reaction, and consequently reflects the struggles against the dominant culture: it is to refuse, appreciate and ridicule the dominant style. The Zoot Style had a great influence both in Paris and Cuba: the Zazous Style in Paris and the Caribbean Style of Cuba are the subcultural styles branched from the Zoot Style.