The Stories Clothes Tell

Spanning decades of research, this compelling social history tells the stories of ordinary people in modern Japan. Tatsuichi Horikiri spent a lifetime searching out old items of clothing—ranging from everyday kimono, work clothes, uniforms, and futons to actor’s costumes, diapers, hats, aprons, and bags. Simultaneously he collected oral history accounts to shed light on those who used these items. Horikiri reveals not only the difficult and sometimes desperate lives of these people, most from the lower strata of society in early twentieth-century Japan, he illuminates their hopes, aspirations, and human values. Students and scholars of Japanese history, as well those interested in material culture, labor history, and feminist history, will find this book deeply illuminating.