A staple in millions of closets, bras are often given little thought, yet their history and current rhetoric go much deeper. Bras have existed in different forms across hundreds of years and many countries. From the bizarre bullet bras of the 1950s to the rise of supportive sports bras, the article of clothing has been considered both an act of rebellion and empowerment, and conversely, something that oppressively plays into the male gaze. Like with fashion as a whole, bras and the changing trends regarding them throughout history have been tied to social status, beauty standards, and even world events.
With something as ancient as the bra, it becomes difficult to pin down an exact date of origin or inventor to credit. The concept of a garment that provides support is simple, having existed since ancient times. From Greek strophion to Indian kuchabandha to Han Dynasty xieyi and moxiong, evidence of ancient versions of bras can be found all over the globe, dating all the way back to 1200 BCE. These iterations were mostly in the forms of simple bands and wraps, and their function was similarly simple, being worn for exercise and for modesty.
Through the Renaissance period to the early 1900s, corsets were essential. Introduced in the early 1500s, they set an “ideal” body type for women, with a thin waisted v-shape silhouette. Tightlacing and firm boning provided structure and lift. As corsets have gone out of style, they’ve fallen into controversy. A number of period films depict corset-wearing women as being prone to fainting, with corsets as an oppressive, oxygen depriving and organ-squishing device. The prevailing sentiment is that the garment is one of many ways that the patriarchy has historically exploited and controlled women, even resulting in poor health. These points come up on the topic of modern day bras as well, though neither case is cut and dry.
“I know a lot of people talk about bra health, like, how always wearing a wire, or always having tight straps is just not great for the health,” Eryssa Uno-Keefe, a member of the Berkeley High School Women’s Student Union, said. Health is something that often comes up in the conversations around the value or failings of bras, and it’s similarly divisive. Uno-Keefe pointed to comfort as a big factor — some feel better with a bra, and others find comfort in the lack of one, and both are valid.
“(The no-bra movement) is not really for attention, but more, like, comfort is what I usually get out of it. There’s two parts of it, where you want to break the restrictions and have yourself feel more free, cause men usually don’t need to wear that kind of stuff. Which is like, ‘why can’t I do it too?’” Uno-Keefe said, “But then there’s also that feeling where you just feel more liberal, you wanna show yourself as who you are.”
Though originally associated with the wealthy, corsetry was adopted by women of all standings, as well as professions. They were the daily supportive garment of the time, much like a bra; women would work and even exercise in them. Tightlacing, which fashion historians identify as the actually dangerous practice, was not the norm. Reports of permanent physical changes caused by corsets, such as organs shifting and damage to the ribcage, have been largely but not entirely debunked.
The origin of the brassiere is often attributed to two legends, one of 19 year old Mary Phelps from the U.S., and one of Herminie Cadolle from France in 1889. Both involve the abandonment or cutting down of the corset, and both women were successful in business, with Phelps obtaining a patent for her invention in 1914.
From there, corsets were on the decline. World War I saw women wearing more relaxed clothing as many were working in factories on the homefront, and metal shortages rendered corsets impractical. Soon after, the flappers of the 1920s truly marked the end of the garment. Flappers popularized a more slender, curveless build, and a more modern rebellious style, both of which were supported by bras rather than corsets. Starting in the 1930s, the ABCD cup sizing system emerged and would become the standard. This shift emphasized the value of a proper fit and acknowledged the diversity of women’s body types to a degree — more sizes and inclusivity would enter stores in the decades to come.
Celebrities and Hollywood began to play a role in shapewear around the 1940s, particularly with the invention of the Cantilever or bullet bra, designed by aerospace engineer and apparent bra designer Howard Hughes. The odd, cone-shaped bra was debuted by actress and model Jane Russel, and would go on to be worn by iconic stars like Marilyn Monroe and Lana Turner. Bras had become a statement rather than a staple, and the article was reaching large platforms.
By the 1960s, bras no longer held the freeing counterculture association of the flappers, but had become something oppressive themselves. In an iconic demonstration at the 1968 Miss America beauty pageant in New Jersey, a group of feminist and civil rights activists protested misogyny and oppressive beauty standards. The protest involved a “Freedom Trash Can,” where the women threw in various objects that symbolized female oppression — one of which was bras. From there, the “no-bra” movement reached greater heights, and would go on to be popularized once again during the COVID-19 pandemic. The movement is strongly ongoing; on International Women’s Day on Saturday, March 8, of this year, tens of thousands of women took to the streets of France in a feminist strike, and chose to go topless for their protest. The protest was anti-facist, reflecting concerns around growing Nazism both in Europe and the U.S., and Donald Trump in particular.
“There was a giant protest, actually against the U.S. government, where a ton of women didn’t wear their bras, and you can see on the sidelines just a ton of guys taking pictures and stuff,” BHS freshman Alegra Smith said, “It’s interesting because it either goes kind of two ways.”
“Either (men) feel disgusted with women that don’t wear bras, or they’re attracted to it in a way,” Smith said. The male gaze comes back into the conversation on the topic of push-up bras, which actively attempt to shape a person into having an “ideal” body type. Beauty standards are often born from the patriarchy, and for some, this garment is symbolic of that.
In contrast, a form of bra that was designed with empowerment in mind was the sports bra, which came about in 1977, taking up the rein where standard bras fell short. Sports bras can be credited to three female inventors, Lisa Lindahl, Hinda Miller and Polly Smith. Many professional athletes have praised the article for leveling the playing field, providing confidence and support.
Madonna is one celebrity in particular that, among other things, is known for destigmatizing bras. Reminiscent of those 1950s bullet bras, Madonna wore a cone bra to a concert in the year 1990, a look intended to promote female empowerment, and one that has since become embedded in pop culture.
On the flip side, Victoria’s Secret essentially created pop culture figures with their models, who became very tied to women’s body image in the late 90s to early 2000s. The company and their “angels” were criticized for years for lack of diversity, both in body type and ethnicity in their runway shows and advertisements, and for promoting unhealthy beauty standards. In 2023, Victoria’s Secret held their “Runway of Dreams” show, which featured models with disabilities. The show was met with backlash from two sides, one which felt that the campaign was performative and disingenuous with the actions of the brand, and another that criticized the models themselves, with the harmful sentiment that Victoria’s Secret models and their infamy — should remain unattainable. Despite work to shift towards a rebrand, following Trump’s orders to minimize DEI programs, the company has since removed the section of their mission statement that involved diversity.
Since their invention, so much has and hasn’t changed about bras. Comfort is a growing value in the industry, and sizing is increasingly more inclusive. However, societal standards still weigh heavily. There’s an expectation for people to wear bras, yet not let them show, and it often comes off as a double standard.
“There’s a lot of stigma around (bras) because it’s like, ‘oh, that’s her personal stuff, you shouldn’t be able to see that.’ I think it’s just definitely a part of the way that they sexualize women,” BHS freshman Anya Wagner said. “I feel like the same thing goes for periods. Why should I have to hide my bra and be uncomfortable talking about my period?”