Social psychologist Efrat Tseëlon is interested in feminist readings
of fashion and culture. Tseëlon argues that while the English dictionary
might define the practice of wearing masks and disguise as an attempt
to conceal and misrepresent, masquerade is something different.
Masquerade is not about portraying something false, but rather it is a
way to understand the intricacies of identity. Masquerade draws its
meaning through historical context, as the meaning of how we present our
ideal selves in public has changed over time. Tseëlon writes:
…disguise is meant to hide, conceal, pass as something one is not. Masquerade however is a statement about the wearer. It is pleasurable excessive, sometime[s] subversive. The mask is partial covering; disguise is full covering; masquerade is deliberate covering. The mask hints; disguise erases from view; masquerade overstates. The mask is an accessory; disguise is a portrait; masquerade is a caricature. But these distinctions are tenuous, as each also shares the attributes of the other, at least in some uses or historical contexts… Thus, whatever shade of meaning of masquerade one chooses to employ it is obvious that through a dialectic of concealing and revealing masquerade serves a critical function. It calls attention to such fundamental issues as the nature of identity the truth of identity, the stability of identity categories and the relationship between the supposed identity and its outward manifestations (or essence and appearance).
Tseëlon outlines how the cultural practice of wearing masquerade is
ancient. In Western culture, masquerade can be found in the
philosophical writing of Plato, who wrote about life as a puppet show.
Masquerade appears in Shakespeare’s plays, where comedic situations
involving masquerade allow individuals to adopt new identities and
experience other genders. It is also famously personified in the annual Carnival of Venice, held
in Italy. Masquerade has been used throughout Western history as a way
to play around with ideas of what makes up our “true” self. Masquerade
has been employed by women in particular, liberating them from
restrictive gender and sexual scripts, if only for brief periods at a
time.
The study of masquerade allows us to ask: is there such a thing as an
“authentic” self? Do we easily transgress social norms behind the
anonymity of costume, or do we mostly adhere to the rules set out for
us? Who are we when we don’t have to live up to the preconceived ideas
of how other people see us?
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