Rethinking men’s dress through material sources : The case study of a singlet

Singlets occupy a special place in the wardrobe of Australian men, though they might be worn as underwear or sportswear, for work or leisure, daily or as fashion. The semiotic approach favoured by cultural and fashion studies analyses has tended to link the singlet – in particular the iconic Chesty Bond singlet – with working-class masculinity, connecting different groups’ singlet-wearing to a masculine ideal. Turning to the growing use of material culture approaches to dress, I explore what it might mean to think about singlets in Australian history in a different way: by paying attention to materiality and taking everyday practices into account.