Frills and Empowerment: The Single Story of Lolita Fashion in America

“Start a story with the arrows of the Native Americans, and not with the arrival of the British, you have an entirely different story.” This quotation from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED talk, “The Danger of the Single Story” discusses a thought that she presented during that presentation that she refers to as “the single story.” This is a concept that puts forth the idea of a single viewpoint being a dangerous thing without any other information being provided. While Adichie presents the idea of the single story very well in her TED talk, single stories exist outside of the life experiences she shared as well. For example, the fashion subculture known as Lolita, a street fashion from Japan that has made its way into American cultural stream, has quite the large single story surrounding it in the form of stereotypes and preconceived notions as to why people wear it and what it is about, when there is much more to the style’s history and the people who wear it than what people initially believe.

Outside of the simple words “a single story,” Adichie was referring to a larger concept than the one she presented to the audience when she spoke to and, subsequently, the people who watched her TED talk online. What she really meant when talking about her experiences was that there are two or more sides to every story, not just a single, all-encompassing viewpoint. As she said, “The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story,” and this thought really sums up the idea she was trying to propose to her audience (Adichie). As she goes on to speak, she elaborates further on the concept further by talking about people she knew in her own life: her roommate, her professor, and herself as well, and as she does so, she brings to light the idea of stereotyping and that it is based in single-sided stories we are fed through the media and the world around us, thus creating a “single story” (Adichie).

While Adichie may have cited many examples of “single stories” from her own life, there are many that are occurring in the United States right now that affect its people. However, to focus on one, a very niche group of Japanese fashion enthusiasts have to take the spotlight. One group of scholars notes that “Japanese Lolita fashion…is characterized by images of women adorned in elaborate dresses with delicate fabrics inspired by stylistic interpretations of early-modern European clothing such as Rococo and Victorian dresses. The style thus exudes the look of European bisque dolls” (Nakamura et al.). Another interviewer states that “Many argue that the Lolita style has its origins in the French Rococo period of the 18^th century, an era defined by wide skirts, delicate colors, ornate details, and generous lace trimming” (“Cuteness”). These statements represent the aesthetic of the fashion rather well, though there is more to Lolita fashion than just the ruffles and frills on the surface.

Lolita fashion comes from Japan, specifically from a part of Tokyo called Harajuku (“Cuteness”). Known internationally as a center of youth culture and entertainment, Harajuku is the home to some of the most well-known Lolita clothing brands such as Angelic Pretty, Baby, the Stars Shine Bright, and their offshoot brand, Alice and the Pirates (“Angelic”;“Baby”). Angelic Pretty, while it was established in 1979 under a different name, gave itself its current name in 2001, and has subsequently become one of the most well-known Lolita brands worldwide and producing clothes that represent the sweet Lolita archetype of dress (“Angelic”). There are many different types of Lolita fashion, and all of them help people express what they may not be able to with ordinary clothing. These styles range from sweet Lolita, which is characterized by dresses in pastel colors with prints that depict cute animals, delicious desserts, and other adorable things, to the other side of the spectrum in a style called gothic Lolita. Gothic Lolita is characterized by gothic elements including skulls, crosses, and dark colored dresses and accessories (“Cuteness”). The styles are so varied, in fact, that when someone takes a picture at a Lolita fashion meetup, odds are that you will not find two people dressed in exactly the same style.

Where there is a fashion style, there are bound to be people who spread stereotypes about it, and Lolita fashion certainly has its share of them surrounding it. One of the “single stories” surrounding Lolita fashion is that it is one and the same with a book titled ­Lolita, by an author named Vladimir Nabokov. The book tells the tale of a sexually promiscuous young girl who attempts to seduce the older male present in the story, who he refers to as a “nymphet”. So, naturally, the “single story” surrounding Lolita fashion is that the members of the community dress the way they do to attract pedophiles and/or older men (“10 Misconceptions”). This is not at all true; in fact, all the fashion style and the book share is a name (“Cuteness”). The style itself has no ties whatsoever to the book, or its movie adaptation, and the idea that people dress in the style to attract the type of attention seen in those stories is repugnant. As to how the style got its name is still up for speculation, but one theory is that Japan saw the word in Western culture and loosely translated it to mean “young girl,” and so they applied it to a style of dress that can sometimes resemble that of a young girl dressing up like a princess (“10 Misconceptions”).

Another one of the “single stories” surrounding Lolita fashion related slightly to the aforementioned topic, and that is that people who wear Lolita are trying to relive their childhoods, either because they have a sexual fetish for it or because they had a disappointing childhood (“10 Misconceptions”). As one Lolita fashion enthusiast pointed out:

I think the idea that Lolita is some kind of fetish is partly due to the fact that we say "I AM a Lolita" as opposed to "I dress IN Lolita fashion.” I mean obviously the Lolita book is the main culprit in the stereotype, but I feel like it's weird we call ourselves "a Lolita" as if clothing changes our identity. I kinda prefer to say I "dress in Lolita" because it differentiates it as a clothing style and not a costume/lifestyle/identity. (Ottai)

This is a valid point for many reasons, and it really hits on the idea that the “single story” is very present outside of the fashion style’s ever growing community, and that Lolita fashion enthusiasts can perpetuate this idea without even realizing that they are simply by stating things the wrong way.

One final “single story” that surrounds Lolita fashion is the idea that, the reason people wear these out of the ordinary clothing items, is because they just want attention and for people to stare at and notice them (“10 Misconceptions”). And while there are events like Lolita tea parties that can allow Lolita fashion enthusiasts to get together to show off their outfits and be proud of the work they put into them, they do not do it for the attention of the public. Reasons why people are drawn to the style vary; some say it is because the community is accepting, others come for the aesthetic of it all, and others still use the fashion to escape from their own self-confidence issues and to feel cute for once. Another reason many people are drawn to this sub-style is because it feels empowering to them. In the 1990’s, much of what the media put forth in terms of female beauty standards was the idea that, to be considered feminine, you had to dress sexually, and Lolita fashion rejects that idea in a lot of ways (“Cuteness”). The fashion is very feminine, with its lace and frills, but it is also relatively conservative, requiring blouses under sleeveless dresses, along with either tights or knee socks to cover your legs, and hardly any of the dresses are cut above the knee. This reinforces the idea that you can dress femininely without being sexual, and that idea appeals and empowers a lot of people who wear the fashion. So, there are many reasons people are attracted to this style genre, and none of them really involve fishing for attention and/or praise.

Adichie talked about many things in her TED talk, but the underlying theme remained that people needed to educate themselves to avoid being ignorant to the ways of the world that surrounded them. Whether the issue is the cultures of countries abroad, or a simple fashion style, the concept of “the single story” is damaging to everyone it touches. It can perpetuate hurtful stereotypes about people or places that are nowhere near true, and yet people will believe them because they do not know any better. However, the concept is ever present, and to avoid it, you need to read more than a single story to grasp the whole truth.