my methodology
by katherine f macdonald

my notes from reading Elizabeth Wilson, Sherry Ortner and the Fabien Society 2025 Authentic vs. Modernist Frameworks Wilson draws comparisons between “authentic” and “modernist” approaches, presenting them as thesis and antithesis in the discourse of fashion. This reminds me of wider binaries such as culture vs. nature and male vs. female (Wilson.E 2003) This raises the issue of perspective; whether feminist critiques of fashion arise from different standpoints (women’s, men’

First thought and written in 2025 now publishing in 2026 and as relevant as ever How to get through the day How to go from colleagues to dream team How to stay informed when the news feels too negative How to deal with a crisis How to get through the inevitable loss of a mother Bob Mortimer on last one laughing A work of genius make me laugh comedians are important humour is human more humour in fashion communication please 'The Theories of Freud and Bergson in Relation to Fa

A reflection on my rejected research paper submission, because it's all about methodology... In 2025 I wrote my original Proposal: This research investigates the persistence of male dominance in the fashion industry, despite fashion’s historical role in destabilising gender norms and reimagining masculinity and femininity. Through the lens of karmic theory, the study explores whether gender hierarchies remain entrenched, why they persist, and whether this imbalance is inevita

Karmic masculinity: a form of masculinity shaped by accumulated social, cultural, or historical patterns (e.g. class, media, or inherited norms) which are reproduced over time but can also be reworked or interrupted. Situated from a fashion angle, masculinity as something circulated, repeated, and “returned” through visual culture (e.g. fashion) rather than fixed in social structure alone

More on this later…