lar in this region, which reinforces ournepoch’s tendency toward unisexualitynand the increasing lack of differentiationnbetween the sexes. A recently publishednwork of profound insight, A WomannLooks at Men’s Buns, has been sellingnvery well in Chicago, while the burgeoningninfluence of the homosexual onnour pop culture has also contributed tonthis rather obtrusive fascination. Mr.nLaver would have found this trend innmodern fashion decidedly significant.nThe erogenous zone and the desirento sexually attract is only one vector influencingnhow human beings dress. Thenauthors of History of Fashion stress thenrole of clothing as primarily to decoratenand to idealize the body, thus ultimatelynregistering man’s dissatisfactionnwith his physical self. This idealizationnof the human form which is constantlynchanging its emphasis—after all, untilnfairly recently the ideal form was roundednand curvaceous, while today any vestigenof curve is decidedly unchic—is anProcrustean bed to which all physicalnreality must adapt. Sometimes fashionnhas indeed become a torture chamber,nas with the bound feet of Chinese womennor the artificially elongated necksnof Burmese women. No less importantnis the role of clothing to designate thenwearer’s wealth and social position. Tonthis end, various sumptuary laws havenbeen enacted over the centuries prohibitingnthe lower classes from followingntoo closely the fashions worn by theirnsocial superiors. Prohibitions existednregarding the amount of fabric whichncould be utilized in a garment, thenheight of a heel, the width of a hat brimnor the amount of embroidered adornment.nThe authors insist that of secondarynimportance only is the role of clothingnto protect the body and to cover itnfor the sake of modesty, since what isnconsidered improper for one ethnicngroup or cultural epoch to expose isnperfectly proper for another. Therenwas a period in the 19th century whennsome shrill religionists believed thatnthe Virgin Mary had conceived throughnher ear; thus women had to style theirnSSMHHHHM^MnChronicles of Cttltarenhair to cover their ears as carefully asnthey would cover any other sexual organ.nThis survey of fashion has beennbeautifully presented, with many fullcolornplates taken from both art andnfashion illustrations of each period. Itnis helpful in that it not only presentsnclothing but also emphasizes the importancenof such accessories as jewelry,nshoes, hats, underwear and hair stylesnas integral to shaping fashion as it wasnand is. Nevertheless, there are somencriticisms: the editorializing is unnecessary.nOne garment is characterized asn”nonsensical” while another is “flattering.”nSuch commentary is uncalled fornand, in addition, much too subjectivenfor a book whose objective is primarilynto survey. However, I find the most outstandingnflaw to be the authors’ viewingnof modern fashion from a narrowly Europeannpoint of view. Being English,nthey have difficulty avoiding this pitfall,nbut nonetheless it underlines oncenagain their lack of objectivity. The booknbasically neglects all significant Ameri­nTales of a ColumnistnDavid S. Broder: Changing of thenGuard; Simon & Schuster; NewnYork.nby Gary S. VasilashnIf, as Aristotle put it, man is a politicalnanimal, then David S. Broder’snChanging of the Guard is like a guidebooknto the San Diego Zoological Gardens:nmassive in scope and variety.nBroder, a syndicated columnist, nationalnpolitical correspondent and an associateneditor of the Washington Post, has thensavvy to lead the safari. Looked at fromnanother perspective, this book, whichnpresents interviews with people from allnMr. Vasilash is associate editor o/ManufacturingnEngineering magazine innDetroit.nnncan contributions to fashion afternWorld War II. If Paris gave us the “newnlook” and London the miniskirt, Americanhas covered the world in blue jeansnin the last three decades. Even morenimportant is the American invention ofnmodern dress known as “sportswear,”na concept which exerts the greatest influencenon fashion today. Sportswearndeveloped alongside the informality ofnAmerican life, which today is the lifestylenof the whole world. Componentnpieces such as skirts, jackets, blouses,npullovers and trousers which can benworn with a wardrobe of other piecesnfor a “mix-and-match” effect is thenAmerican contribution to modern fashion.nIt is a philosophy of dress adoptednby secretaries, professional women andnthe wives of presidents and multimillionairenindustrialists. Cutting acrossnall social classes and economic brackets,nthe American invention of sportswearnhas revolutionized the modern sensenof vogue. Anyone who confronts thenreality of fashion today cannot stressnthis enough. Dnover the United States—men and women,nblacks and whites, conservatives andnliberals, etc.—is something of a wishnbook, a collection of many characters,nsome of whom Broder hopes will leadnthe nation after the social and politicalnaberration that manifested itself in then1980 election has gone away.nThe ground rules he set up for inclusionnare fairly simple. The area of concentrationncomprises “The next onesnwho will take power—the babies bornnbetween 1930 and 1955,” those whon”were shaped in a very different time.”nThey will take the power from thosenwhom Broder calls “the World War IInveterans, who have held sway for a generation.”nAlthough it is true that thengeneration Broder singles out grew upnin a world that was different from thenpreceding one, this stressing of the dif-n