Constructing and presenting the self through private sphere dress: an interpretive analysis of the experiences of Saudi Arabian women

Abstract

The purpose of this interpretive study was to explore how married Saudi Arabian women construct and present the self through their choice of dress for the private sphere. Of particular interest was the marital dyad as a context for Saudi women's presentation of self through dress within the private sphere. The work was situated within the interactionist and dramaturgical traditions. Data were collected via in-depth interviews with fifteen married Saudi couples and were analyzed using constant comparison processes. Two manuscripts were developed through the analysis stage. The first manuscript focused upon three key themes related to Saudi women's use of private sphere dress to construct and present the self: (a) conceptualizing the desired self, (b) making sense of the marketplace: the role of traditional and Western dress in mobilizing desired selves, and (c) looking glasses: the role of others in mobilizing desired selves. Findings revealed that as they presented the self through dress within the private sphere, Saudi women engaged in a complex process of navigating Islamic teachings and Saudi cultural conventions, shifting cultural mores, and the diverse expectations of others. The second manuscript explored the marital dyad as a specific context for Saudi women's presentation of self through dress within the private sphere. Three themes were identified: (a) meanings that Saudi husbands and wives associated with traditional and Western dress for the private sphere, (b) "his place" and "her place" in shaping private sphere dress decisions, and (c) forging the private sphere self through lived interactions between Saudi husbands and wives. Findings revealed that there was some variation with regard to the roles assumed by husbands and wives in guiding wives' private sphere dress decisions and in the value wives accorded their husbands' appraisals of their appearances. The data did, however, provide evidence in support of the interactionist premise that the private sphere selves the wives constructed through dress were shaped, in part, through their interactions with their husbands.