Bras

[Molasses]

Inspired by the high heels thread: bras. Why do women with less than a D cup bother? I read a comment about nipples poking out and needing to hide them. Doesn't sound particularly liberating.

If some women say they wouldn't willingly go through normal activities without a bra on, I wonder what women in a primitive society would say, especially as they probably have to be physically active. Are they living their whole lives muttering through gritted teeth "Ow ow ow, my boobs hurt"? I think more likely they work out a combination of knowing how to move in order to stay comfortable, and being used to the situation. But if you lent a bra to a woman who'd never worn one, and then asked her a week later how it felt, would she say, "Hey, this is great, can I keep it?" or would it be "Useless thing, take it away"? One wonders.

I live in a hot country and cotton bras stop sweat pooling under my breasts and staining my clothes. Which is nicer for me, frankly.

I also like wearing brightly coloured bras with a contrasting vest.

I have never seen them as oppressive, any more than knickers are oppressive.

I like matching sets cos they look nice! I always wear my best bra if i am going out anywhere special!

i wear a bra because i want to
the act of bra wearing ,underwired and non wired doesn't define me.
nor am i subjugated by my under wear

Hmmm.... I wear one because even with a b cup I feel yuck without one.

I quite often go without one in the summer if I'm not wearing something made of too thin a material to get away with it. But then I have relatively small B/C breasts. In the winter I alternate between bras and vest tops as an extra layer because I feel the cold. My best bra is my sports bra, as running/working out without it is actually painful.

Surely women with big norks in primitive societies would strap them down with a bandeau top thing if they were getting in the way of hunting, gathering, pounding grain etc etc.

Tis is what ace hunter and ample breated superwoman Ayla does in Clan of the Cave Bear series of prehistorica and there was research done for the books and everything...

It's always a bit frustrating to see posts like "I do x because I want to!!" and no further thoughts in the Feminist section.

In the past - like the Victorian age - women had to be covered for "moral" reasons.
Now women can wear very little clothes in western societies (and are encouraged to do so) but we must still hide the nipples and natural shape of our breasts. Probably because the female breasts have been fetishized so much.
Men do not have to hide their nipples. It's the same thinking that leads to Page 3 OK - breastfeeding in public not OK.

:o at napdamnyou - Ayla invented everything, including the sports bra.

What about the Amazons, cutting one breast off so it didn't get in the way of their archery?

Allegedly

The amazon thing is a myth.

I loathe bras and hardly ever wear one. Which has annoyed people for decades. I am not even really sure what my bra size is: somewhere between 38c and 40b I think.
However, I did buy a few bras when PG as my norks got bigger and did feel more comfortable strapped up, and I do find I need one for morris dancing; it is genuinely more comfortable to wear one than to leave it off for that particular activity.
But so much depends on the size and shape of the individual woman's norks as to what feels most comfortable.

Sonicrainboom - I'm sorry, but I have more important things to worry about in my life than my bra - things like struggling with depression, losing weight (for the sake of my health, not because of pressure from the patriarchy), my sons and their upcoming Higher and Advanced Higher exams, ds1's university applications, the fact that my pfb will be leaving home in the autumn (and how do I know if he's going to eat properly, go to bed on time, get his work done, bathe regularly and not fall in with the Wrong Crowd), and how in heaven's name we are going to afford to support him and his brothers at university over the next 6 years.

Frankly, all those things are, as far as I am concerned, of far greater importance than delving into my motivations for wearing a bra - other than the fact that it makes me more comfortable and I like it. And it pisses me off that there seems to be an implication that there are some women who are intelligent and thoughtful and consider the feminist history behind every single decision they make, and then there's the rest of us, who are just ignorant slaves to the patriarchy. I have read threads in the feminism section, and contributed to some, and that is the feeling that I have overwhelmingly got from them.

er yes, I know Sonicrainboom!

oh but SolidGoldBrass, surely that just proves ladies shouldn't do Morris dancing?

Men might not morally have to hide their nipples but FFS some of them should keep their bloody tops on in the summer.

STDG - sorry you're going through all that but really, if it's that trivial, you didn't have to click on the thread, read it and comment. What were you expecting from a thread in feminism titled 'bras'?

I wear bras because I feel I have to and I resent it. I don't think I'm alone and I think it's valuable to have a thread to discuss it from a feminist perspective.

SGB - glad you wear one for morris dancing - you could 'ave someone's eye out!

Tunip, it might suggest that female morris dancers invented bras?

I do a lot of physical work, & sport & often wear a sports bra. I'm a 36c ( bigger at present as breast feeding) I have always hated my bossom I was really upset when it grew @ puberty. I like them to be strapped firmly in place with no insubordinance.
I also like nice bras, but I don't want the buggers to move, it feels horrible.

I think if women wear bras because it is genuinely more physically comfortable for them there's not much of a problem politically. However, if the reason is societal pressure to make sure your nipples do not show, or to keep them a uniform shape, that is something to address from a feminist perspective.

.. to keep your breasts a uniform shape, not your nipples! Although possibly that too.

Don't forget, there are some activities for which men have to strap their willies up! And there are men who wear boxer shorts and men who find them uncomfortable and like to have their tackle restrained by more fitted underwear...

Ah well, in that case I'd like to see some advertising aimed at men to make the most of their package with uplifting, padded underwear. And to put pressure on them to ensure they buy supportive pants to prevent sagging balls.

I'm sure I have seen some sort of advertising along those lines. And there's the old joke about the shy young man advised by his mate that he would pull more burds if he put a potato in his swimming trunks.
He tried it with limited success, so his mate offered to watch and advise...

No no no Timmy, you put it in the front of your pants, not the back.