Week 7: The Evolution of the Bikini

In Teresia Teaiwa’s article “bikinis and other s/pacific n/oceans” the evolution of the bikini is discussed.  Since I am a girl who wears this form of bathing suit I found this article to be extremely interesting.  When we think of the bikini nowadays we think of a tiny string bikini such as the ones shown in Victoria’s Secret or Sports Illustrated.  The bikini is used a tool for women to express their femininity and sexuality.  Women strive to look like these models and envy their confidence in these bathing suits.  I would never have guessed that this piece of clothing started out the way it did.

In 1946 the island of Bikini was taken over by the United States government used for nuclear testing.  The island’s natives were forced to evacuate due to the radiation left behind.  Then during that same year a French designer by the name of Louis Reard created the two piece bathing suit.  During a time of war women were encouraged to dress provocatively to please the men as they travel off to war or when they come back.  The connection between the island and the two piece bathing suit came from the idea that both are exotic to the colonial gaze.  They are irreplaceable.  Another reason is that “in the end the female body is appropriated by a colonial discourse to successfully disguise the horror of the bomb”.  The image of the two piece bathing suit masks the destruction of the beautiful island.

The bikini also became a symbol for independence and represented confidence.  The bikini began as a form of sexualization and used to please the men but eventually it became an aspect of women’s independence and freedom.  They were allowed to show off their figures and flaunt their confidence.  This was an important figure for women’s rights and also led to the introduction of women surfers.

I think the bikini launched an entire movement in which the surfing world was not only defined by men but included women as well.  It became a world in which men and women could coexist in the water without sexual connotations.  Although the bathing suit started out that way it was also used for convenience.  It allowed for women surfers to have more movement and flexibility.  Thanks to the government's need for nuclear testing, the bikini became a national symbol that is still being discussed today.