Not Fitting In

Preppy Style and Exclusion in American Suburbia

Dr Elizabeth Kealy-Morris, Dr Joseph H. Hancock II PhD

• Publisher: Lived Places Publishing
• Year: 2026
• Print ISBN:
  9781916704671
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781916704688
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: Social Sciences

What effect does the lack of inclusion of a particular style have on the social and personal identity of someone it excludes?

Drawing from personal experience, author Elizabeth Kealy-Morris explores how the back brace that her scoliosis required excluded her from the socially accepted preppy style of her community, and the effect it had on the way she interacted with her peers. Not Fitting In examines themes of group identity, exclusion, and belonging through style and fashion.

This book is ideal reading for students of Fashion Studies, Disability Studies, Fashion Psychology, and Cultural Anthropology.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Acknowledgments
• Abstract
• Author biography
• Table of Contents
• Learning objectives
• 1 Introduction
• 2 The rise of the “American Look”
• 3 Growth of the American suburbs: The roots of middle-class aspirational culture and style
• 4 Wellesley, Massachusetts: Birth of the upper-middle-class suburb
• 5 Fashion and suburbia: Garment analysis
• 6 Fashion and suburbia: Style analysis
• 7 Preppy style and the politics of fit: Disability, girlhood, and exclusion
• Notes
• References
• Recommended projects, assignments, and discussion questions
• Discussion questions
• Index