André Bachand (Progressive Conservative MP) and Cleavage (breasts): Difference between pages

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Cleavage is the cleft created by the partial exposure of a woman's breasts, especially when exposed by low-cut clothing. It is associated with evening gowns, swimwear, and other fashions that emphasize display of the breasts. Décolletage (or décolleté, its adjectival form, in current French) is cleavage produced by a low-cut neckline that exposes the neck, shoulders and parts of the breasts.

Intermammary sulcus or intermammary cleft are the terms adopted by the International Federation of Associations of Anatomists (IFAA) for the area of cleavage between the breasts not including the breasts.

Theories of cleavage

Evolutionary psychologists theorize that humans' permanently enlarged breasts, in contrast to other primates' breasts, which only enlarge during ovulation, allowed females to "solicit male attention and investment even when they are not really fertile."^[1] British zoologist and ethologist Desmond Morris theorizes that cleavage is a sexual signal that imitates the image of the cleft between the buttocks^[2], which according to Morris in The Naked Ape is also unique to humans, other primates as a rule having much flatter buttocks.

Décolletage evolved in the late Middle Ages and developed further during the Victorian period. It is a feature of the evening gown, leotard, and bikini, among other fashions.

Controversy

There are differences of opinion as to how much cleavage exposure is acceptable in public.^[3] In the French Enlightenment, there was a debate as to whether a woman's breasts were merely a sensual enticement or rather a natural gift to be offered from mother to child. In Moissy's play The True Mother, the title character rebukes her husband for treating her merely an object for his sexual gratification: "Are your senses so gross as to look mon these breasts - the respectable treasures of nature - as merely an embellishment, destined to ornament the chest of women?"^[4]

Nearly a century later, also in France, a man from the provinces who attended a Court ball at the Tuilleries in Paris in 1855 was deeply shocked by the décolleté dresses and is said to have exclaimed in disgust: "I haven't seen anything like that since I was weaned!"^[5]

For ordinary wear, high collars were, however, the norm for many years. When it became fashionable, around 1913, for dresses to be worn with a modest round or V-shaped neckline, this nonetheless deeply shocked clergymen all over the world. In the German Empire, all of the Roman Catholic bishops joined in issuing a pastoral letter attacking modern fashions. ^[6]

Fashions became more restrained in terms of décolletage during World War I and remained so for nearly half a century. From the 1960s onward, however, changing social mores allowed a greater display of cleavage in films, on television, and in everyday life.

In the United States, in two separate incidents in 2007 Southwest Airlines crews asked travelers to modify their clothing, to wear sweaters, or to leave a plane because they did not consider the amount of cleavage displayed to be acceptable.^[7]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel created controversy when she wore an extremely low-cut dress to the opening of the Oslo Opera on April 12, 2008.^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]

Related slang

Exposure of the underside of the breast, such as below an extremely short crop top, is known as neathage, Australian cleavage, reverse cleavage, sleevage or underboob. When the lateral aspects of the breasts are uncovered, it is known as side cleavage or sideboob.

Lingerie

Lingerie has long been designed to emphasize cleavage. The tight lacing of corsets worn in the 19th and early 20th centuries emphasized both cleavage and the size of the bust and hips. Ball or evening gowns especially were designed to display and emphasize the décolletage.^[12]^[13]

More recently, after corsets became unfashionable, brassieres and padding have served to project, display and emphasize the breasts, as has breast augmentation surgery. (Morris notes that in recent years there has been a trend toward reversing breast augmentations.)^[14]^[15] Several brassiere manufacturers, among them Wonderbra and Victoria's Secret, have become known for marketing products that enhance the décolletage.

On the first Friday of every April in South Africa, Wonderbra sponsors a National Cleavage Day.^[16]

Notes

^ Charles B. Crawford and Dennis Krebs (eds.), "How Mate Choice Shaped Human Nature", Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology: Ideas, Issues, and Applications, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates (1998).
^ Desmond Morris, Manwatching. A Field Guide to Human Behavior.. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1977. ISBN 0-8109-1310-0
^ Karen Salmansohn, "The Power of Cleavage", The Huffington Post, October 29, 2007. [1]
^ Simon Schama, Citizens. A Chronicle of the French Revolution, p. 147. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1989. ISBN 0-394-559-48-7
^ Alison Gernsheim, Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey, p. 43. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, Inc., 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. ISBN 0-486-24205-6
^ Gernsheim, p. 94.
^ "Woman Told She Was Too Hot To Fly" NBC News, http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=102968
^ "Merkel 'Surprised' by Attention to Low-cut Dress", Spiegel Online, 4/15/2008. [2]
^ "Angela Merkel Raises Eyebrows with Cleavage Display", Deutsche Welle, 4/15/2008. [3]
^ Ada Calhoun, "Angela Merkel: Now That's Cleavage", News Bloggers, 4/16/2008. [4]
^ Greg Milam, "Dress Fuss Plunges Merkel into Shock", Sky News, 4/16/2008. [5]
^ Gernsheim, pp. 25-26, 43, 53, 63.
^ Desmond Morris, The Naked Woman. A Study of the Female Body, p. 156. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2004. ISBN 0-312-33853-8.
^ Morris, Manwatching, pp. 236, 240.
^ Morris, Naked Woman, pp. 156-159.
^ National Cleavage Day - Wonderbra

References

Alison Gernsheim, Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, Inc., 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. ISBN 0-486-24205-6
Desmond Morris, Manwatching. A Field Guide to Human Behavior. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1977. ISBN 0-8109-1310-0
Desmond Morris, The Naked Woman. A Study of the Female Body. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2004. ISBN 0-312-33853-8

External links

"Sargent's Portraits", an article including a mention of the scandal caused by the portrayal of cleavage in John Singer Sargent's "Portrait of Madame X".
"Why Yes, I Was Staring at Your Breasts" A retrospective look at why women choose to display breast cleavage.

[1] Charles B. Crawford and Dennis Krebs (eds.), "How Mate Choice Shaped Human Nature", Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology: Ideas, Issues, and Applications, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates (1998).

[2] Desmond Morris, Manwatching. A Field Guide to Human Behavior.. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1977. ISBN 0-8109-1310-0

[3] Karen Salmansohn, "The Power of Cleavage", The Huffington Post, October 29, 2007. [1]

[4] Simon Schama, Citizens. A Chronicle of the French Revolution, p. 147. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1989. ISBN 0-394-559-48-7

[5] Alison Gernsheim, Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey, p. 43. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, Inc., 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. ISBN 0-486-24205-6

[6] Gernsheim, p. 94.

[7] "Woman Told She Was Too Hot To Fly" NBC News, http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=102968

[8] "Merkel 'Surprised' by Attention to Low-cut Dress", Spiegel Online, 4/15/2008. [2]

[9] "Angela Merkel Raises Eyebrows with Cleavage Display", Deutsche Welle, 4/15/2008. [3]

[10] Ada Calhoun, "Angela Merkel: Now That's Cleavage", News Bloggers, 4/16/2008. [4]

[11] Greg Milam, "Dress Fuss Plunges Merkel into Shock", Sky News, 4/16/2008. [5]

[12] Gernsheim, pp. 25-26, 43, 53, 63.

[13] Desmond Morris, The Naked Woman. A Study of the Female Body, p. 156. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2004. ISBN 0-312-33853-8.

[14] Morris, Manwatching, pp. 236, 240.

[15] Morris, Naked Woman, pp. 156-159.

[16] National Cleavage Day - Wonderbra

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{otheruses|Cleavage}}
-:''Not to be confused with [[André Bachand (Liberal MP)|André Bachand]], Liberal MP from [[Missisquoi (electoral district)|Missisquoi]]''
+[[Image:LargeBreastCleavage.png|thumb|An example of breast cleavage.]]
-'''André Bachand''' (born [[December 8]], [[1961]] in [[Quebec City]], [[Quebec]]) is a [[Canada|Canadian]] politician, who represented the [[electoral district (Canada)|riding]] of [[Richmond—Arthabaska]] as member of the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservatives]] from 1997 to 2003.
+[[Image:Wie_ich_meineBuste_entwickelt_habe.jpg|thumb|upright|Example of cleavage from a German lingerie advertisement, early 20th century.]]
+[[http://69.90.174.246/photos/display_pic_with_logo/58832/58832,1162512703,3.jpg]]
+'''Cleavage''' is the [[wikt:cleft|cleft]] created by the partial exposure of a woman's [[breasts]], especially when exposed by low-cut clothing. It is associated with [[evening gown]]s, [[swimwear]], and other fashions that emphasize display of the breasts. '''Décolletage''' (or ''décolleté'', its adjectival form, in current [[French language|French]]) is cleavage produced by a low-cut [[neckline]] that exposes the neck, shoulders and parts of the breasts.
-When the PC Party was merged with the [[Canadian Alliance]] into the [[Conservative Party of Canada (current)|Conservative Party]] in December 2003, Bachand left the party and sat as an "Independent Progressive Conservative" until the [[Canadian federal election, 2004|2004 election]], and then retired from the [[Canadian House of Commons|House of Commons]].
+'''Intermammary sulcus''' or '''intermammary cleft''' are the terms adopted by the [[International Federation of Associations of Anatomists]] (IFAA) for the area of cleavage between the breasts not including the breasts.
-Bachand has been an administrator, and a business executive. He was the mayor of [[Asbestos, Quebec]] from 1986 to 1997, and was the [[Préfet]] of the [[Asbestos Regional County Municipality, Quebec|MRC d'Asbestos]] from 1987 to 1997.
-==Young Turk==
+==Theories of cleavage==
+[[Evolutionary psychology|Evolutionary psychologists]] theorize that humans' permanently enlarged breasts, in contrast to other primates' breasts, which only enlarge during [[ovulation]], allowed females to "solicit male attention and investment even when they are not really fertile."<ref>Charles B. Crawford and Dennis Krebs (eds.), "How Mate Choice Shaped Human Nature", ''Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology: Ideas, Issues, and Applications'', Lawrence Erlbaum Associates (1998).</ref> [[United Kingdom|British]] [[zoologist]] and [[ethologist]] [[Desmond Morris]] theorizes that cleavage is a sexual signal that imitates the image of the [[Buttock cleavage|cleft between the buttocks]]<ref>Desmond Morris, ''Manwatching. A Field Guide to Human Behavior.''. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1977. ISBN 0-8109-1310-0</ref>, which according to Morris in ''[[The Naked Ape]]'' is also unique to humans, other primates as a rule having much flatter buttocks.
-Bachand was first elected as a member of the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservative Party]] in [[Canadian federal election, 1997|1997]], one of five PC MPs elected that year in Quebec on the coattails of [[Sherbrooke]] MP [[Jean Charest]]. Bachand was one of a handful of new "Young Turk" PC MPs (along with [[Scott Brison]], [[John Herron (New Brunswick politician)|John Herron]] and [[Peter MacKay]]) who were considered the future youthful leadership material that would restore the ailing Tories to their glory days. In 1998, Jean Charest stepped down as federal Progressive Conservative leader to make the move to Quebec provincial politics, becoming leader of the federalist [[Liberal Party of Quebec]] (unaffiliated with the [[Liberal Party of Canada]]).  Bachand was one of many who unsuccessfully tried to convince Charest to remain in federal politics for at least one more election.  [[Joe Clark]] succeeded Charest as leader of the PC Party and Bachand was supportive of Clark's candidacy.
+Décolletage evolved in the late [[Middle Ages]] and developed further during the Victorian period. It is a feature of the [[evening gown]], [[leotard]], and [[bikini]], among other fashions.
-==Difficult Times==
-The Quebec-wing of the federal PC Party parliamentary Caucus wrestled with several internal policy issues in the late 1990s after Charest's departure including the party's bilingualism policies and the autonomy of provinces in respect to federal powers. Shortly after [[Joe Clark]] was elected leader of the federal Tory Party, the federal government brought forward the [[Clarity Act]].  The Clarity Act was a [[Liberal Party of Canada]] sponsored Bill introduced by then Minister of Intergovernmental affairs [[Stéphane Dion]]. The Clarity Act detailed specifically how the province of Quebec could separate and under what conditions a separation could be legal. Clark chose to support Bachand and the Quebec PC Caucus MPs in the party and stated that he was against the Clarity Act while the fifteen other English MPs in the PC parliamentary Caucus voted in favour of the Bill regardless of Clark's stance.
+==Controversy==
-==Quebec Lieutenant==
+There are differences of opinion as to how much cleavage exposure is acceptable in public.<ref>Karen Salmansohn, "The Power of Cleavage", The Huffington Post, October 29, 2007. [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karen-salmansohn/the_power_of_cleavage_b_70260.html]</ref> In the French [[Enlightenment]], there was a debate as to whether a woman's breasts were merely a sensual enticement or rather a natural gift to be offered from mother to child. In Moissy's play ''The True Mother'', the title character rebukes her husband for treating her merely an object for his sexual gratification: "Are your senses so gross as to look mon these breasts - the respectable treasures of nature - as merely an embellishment, destined to ornament the chest of women?"<ref>Simon Schama, ''Citizens. A Chronicle of the French Revolution'', p. 147. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1989. ISBN 0-394-559-48-7</ref>
-By 1999 Bachand had emerged as the nominal [[Quebec lieutenant]] of the Conservatives, attending most PC events in the province with Clark and acting as the party's chief spokesman for Quebec issues.  Bachand also was the chief responder to the multiple defections of Quebec Tory party officials, MPs and Senators to the Liberal and Canadian Alliance Parties during this period. In September 2000, three Quebec PC MPs, fearful of their re-election prospects under Clark's leadership, crossed the floor shortly before the federal election to sit as [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberal]] MPs, leaving Bachand as the only remaining PC MP in Quebec. He was subsequently re-elected in the [[Canadian federal election, 2000|2000 election]], as were all three of the MPs who crossed the floor.  The Tories emerged from the election retaining party status.
+Nearly a century later, also in France, a man from the provinces who attended a Court ball at the [[Tuilleries]] in [[Paris]] in 1855 was deeply shocked by the décolleté dresses and is said to have exclaimed in disgust: "I haven't seen anything like that since I was weaned!"<ref>Alison Gernsheim, ''Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey'', p. 43. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, Inc., 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. ISBN 0-486-24205-6</ref>
-==Deputy Leader==
-In January 2003, Bachand announced his candidacy for the leadership of the Progressive Conservatives. However, a month before the May leadership convention, Bachand dropped out of the race due to finance concerns.  It is estimated that Bachand's abortive leadership attempt personally cost him and his family upwards of $600, 000.  When it became clear to Bachand that he would only be able to secure roughly 100 delegates, largely from Quebec, he announced his withdrawal. Once Bachand withdrew, he pledged his support to Nova Scotia PC MP [[Peter MacKay]]. Some political analysts have suggested that in exchange for Bachand's endorsement, MacKay agreed to assume Bachand's campaign debts. After MacKay's victory, Bachand briefly served as Deputy Leader of the Progressive Conservatives until early December 2003.  Before becoming Deputy Leader, Bachand served as the Deputy House Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party, as well as its critic for the Intergovernmental Affairs, Industry, Science Research and Development, and the Deputy Prime Minister portfolios.
+For ordinary wear, high collars were, however, the norm for many years. When it became fashionable, around 1913, for dresses to be worn with a modest round or V-shaped neckline, this nonetheless deeply shocked clergymen all over the world. In the [[German Empire]], all of the [[Roman Catholic]] bishops joined in issuing a pastoral letter attacking modern fashions.
-==Lone Independent==
+<ref>Gernsheim, p. 94.</ref>
-When the party merged with the [[Canadian Alliance]] at the end of 2003, Bachand announced that he would retire from politics. Bachand did not sit with the new [[Conservative Party of Canada]] Caucus, and became an independent MP until the June 2004 election. During the June 2004 election, Bachand endorsed the Liberal candidate in the Richmond—Arthabaska race over the Conservative and [[Bloc Québécois]] challengers.  The riding was ultimately carried by the BQ in their electoral sweep of the province.
+Fashions became more restrained in terms of décolletage during [[World War I]] and remained so for nearly half a century. From the 1960s onward, however, changing social mores allowed a greater display of cleavage in films, on television, and in everyday life.
-Bachand's departure from federal politics has been lamented by many Tories hailing from Quebec. In a ''[[Maclean's]]'' article covering the March 2005 founding policy convention of the new Conservative Party, Senator [[Pierre Claude Nolin]] mused that if Bachand had remained elected and participatory in the new party, he would have likely replaced Peter MacKay as deputy leader, and would have served as the new Conservative Party's chief [[Quebec lieutenant]] as part of [[Stephen Harper]]'s attempts to woo Quebec voters into supporting the Tories. In the 2006 election, the new Conservative Party won 10 seats from Quebec, and some suggest that Bachand may have missed his chance at becoming Deputy Prime Minister.
+In the [[United States]], in two separate incidents in 2007 [[Southwest Airlines]] crews asked travelers to modify their clothing, to wear sweaters, or to leave a plane because they did not consider the amount of cleavage displayed to be acceptable.<ref>"Woman Told She Was Too Hot To Fly" NBC News, http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=102968</ref>
-==Return in Politics==
+German Chancellor [[Angela Merkel]] created controversy when she wore an extremely low-cut dress to the opening of the [[Oslo Opera]] on April 12, 2008.<ref>"Merkel 'Surprised' by Attention to Low-cut Dress", Spiegel Online, 4/15/2008. [http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,547512,00.html]</ref><ref>"Angela Merkel Raises Eyebrows with Cleavage Display", Deutsche Welle, 4/15/2008. [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3269347,00.html]</ref><ref>Ada Calhoun, "Angela Merkel: Now That's Cleavage", News Bloggers, 4/16/2008. [http://news.aol.com/newsbloggers/2008/04/16/angela-merkel-now-thats-cleavage/Post.html]</ref><ref>Greg Milam, "Dress Fuss Plunges Merkel into Shock", Sky News, 4/16/2008. [http://skynews8.typepad.com/my-weblog/2008/04/dress-fuss-plun.html]</ref>
-Bachand has annonced that he will be the Conservative Party candidate for the [[Sherbrooke (electoral district)|district of Sherbrooke]] in the [[Canadian federal election, 2008|40<sup>th</sup> Canadian General Election]]. <ref>[http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20080903/CPTRIBUNE/80903062/5048/CPTRIBUNE André Bachand confirme son retour en politique, La Tribune, Sherbrooke, September 3, 2008]</ref>
-==Footnotes==
+==Related slang==
+Exposure of the underside of the breast, such as below an extremely short [[crop top]], is known as ''neathage'', ''Australian cleavage'', ''reverse cleavage'', ''sleevage'' or ''underboob''. When the lateral aspects of the breasts are uncovered, it is known as ''side cleavage'' or ''sideboob''.
-{{reflist}}
+==Lingerie==
-{{start box}}
+[[Lingerie]] has long been designed to emphasize cleavage. The tight lacing of corsets worn in the 19th and early 20th centuries emphasized both cleavage and the size of the bust and hips. Ball or evening gowns especially were designed to display and emphasize the décolletage.<ref>Gernsheim, pp. 25-26, 43, 53, 63.</ref><ref>Desmond Morris, ''The Naked Woman. A Study of the Female Body'', p. 156. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2004. ISBN 0-312-33853-8.</ref>
-{{s-par|ca}}
-{{succession box|title=[[Richmond—Arthabaska|Member of Parliament for Richmond—Arthabaska]]|
-                 before=first member, riding created in 1996|
-                 after=[[André Bellavance]]|
-                 years=1997-2004}}
-{{end box}}
+More recently, after corsets became unfashionable, [[brassiere]]s and padding have served to project, display and emphasize the breasts, as has breast augmentation surgery. (Morris notes that in recent years there has been a trend toward reversing breast augmentations.)<ref>Morris, ''Manwatching'', pp. 236, 240.</ref><ref>Morris, ''Naked Woman'', pp. 156-159.</ref> Several brassiere manufacturers, among them [[Wonderbra]] and [[Victoria's Secret]], have become known for marketing products that enhance the décolletage.
-{{DEFAULTSORT:Bachand, Andre}}
-[[Category:1961 births]]
-[[Category:Living people]]
-[[Category:Members of the Canadian House of Commons from Quebec]]
-[[Category:Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs]]
-[[Category:Conservative candidates in the 2008 Canadian federal election]]
+On the first Friday of every April in [[South Africa]], [[Wonderbra]] sponsors a [[National Cleavage Day]].<ref>[http://www.wonderbra.co.za/nationalcleavageday.aspx National Cleavage Day - Wonderbra<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
-[[fr:André Bachand (député progressiste-conservateur)]]
+==See also==
+*[[Breast fetishism]]
+*[[Cleavage enhancement]]
+*[[Mammary intercourse]]
+*[[Buttock cleavage]]
+*[[Toe cleavage]]
+==Notes==
+{{reflist|2}}
+==References==
+*Alison Gernsheim, ''Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey''. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, Inc., 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. ISBN 0-486-24205-6
+*Desmond Morris, ''Manwatching. A Field Guide to Human Behavior''. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1977. ISBN 0-8109-1310-0
+*Desmond Morris, ''The Naked Woman. A Study of the Female Body''. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2004. ISBN 0-312-33853-8
+==External links==
+{{Commons|Category:Cleavage (breasts)|Cleavage}}
+*[http://www.humanitiesweb.org/human.php?s=g&p=a&a=i&ID=424 "Sargent's Portraits"], an article including a mention of the scandal caused by the portrayal of cleavage in [[John Singer Sargent]]'s "[[Portrait of Madame X]]".
+*[http://www.papertank.com/article/Why_yes_I_was_staring_at_your_tits "Why Yes, I Was Staring at Your Breasts"] A retrospective look at why women choose to display breast cleavage.
+[[Category:Breast]]
+[[Category:Human appearance]]
+[[Category:Parts of clothing]]
+[[Category:Necklines]]
+[[da:Kavalergang]]
+[[de:Dekolleté]]
+[[es:Escote]]
+[[fr:Décolleté]]
+[[id:Belahan dada]]
+[[is:Brjóstaskora]]
+[[lt:Iškirptė]]
+[[nl:Decolleté]]
+[[ja:胸の谷間]]
+[[ru:Декольте]]
+[[sv:Dekolletage]]
+[[tr:Dekolte]]
+[[uk:Декольте]]
+[[zh:乳溝]]