I am a grad student in history, so I have access to some fairly impressive databases. So I was bored the other day and decided to do some historical research on shaving and came across a series of graphs of percentage of men living in London between 1840 and 1970 with beards, moustaches and sideburns. I wish I could post them, but because of my type of access I am only allowed to use them for academic purposes (I could loose access if I go posting copyrighted material to a public server like this one).
Here's the general idea though: during times of war the number of beards drops and the number of moustaches is almost perfectly inversly proportional to the number of beards. (soldiers like moustaches)
The unexpected trend: In 1840 more men were shaving than in 1900 by a wide margin. The number of men shaving does not get back to the 1840 level until the 1920s. I cannot explain that, the most plausible explanation I can think of is the Victorian influence.
You can tell when the DE was invented just by looking at the graph.
I really wish I could post this stuff, but I would rather be able to get my M.A. If any of you have access to databases or comprehensive records, here's where to find it:
Dwight E. Robinson, "Fashions in Shaving and Trimming of the Beard: The Men of the Illustrated London News, 1842-1972," The American Journal of Sociology, 1976, The University of Chicago Press, p. 1135-1136
It's worth a look.
Here's the general idea though: during times of war the number of beards drops and the number of moustaches is almost perfectly inversly proportional to the number of beards. (soldiers like moustaches)
The unexpected trend: In 1840 more men were shaving than in 1900 by a wide margin. The number of men shaving does not get back to the 1840 level until the 1920s. I cannot explain that, the most plausible explanation I can think of is the Victorian influence.
You can tell when the DE was invented just by looking at the graph.
I really wish I could post this stuff, but I would rather be able to get my M.A. If any of you have access to databases or comprehensive records, here's where to find it:
Dwight E. Robinson, "Fashions in Shaving and Trimming of the Beard: The Men of the Illustrated London News, 1842-1972," The American Journal of Sociology, 1976, The University of Chicago Press, p. 1135-1136
It's worth a look.