The Prince and the Dressmaker

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The proverb “the clothes make the man,” which means others may judge you based on what you wear, has been around for thousands of years. Make a list of situations where what you wear is important because of how others will treat you.

The Prince and the Dressmaker - KINDERCOMICS The Prince and the Dressmaker - KINDERCOMICS

As Frances creates more and more striking dresses for Sebastian’s alter ego, the two grow closer. Just as readers are cheering the friendship beginning to blossom into romance, the stakes change. When Sebastian’s father, the king, has a health crisis, Sebastian is under even more pressure to step up his role in the kingdom. Keeping his secret seems even more crucial as a potential king than it ever did as the crown prince. But for Sebastian’s identity as Lady Crystallia to stay secret, Frances’ identity as his seamstress must also stay secret. It’s a cold truth, and the story’s shift is reflected in the color palette.At a meeting with a princess, Sebastian insists he is not a good fit for her, at which point his father gets angry and collapses. Crystallia and Frances go out to the ballet to show Aurelia Frances's designs, but Crystallia insists that Frances cannot attend the meeting because Frances's status as Sebastian's seamstress is well-known and would give away Crystallia's secret. While Aurelia accepts Frances's designs for a fashion show at Trippley's, Frances is dejected and leaves Sebastian's employment. Sebastian plans to propose to Juliana. Using quotes and descriptions of imagery in the book, explain the importance of Emile to the outcome of the story. SEVEN: And this is when things really go off the rails. I know, I know, you are thinking "How could things go MORE off the rails than this?!?!?! Well, let me tell you. They have a fashion show where men come out in drag, but the real crazy-sauce is that HIS FATHER, THE KING, whips off his royal outfit and dresses in a huge velvet gown and wearing lot of eyeshadow (very 2018 eyeshadow style as well, I must note) struts down the runway. I literally cannot think of a stupider ending to this book, or one that just renders the entire book completely meaningless. Gorgeously dense artwork, lively sense of movement, effervescent fashions, sweet romance, and heartwarming denouement." — Booklist, starred review Socratic Seminar: How does the fairy tale format inform the book? Engage the students in Socratic discussion in whatever form you choose (seminar, online exchange of ideas, debate, etc.) by utilizing one or more of the questions below. It may help to have students read and look at some commonly known fairy tales to inform this discussion.

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang | Goodreads

As the final coup de grâce, I just wanted to say that I did not believe Sebastian and Frances were romantically or sexually interested in each other AT ALL, NOT EVEN IN THE SLIGHTEST, and that this seemed totally wedged in for no reason. I guess we are ALSO supposed to believe that he is going to marry a commoner and a laborer. HA HA HA HA HA HA. His parents are so understanding! His dad even publicly wore a gown for no reason and with absolutely zero social consequences! There are ABSOLUTELY no obstacles to publicly defying gender norms in 1830s Paris. TED Talk “How Fashion Helps Us Express Who We Are and What We Stand For: https://www.ted.com/talks/kaustav_dey_how_fashion_helps_us_express_who_we_are_and_what_we_stand_for Hollywood Costuming: There are many beautiful clothes shown, but as the story takes place in 1880’s France, there are several designs that are not accurate to the decade. For example, one chapter shows Princess Juliana in a strapless Grace Kelly-esque blue gown, but strapless dresses wouldn’t be invented until the 1930’s and they wouldn’t be popularized until the 1940’s.And here's another link for you, of which I was reminded: The deep friendship of Audrey Hepburn and designer Hubert de Givenchy (he said it was "like a marriage"), which itself inspired several books. A picture book I read and liked depicts a friendship between a man with taste and style, a fashion designer, and a girl just too lovely not to dress in the latest fashion, a match made in heaven: Instead, she jams together some kind of 2018 narrative about men who like to wear dresses, and acceptance, and love, and being yourself with a time period when things would NOT have gone down like this. At all. These crossed wires are what is making me despise this book.