In Côte d'Ivoire factory printed textiles, called pagne, are the domain of women. It is they who are its primary consumers. Moreover, it is they who especially desire pagne, and they whose identities are entwined most intimately with collecting and wearing it. The act of defining pagne—of giving meaning to this factory-produced and therefore unsocialized commodity—is considered by Ivoirians to be the singular prerogative of women. While men may buy, sell, and wear pagne, it is primarily women who treasure it, make aesthetic judgements about it, and endow it with significance.
In this lecture I will explore the roles that pagne plays in the lives of many contemporary women in Côte d'Ivoire. I will address the multivalent status of factory printed textiles in Ivoirian culture as commodities, aesthetic objects, personal possessions, and as a national symbol. In particular I will examine the association of pagne with notions of Ivoirian womanhood and how pagne is instilled with meanings that are directly related to women's concerns. Among the questions that I will raise are: who wears pagne and what does wearing pagne say about a woman's personal identity? How does the style of dress impact the message that wearing pagne sends? Why do some women collect pagne? How is pagne valued? How is pagne entwined with a sense of Ivoirian national identity for women?