The purpose of this study is to grasp creation background and social position of courtesan which is treated in social and cultural context and its effect on fashion and research representative courtesans from ancient hetaera to the 19th century and their costume characteristics. Its another purpose is to analyze the costume of Violetta, who is a heroine of opera and its costume characteristic as a courtesan.
Most Courtesan clothing were made from bright color, silk and lace which were light, or transparent materials. Using silk and cashmere which were the symbols of class, she took the cutting edge fashion and struggled to break the social barriers. The clothing which the Courtesan wore always became a gossip among people and popular to the designers who could show their creativities because the Courtesan boldly wore the cloth like movie actresses or stars.
The Courtesan who led the fashion not only showed the fashion as a simple expression of the beauty but also as a socio-cultural phenomenon which reflected their social awareness with arts, and changed according to the situations of the time and people.
Violetta's party dress which was shown in the first and third acts of <La Traviata> showed the shoulders and
chest because of the deep and wide cut décolleté, the waist was tightened with a corset as much as possible, and the opulent hips were inflated by the crinoline so when they walked it was swaying. Also it was decorated with splendid materials such as silk and lace, and sparkling jewels, fans, and neckless and even in case of the general clothing in the second act, it was decorated with braids and lace, frills and ribbons. In the third act, the weakness of the sick woman who was closing her life as the splendid Courtesan was emphasized by using colors of white and light purple and thin transparent materials.

• 김희정 | Hee Jung Kim