Wifebeater (shirt)
Wife beater, also
wifebeater, and sometimes abbreviated as simply
beater, is a sometimes insulting
slang term used in parts of
North America,
Scotland,
Australia,
New Zealand and various other places to refer to a sleeveless
undershirt, such as an
A-shirt,
tank top,
singlet, or '
muscle shirt' when worn as a sole, outer layer as opposed to being worn under another
shirt. This term is demeaning and is often associated with the similarly derogatory phrase "
white trash". In Australia, when older generations hear the term 'wifebeater' they feel it is an injustice to the great Australian shearer Jackie Howe, and his blue singlet, colloquilly known as a '
Jackie Howe'.
The origin of the term is from the stereotype that the shirts are worn predominantly by men who
beat their wives. In the 1951 film
A Streetcar Named Desire, the character
Stanley Kowalski (played by
Marlon Brando) who is frequently seen wearing tank tops, violently rapes his sister-in-law Blanche (see below). In the 1980 movie
Raging Bull, the main character, a
boxer, is commonly seen wearing tank tops around the house, including in one scene where he beats his
wife. The wifebeater is also seen in the New Zealand movie
Once Were Warriors, where Jake the Muss, a stereotypical
Māori tough man is nearly always seen wearing his black wifebeater. This movie is well known for the scene where Jake violently beats his wife after a heavy drinking session with his mates.
Black tank tops were often worn by
Ike Turner, a notorious abuser of his wife
Tina.
The Fox television series
COPS often captured domestic violence participants wearing either no shirt or a wifebeater.Some film roles have avoided the stereotypical image portrayed by wifebeaters such as
Wolverine in the popular comic-book film series
X-Men. Wolverine is a rough and ready character, but is loyal and protective to his friends. While the debate can be argued as to whether Wolverine wears the shirt as underwear or just an extra item of clothing, the wifebeater is evident in several scenes.
Wifebeaters are also popular in the street gang culture of the United States and Canada. From there the wearing of wifebeaters spread to
hip hop culture; wifebeaters are often worn by hip hop artists in public, on stage, or in the media.
Use of the term
wifebeater to describe an article of clothing (as opposed to its literal use) is relatively new. The term has been denounced by the
National Organization for Women, who say it trivializes domestic violence. "The implication is that wife beating is not viewed as sufficiently serious to lift it above the level of something that's OK to joke about," says
Kim Gandy, president of NOW.
In
England, the term is occasionally used as slang for the
Belgian beer
Stella Artois. Although this is also used in Scotland by some, its main usage remains as a vest type sleeve-less shirt. In British culture, Stella Artois is associated with a drinking culture in which domestic abuse may follow a bout of drinking at the local pub.
Building 19, a
New England-based
discount store, put an
ad in their 2006
Presidents' Day flyer for A-shirts. It was advertised as being a "Wife-Beater" shirt. Building 19 management (and the cartoonist who drew the ad) later apologized.
In 2005, a bar in
Dunedin,
New Zealand was fined for its "wifebeater Wednesday" theme night aimed at attracting students by giving out singlets [
1].
*
Sleeveless T-shirt*
tank top*
Muscle shirt*A Sleeveless, Ribbed White Cotton Undershirt by
Booth Moore, Press & Sun-Bulletin, January 13, 2003
