Features
Professor Sarah Cole war, feminism, and fashion by noel duan After striding into Room 602 in Hamilton Hall, Professor Sarah Cole, Department of English and Comparative Literature, immediately sets out to begin the class discussion about Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway. The students gape at her, not only because of the way her face brightens when she reads from the novel, but also because of her outfit. As a tenured professor who loves to teach about Virginia Woolf and war, a pair of highheel black boots and an asymmetrically-cut dress by Black Halo seems oddly appropriate. After all, nothing conveys confidence and girl power better than a great pair of heels and a little black dress. “I have had a subscription to Vogue since I was a freshman in college,” she remarks, “and I think of clothes as part of a larger aesthetic approach to the world, a chance to invite pretty, special things into one’s daily life. Teaching is a particularly clothing-friendly profession, since there is such range.” For example, Cole never wears blazers or suits to class, but she would not wear jeans either. “I love dresses, would wear one every single day if I could.”
Cole is also a published author; she is finishing up her second book on violence and literature in the early 20th century. In her academic pursuits, she focuses mainly on British literature and the culture of the first half of the 20th century—an interest she has maintained passionately since her arrival at Columbia. “I feel privileged to be part of the faculty here; my colleagues are inspirational as scholars, teachers, and members of the profession; plus they are nice people,” she remarks. When Cole arrived here 10 years ago, “heels were very thin.” She ended up ruining a pair of sling-back pumps on the cobblestones. “Fortunately, those days are over, heels have been thicker for a good half decade at least, and so all is well on campus,” she rejoices. In response to Hoot’s inquiry to feature her, she states, “I am flattered to have been identified as someone who cares about clothes on campus, but would also emphasize how many fashionable faculty members there are at Columbia.” Duly noted by us.