Dress as a Form of Time Machine

The concepts of the time machine and time travel have fascinated man since the nineteenth century. Both have inspired the creation of numerous artworks throughout modern history. Within the humanities, however, scholars have been engaged in a long-standing dialogue, exploring ideas about time travel while largely ignoring the related concept of the time machine. Within the arts, the time machine has been frequently conceptualized as a conventional vehicle in its familiar forms, such as the bicycle, car, and airplane. Though, various non-vehicle models of the time machine can be found in artworks, as well. One of these is dress (clothing). It plays an important role as a kind of time machine in time machine and time travel artworks like the Back to the Future film series. This American comedy/science fiction trilogy, first released in 1985, epitomizes the concept of the time machine and time travel. In these films, a supercar "DMC-12" called "DeLorean" is used as a time machine, transporting the protagonist from modern-day time, to the recent and distant past and future. Film viewers may not be overtly aware, however, that the dress or clothing worn by the characters in this series is also a kind of time machine. This paper demonstrates how dress functions as a time machine in Back to the Future and how this function differs from the vehicle model. For its demonstration, this paper analyzes the relationship between dress and time travel, clarifying its function as a time machine in the Back to the Future film series and focusing on the concepts of change of body (sensation) and "direction.