Prefab Sprout Wild Horses (1990)
The headscarf, now seen by many in the West as a symbol of Muslim women's oppression, was a common accessory in Europe until the mid-20th century. Even today, older women in Eastern Europe frequently wear headscarves. While the reasons for wearing them vary, their roots are primarily practical.
A more recent example of a headscarf's practical use becoming symbolic is seen with the Trümmerfrauen in post-World War II Germany. These women, tasked with clearing rubble from bombed cities, originally wore headscarves to protect their hair.
Soon, the headscarf became a symbol of innocence. Anna-Sophia Pappai of the Free University of Berlin notes that post-war Germany shifted guilt onto a few individuals while focusing on the “heroic” and “guiltless” image of the Trümmerfrauen to ease the burden of collective responsibility.
The Trümmerfrauen represent a distinctly German cultural moment. Generally, in Western society, the headscarf was used to cover women’s hair, a practice historically tied to religious and social norms of propriety. It wasn’t until the 1960s, with the rise of countercultures like the hippies, that showing one's hair became widely fashionable.
But hairstyles carry symbolism, too. In the 1960s, adult women wore their hair loose, braided or pinned, while ponytails were seen as girlish and sexualized. Some Japanese schools still ban ponytails to avoid unwanted attention, and some guides warn against them, suggesting they make women more vulnerable to assault by offering a handle for attackers.
The erotic allure of the ponytail also surfaces in Prefab Sprout’s song “Wild Horses”: “Through the rails I spied / Your ponytail. I tried / With sugar cubes – And they're O.K. / But I don't think / I'll catch you that way.” Though not one of their biggest hits, this track embodies the band’s signature style—smart lyrics and a distinct musical aesthetic that earned them critical praise and moments of success in the 1980s and the early 1990s.
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