Representations of women in advertising

1) How does Mistry suggest advertising has changed since the mid-1990s?

Since the mid-1990s, advertising has increasingly employed images in which the gender and sexual orientation of the subject(s) are markedly (and purposefully) ambiguous. As an ancillary to this, there are also a growing number of distinctly homosexual images - and these are far removed from depictions of the camp gay employed as the comic relief elsewhere in mainstream media.

2) What kinds of female stereotypes were found in advertising in the 1940s and 1950s?

After 1945, women were made to feel guilty by warnings of the 'dangerous consequences to the home' that had begun to circulate (Millum, 1975:73). Looking at women's magazines in the 1950s, Betty Friedan (1963) claims this led to the creation of the 'feminine mystique': 'the highest value and the only real commitment for women lies in the fulfilment of their own femininity. The highest good is keeping house and raising children' (Millum, 1975:74).

3) How did the increasing influence of clothes and make-up change representations of women in advertising?

This increased the idealistic view of women in advertising as many women in adverts were seen with theses convention such as make-up 

4) Which theorist came up with the idea of the 'male gaze' and what does it refer to?

Laura Mulvey's (1975) theory of the 'male gaze' is important here; she contends that scopophilia (the basic human sexual drive to look at other human beings) has been 'organised' by society's patriarchal definition of looking as a male activity, and being looked at as a female 'passivity'. Male power means that any social representation of women is constructed as a spectacle for the purpose of male voyeuristic pleasure. Mulvey discusses this in relation to the narrative conventions of cinema, but it has been noted that she 'provided a theoretical framework to substantiate what many other feminists had been asserting for some years... much second wave feminist writing about advertising and fashion had made connections between women's subordinate role and the overdetermined emphasis on their appearance' (Gamman & Makinen, 1994:172).

5) How did the representation of women change in the 1970s?

From the mid-1970s there was a proliferation of distinct images that became labelled as the 'New Woman', and that were seen as representative of the 'changing reality of women's social position and of the influence of the women's movement' (van Zoonen, 1994:72). The New Woman was supposed to be 'independent, confident and assertive, finding satisfaction in the world of work and recreation, seeking excitement, adventure and fulfillment' (Cagan, 1978:8). According to Liesbet van Zoonen, however, the ability of these images to undermine traditional female stereotypes is superficial.

6) Why does van Zoonen suggest the 'new' representations of women in the 1970s and 1980s were only marginally different from the sexist representations of earlier years?

Van Zoonen points to its claim that: 'A woman should look forward to dressing for the office.' Having a job is seen merely to provide 'another happy occasion for women to dress up and present themselves.' Indeed, a woman 'is portrayed stepping confidently towards the camera in an office environment observed by a male colleague from behind; but she is not portrayed actually working' (1994:73).

7) What does Barthel suggest regarding advertising and male power?

Barthel notes that 'today's young women can successfully storm the bastions of

male power... without threatening their male counterparts' providing we can reassure them that, underneath the suit, we are still 'all woman', that 'no serious gender defection has occurred' (Barthel, 1988:124-125; Davis, 1992:50).

8) What does Richard Dyer suggest about the 'femme fatale' representation of women in adverts such as Christian Dior make-up?

Dyer suggest that femme fatale is portraying women in a sexualised way as in the Dior advert has a males gaze to it.

Media Magazine: Beach Bodies v Real Women (MM54)

Now go to our Media Magazine archive and read the feature on Protein World's controversial 'Beach Bodies' marketing campaign in 2015. Read the feature and answer the questions below in the same blogpost as the questions above.

1) What was the Protein World 'Beach Bodies' campaign and why was it controversial?

The Protein World Ready?’ campaign launched by Protein World this spring caused a real stir amongst the media and  consumers. Launched in Spring 2015 on London Underground, the PR team were clearly courting the female market (19-30) into looking their best for the beach this summer. The advert – featuring a tanned, blonde female in a full-frontal
pose – generated so much controversy that in July 2015 the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority waded in: Although we understood the claim, ‘Are you beach body ready?’ invited readers to think about their figures, we did not consider the image of the model would shame women who had different body shapes into believing they needed to take a slimming supplement to feel confident wearing swimwear in public. For that reason, we concluded the ad was not irresponsible. The advert was arguably aimed first and foremost at the male gaze (an interesting way to get the attention of both sexes) but the question – and the subsequent advertising message – was definitely designed for women.

2) What was the Dove Real Beauty campaign?

 

Dove’s ‘Real Beauty Sketches’ had garnered more than 114m total YouTube views within one month of its release, making it the most viral ad of all time. The campaign employed an FBI-trained sketch artist to draw women twice – first based on their own self-perception, and then based on that of a stranger. The outcomes demonstrated that the strangers’ descriptions were both more attractive and more accurate than the women’s own perceptions, suggesting that women are often hyper-critical of their appearances, and unable to see their own beauty. The campaign resulted in upwards of four billion PR and blogger media hits, and was much praised.

3) How has social media changed the way audiences can interact with advertising campaigns? 

 

Social media has transformed audience interaction with advertising campaigns by enabling real-time engagement feedback and sharing thereby creating more dynamic and participatory marketing experiences.

4) How can we apply van Zoonen's feminist theory and Stuart Hall's reception theory to these case studies?

Van Zoonen's feminist theory can be applied to these case studies by analysing how advertising campaigns either reinforce or challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes highlighting the ways gender identities are constructed and represented. Stuart Hall's reception theory can be applied by examining how different audiences decode these campaigns, potentially accepting negotiating or opposing the intended messages based on their individual cultural backgrounds and personal experiences.

5) Through studying the social and historical context of women in advertising, do you think representations of women in advertising have changed in the last 60 years?

Yes, representations of women in advertising have changed in the last 60 years shifting from traditional domestic roles to more diverse and empowered portrayals.