Advertising: The representation 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.
2) What kinds of female stereotypes were found in advertising in the 1940s and 1950s?
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.
3) How did the increasing influence of clothes and make-up change representations of women in advertising?
There was also a second major area of expansion in production/consumption - clothes and make-up
- which led to women being increasingly portrayed as decorative (empty) objects
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'.
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'
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?
According to Liesbet van Zoonen, however, the ability of these images to undermine traditional female stereotypes is superficial.
7) What does Barthel suggest regarding advertising and male power?
According to Diane Barthel, one of the most common images here is that of the 'fair maiden'. Taking
Figure 1 as an example, the innocent female is equated with flowers and nature: 'what is
communicated is the sense that any rude contact with reality might spoil the maiden's perfection.
8) What does Richard Dyer suggest about the 'femme fatale' representation of women in adverts such as Christian Dior make-up?
Richard Dyer however, claims that such images are something of a misrepresentation of women's liberation:
'[advertising] agencies trying to accommodate new [feminist] attitudes in their campaigns, often miss the point and equate "liberation" with a type of aggressive sexuality and a very unliberated coy sexiness'
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1) What was the Protein World 'Beach Bodies' campaign?
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
2) Why was it controversial?
The advert – featuring a tanned, blonde female in a full-frontal pose – generated so much controversy
3) What did the adverts suggest to audiences?
Only a certain body type (white, slim and thing) is accepted by society and is supposedly the only attractive body type and everyone should only aspire to achieve a unrealistic body
4) How did some audiences react?
Consumers chose to disagree though, as shown by the sticker placed on the model’s stomach. When people began to campaign against the poster’s sexist portrayal, a change.org petition signed by 71,000 urged the ASA to take the adverts down.
5) What was the Dove Real Beauty campaign?
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.
6) How has social media changed the way audiences can interact with advertising campaigns?
Social media allows more publicity for advert and allows people to express oppositional readings easily and allows adverts to be taken down if the greater audience doesn't agree.
7) How can we apply van Zoonen's feminist theory and Stuart Hall's reception theory to these case studies?
When applying Van Zoonen theory we can show how the advert is enforcing male gaze and representing unrealistic idealistic standards for women
8) 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, women represented in the past by being shown submissive, inferiur and lowly however now the representation of women is more fluid there is still false representation of women however now people have the power to disagree through social media.
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.
2) What kinds of female stereotypes were found in advertising in the 1940s and 1950s?
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.
3) How did the increasing influence of clothes and make-up change representations of women in advertising?
There was also a second major area of expansion in production/consumption - clothes and make-up
- which led to women being increasingly portrayed as decorative (empty) objects
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'.
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'
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?
According to Liesbet van Zoonen, however, the ability of these images to undermine traditional female stereotypes is superficial.
7) What does Barthel suggest regarding advertising and male power?
According to Diane Barthel, one of the most common images here is that of the 'fair maiden'. Taking
Figure 1 as an example, the innocent female is equated with flowers and nature: 'what is
communicated is the sense that any rude contact with reality might spoil the maiden's perfection.
8) What does Richard Dyer suggest about the 'femme fatale' representation of women in adverts such as Christian Dior make-up?
Richard Dyer however, claims that such images are something of a misrepresentation of women's liberation:
'[advertising] agencies trying to accommodate new [feminist] attitudes in their campaigns, often miss the point and equate "liberation" with a type of aggressive sexuality and a very unliberated coy sexiness'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) What was the Protein World 'Beach Bodies' campaign?
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
2) Why was it controversial?
The advert – featuring a tanned, blonde female in a full-frontal pose – generated so much controversy
3) What did the adverts suggest to audiences?
Only a certain body type (white, slim and thing) is accepted by society and is supposedly the only attractive body type and everyone should only aspire to achieve a unrealistic body
4) How did some audiences react?
Consumers chose to disagree though, as shown by the sticker placed on the model’s stomach. When people began to campaign against the poster’s sexist portrayal, a change.org petition signed by 71,000 urged the ASA to take the adverts down.
5) What was the Dove Real Beauty campaign?
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.
6) How has social media changed the way audiences can interact with advertising campaigns?
Social media allows more publicity for advert and allows people to express oppositional readings easily and allows adverts to be taken down if the greater audience doesn't agree.
7) How can we apply van Zoonen's feminist theory and Stuart Hall's reception theory to these case studies?
When applying Van Zoonen theory we can show how the advert is enforcing male gaze and representing unrealistic idealistic standards for women
8) 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, women represented in the past by being shown submissive, inferiur and lowly however now the representation of women is more fluid there is still false representation of women however now people have the power to disagree through social media.
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