Sexual imagery has been used in advertising for a long time with a great deal of success. With the ever-increasing difficulty of advertisers to gain the attention of the media consumer, the use of both effective and ineffective sexual imagery has flourished in recent years. Some products such as perfume and clothing are relatively easy to sell with sexual imagery. Companies selling products such as fast food, however, must be more creative with their use of sexual imagery. Arby’s Roast Beef Restaurant took such a creative approach with its full-page advertisement in the 2009 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
The ad featured two of Arby’s soon-to-be released Roastburger sandwiches covered by a model’s crossed arms. The burgers were positioned side-by-side in the upper third of the ad, with the model’s arms crossed at the wrists at about the center of the ad. The model’s hands were positioned in such a way that they covered a majority of the two burgers, but left some of the top and bottom of each burger visible. The model’s arms extended out of the print area of the ad and no other part of the model’s body was visible. In the lower quarter of the ad was a bright red text box that extended from the left edge of the ad across to the Arby’s logo at the right edge of the ad. The minimal amount of white text in the box contained the headline, “We’re about to reveal something you’ll really drool over,” (Rovell, 2009). The remaining copy text acknowledged that Arby’s was teasing the viewer with a glimpse of the burgers, but that the viewer would have to wait until it was released in March 2009 (Rovell, 2009) to see the whole thing.
Although anything but a cursory glance at the ad shows nothing more than a pair of...
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...eef Restaurant: http://www.arbys.com/about/values.php
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This thought has been held on for far too long. In a consumer-driven society, advertisements invade the minds of every person who owns any piece of technology that can connect to the internet. Killbourne observes that “sex in advertising is pornographic because it dehumanizes and objectifies people, especially women,” (271). Advertising takes the societal ideology of women and stereotypes most kids grow up learning and play on the nerves of everyone trying to evoke a reaction out of potential customers, one that results in them buying products.
13). Both of these types of images are shown through this ad. The Lunchables ad is showing renditions of the world through the young kid in a school setting, however; the lunch box exploding with paint and animals is more abstract but it still accurately reflects how the kid feels when he opens a Lunchables. Bignell (2002) explains “the aim of ads is to engage us in their structure of meaning, to encourage us to participate by decoding their linguistic and visual signs and to enjoy this decoding activity” (p. 33). The Lunchables ad has many signs the viewer can decode. One important sign in the ad is the African American young boy sitting with a shocked and ecstatic look on his face. He signifies that he is happy and eager to eat a Lunchables. The food coming out of the Lunchables symbolizes the actual food someone would eat if they were to get the Turkey and Cheddar cracker snacks Lunchables. It relates to the Lunchables because it is a real representation of the inside of the box. The paint and paintbrushes symbolize creation and fun. They relate to the ad as a whole because they represent the creation of making your own lunch with a Lunchables, which is one of the reasons why the Lunchables are so successful. The paint and brushes also signify making a mess and that is something
Cornyetz’s approach to the concept of women as meat in My Year of Meats can also be compared to how women and meat are advertised in popular culture. Popular fast-food chain Carl’s Jr. has been promoting their products for years using commercials starring barely clothed women sensually eating their menu items (Davies). In February 2015, their “All-Natural – Too Hot For TV” (Appendix 2) commercial to promote a natural, antibiotic, hormone, and steroid-free burger (Kain). The commercial featured a nude woman sensually saying the
Steele’s Constructing Sex, the Sexual, and the Erotic- 'Doing It’: The Social Construction of S-E-X, which covers the social construction and perception of sex, sexuality, pleasure, and gender. In the text Steele mentions that very often in this society, penial penetration and male pleasure and climax are commonly seen as indicator of having had sex (Steele). The focus on male pleasure above females is not only relevant to the physical act of sex, but also the perception of gender and the way media targets their audience. More often than not, the typical objects of male pleasure (females) are taken and added into media and advertising to appeal to male pleasure even in ads that the products are targeted away from men. For example, underwear made for females often features an ‘attractive’ female seductively showing off the garments, effective for targeting straight males. Even in commercials for products for either gender like burgers or sunscreen, still use an objectified women as their selling point. Another point that Steele looks at in the text is the idea of consent, Steele states that “The dangers inherent in contemporary constructions of S-E-X… is about the pleasure of the actor” which can cause the dismissal of the object of desire as irrelevant (Steele). This idea of the focus being solely on the actor is problematic as it can easily perpetuate rape culture, and is a large part of the RadioShack ad.
The headline of the ad is “Decisions are easy. When I get into a fork in the road, I eat.” After viewing this ad, the sub thought to every idea, man or woman, is that her cool attitude toward food can be easily duplicated. With this idea, there is a relationship that is formed between sexuality roles and advertisements. From a young age, women are constantly being shaped and guided to the ideal weight of our society, which is being impersonated by women similar to the one in this advertisement. Her sexual stance, thin, short skirt, and her hand placement all show signs of sexual
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Bennett, Jessica. "The Fashion Industry Promotes Eating Disorders." Eating Disorders. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Why Skinny Models Are Making Us Fat." Newsweek (8 Feb. 2007). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 May 2014.
The portrayals of men in advertising began shifting towards a focus on sexual appeal in the 1980s, which is around the same that women in advertising were making this shift as well. According to Amy-Chinn, advertisements from 1985 conveyed the message that “men no longer just looked, they were also to be looked at” as seen in advertisements with men who were stripped down to their briefs (2). Additionally, advertisements like these were influencing society to view the male body “as an objectified commodity” (Mager and Helgeson 240). This shows how advertisements made an impact on societal views towards gender roles by portraying men as sex objects, similarly to women. By showcasing men and women in little clothing and provocative poses, advertisements influenced society to perceive men and women with more sexual
Ziff, S. (2012, February 13). The ugly truth of fashion's model behavior. theguardian.com. Retrieved , from http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2012/feb/13/ugly-truth-fashion-model-behavior
AMERICAIN INTELLIGENCE in behalf of better health and pure enjoyment sponsors the fashion of sensible swimming attire.” delineates the background of the ad. In other words, the phrase “false modesty” refers to the women who are fully dressed on the beach; those who are still attached to the old prejudice against the light swimwear then against smoking overtly. In contrary, ”AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE” used as an ethos in the ad, had at that time many commercial organizations that helped in promoting American society. As a result, it sponsored a sensible swimsuit for “better health” and “pure enjoyment”. The words “better” and “pure” along with “false modesty” were used to prove that the old moral prohibitions are simply wrong; the new swimsuit is pure and the enjoyment is more intense once “false modesty” about the female body is banished. In addition, drawing a male hand represents a pathos. It highlights the strength and power used by the American intelligence to omit social narrow-minded
Erving Goffman’s coding system: In this ad, the woman’s hands are not seen at all. The ad suggests that she is not even feeding herself. It is as she is not even in control of what she is about to eat. The women’s eyes are averted to the burger, which represents a male’s penis. The woman’s face is shocked, as if she cannot
Hershey’s and Quaker are two well established brands in the snack food world. The weight of their names carry a specific ethos; a persona that will influence the consumer to buy their product, as it is a name that the customer trusts. Two advertisements are analyzed, both found in a February 2007 edition of People magazine: Hershey’s Extra Dark Chocolate and Quaker True Delight print advertisements. The main connection between these two prints is rather apparent: they are both snack foods, and they contain dark chocolate. However, both prints, as they are introducing a new product line, paint a new image of their merchandise: this snack food is healthy, ergo this creation should be chosen over all other products. Hershey’s Extra Dark Chocolate utilizes a cause-and-effect strategy by outlining that consuming their dark chocolate will improve cardiovascular health, backed by the logic and ethos of a study performed by a well-known university. Quaker’s True Delights, however, emphasizes the fact that their product tastes fantastic and is low in calories, in addition to using their ethos of their brand. Ultimately, both products utilize their established persona to draw
One example of this the spring 2014 Target "thigh gap ad" controversy in which graphic designers whittled down a swimsuit models arms and legs via photoshop and gave her a poorly constructed
Burger King is a well-known fast food restaurant that tends to post ads that most individuals may find eye catching. This ad is definitely one of them. The way that you might interpret this ad depends on what gender you are and what type of perspective you view this ad. If you were to hear about this advertisement you would most likely assume that Burger King’s target audience are men because of the words chosen. Burger King is advertising a new super seven-inch sandwich. This juicy, flame- grilled sandwich is filled with American cheese, crispy onions and a beef patty topped with a “hearty” A.1 steak sauce. The appeal used in this advertisement is absolutely the need for sex. The quote, “ It’ll Blow Your Mind Away” in large bold font just