Analysis Of The Tangled Advertisement

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Thesis: This movie poster appears to advertise a traditional portrayal of gender through the appearance of the characters and color; used in the images. However, this advertisement is actually allowing gender to be perceived in a less restrictive manner than the standard binary due to the relationship between the characters’ positioning/posture, expressions, and the colors of the environment.
When initially analyzing the Tangled advertisement, I noticed that colors are a dominating feature in this poster: bold colors featured in the setting, chameleon, and on the female present, more neutral/natural colors on the male and the horse. For the environment, there are multiple shades of bold greens surrounding the edges of the poster and separating …show more content…

For example, While the man, horse, and chameleon all have light brown eyes; the girl is the only character with bright green eyes. Each character is expressing a sense of determination, dominance, and power with their eyes. This sense of determination/dominance/power, is derived from the arched brows and pointed gaze towards the viewer. Also, the characters are displaying what can be assumed as smug faces that are represented with a smirk, the corners of the human characters’ mouths are turned upward, or a grimace, the chameleon is showing an off-center frown and the horse is baring its teeth in a frown. Ellyson and Dovidio wrote an article in which this determination/power is affirmed; “Dimensions used for inferring power are, among others, elevation and erectness of posture, facial expressions and eye contact, relaxation, and how much space a person occupies” (qtd. in Schubert 12). This connects to the second important detail that conflicts towards traditional gender roles: it draws attention to how the girl has green eyes that express power, while the other characters all have brown eyes expressing power. Due to the fact that this is an advertisement–a tool used to persuade–; I can infer that there is a defined point behind her eyes being green –a masculine color–, and the intent behind this masculine color choice was to express how the character does not comply to the traditional genders using a subtle key. The key, is that eyes are the most expressive part of any living being: eyes conveying how someone/something feels, such as power, determination, or confidence; without using words. Schubert points out the connection between men and power/dominance when stating that, “Gender is an important moderator for power and coercion processes. On average, women describe themselves as less dominant and assertive than do men and differ from men in how they exert power” (Feingold and McClelland

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