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Essays about stereotypes
Stereotypes in our society
Essays about stereotypes
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There have been many instances where I am stopped and commented on what I’m wearing. Depending on a single item of clothing, I am either a “certified hippie”, “lesbian”, or “law student”. This has brought me to raise an important social question: How have fashion and advertising built identity stereotypes? Stereotyping can have a strong and negative impact on a person, especially younger generations that are now at an influential stage in their mental development. By subjecting them to these stereotypes based on what they wear, they may begin to think of and see themselves as society claims, rather than who they are or aspire to be. By conducting further research on stereotyping in fashion designs through their advertisements, the aim of this research is to understand the history and social ideas behind fashion. By thoroughly understanding the problem, a solution would be easier to reach. In order to gain further insight on the matter, two practitioners have been selected: Dr. Rebecca Arnold and Dr. Roman Meinhold. Rebecca Arnold is currently a lecturer in History of dress and Textiles at the Courtauld Institute of Art. Her …show more content…
His research and publications address environmental thought, cultural inquiry, philosophy of art and culture, holistic well-being, and, applied philosophy and ethics. His book Fashion Myths: A Cultural Critique, discusses advertisements of fashion, and fashion-related goods from a philosophic-anthropological perspective within a contemporary cultural context. In other words, understanding the thoughts of consumers when watching advertisements and making purchases. Understanding the matter from an anthropological perspective, as well as from a design perspective, allows for insight into the matter through an interdisciplinary approach, aiding in understanding the situation from both sides: designer and
In the 1997 article Listening to Khakis, published in the New Yorker, Malcolm Gladwell effectively paints a vivid picture of the thought and science that goes into advertising campaigns. Gladwell begins his paper by focusing on the Dockers’ advertising campaign for their line of adult male khaki pants, which he labels as extremely successful. This campaign was the first line of successful fashion advertisements aimed directly toward adult males (Gladwell, 1997). This campaign was cunningly simple and showed only males wearing the pants being advertised with the background noise filled with men having a casual conversation (Gladwell, 1997). This tactic was used because studies showed that Dockers’ target market felt an absence in adult male friendships. (Gladwell, 1997). The simplicity of the advertisements was accentuated as to not to deter possible customers by creating a fashion based ad because, based on Gladwell’s multiple interviews of advertising experts, males shy away from being viewed as fashion forward or “trying to hard” (Gladwell, 1997).
In America today, there are many different clothing stores. There are stores setting images for all ages, and styles. The majority of the upper-class stores are setting the American image for the young adult population. Many of the advertisements for these stores are somewhat similar. I have spent the last year and a half working in a clothing store called, “Abercrombie and Fitch”. Seeing this store change and grow with its image of vintage American clothing, I have found many rhetorical issues. Within this essay I will be discussing the many rhetorical issues of the clothing company “Abercrombie and Fitch”.
The way we chose to dress can express our identities and according to Frith and Gleeson (2004), “men’s clothing practices [in particular] are an important and pervasive form of appearance management that reflects the continued monitoring of their visual selves” (p. 40). Christopher Berneck is a Caucasian gay male born and raised in Germany. At just twenty-three he has accomplished feats most people only dream of. He is a world-renowned figure skater and competed for Germany at the Sochi Olympics. In addition, he is a model who has worked for Ford models and has done ads for fashion retailers including ZARA. Now he studies fashion communication at Ryerson and will be on Canada’s Next Top Model in the fall. Fashion has always played a large role in Chris’s life from a very young age. Being a gay male he often felt the need to fit in and not standing out as being too feminine despite his love for women’s fashion. He loves to mix and match women’s and men’s
We see the ways that the popular media uses gender tensions everywhere. The truth is that sex sells, we know that. The challenge that advertisers face is: How to use it best. Some advertisers do this better than others and the ones that truly have an understanding of gender tensions will, in the end, sell the most. In my last paper, I explored how the company Abercrombie and Fitch uses gender tensions to sell their clothes. They have become among the masters in advertising and the business in booming. They cater to young adults and young adults only for one powerful reason: It is at this age in which the sexual tensions between male and female are greatest. Abercrombie and Fitch has found their niche.
In “The man behind Abercrombie and Fitch.” An interview conducted by Benoit Denizet-Lewis displays a glimpse into the life of Mike Jeffries and his views of his company only hiring “good-looking” people and targeting “good-looking” people to wear his clothes. This has been done in order to force his audience to recognize that the issue of acceptance one’s peers and exclusion of a community mentioned by Mike Jeffries, is a result of cultural perceptions and individual self-image. Denizet-Lewis skillfully shows that while Jeffries remarks of not wanting the “not-so-popular” kids to shop in his stores, it poses a question to consumers asking what change in our attitudes will come or if there will be any change at all. Thus comes the issue of how consumers today have a shift in the reasoning behind why one buys clothing and the motivating factors that influence one to buy certain clothing. Denizet-Lewis also demonstrates the different messages that controversial advertisements and statements affect different groups of people and how what they project is really what people desire, though deemed by many people as unacceptable or inappropriate. The author also examines how in the news media, the image has become more important than the message and how images have taken precedent over actual issues and character. As a result of this, various communities have formed by the construct of selling to “beautiful people” and how popular appeal has become an extension of a person.
Fashion and pop culture has transformed over the years greatly influenced by television and the media. Television has a huge impact on our childhood, what we watch on television shapes our adult life either positively or negatively. For anyone born in the 20th century television era, they must be familiar with the Disney world characters and how they have had a huge impact on our kids over generations and how it has transformed television, fashion, and pop culture over the years. Monika Bartyzel and Crystal Liechty, in the articles “Girls on Film: The Real problem with the Disney Princess Brand”, and “In Defense of Princess Culture” both respectively expose the Disney world to us in different viewpoints. The proceeding paragraphs analyze, how
Wallerstein, K (1998) Thinness and Other Refusals in Contemporary Fashion Advertisements in Fashion Theory, Volume 2, Issue 2, pp.129–150. London: Berg. Williamson, J. (1978). Decoding Advertisements: Ideology and Meaning in Advertising. London: Marion Boyars.
Fashion is an expression of one’s identity and has long been influenced by women’s place in society. Gender has long controlled an individual’s role in society as it set certain expectations for men and women. Throughout the history of the United States, women have struggled to gain equality, and as different roles and societal expectation changed throughout history, so did the fashions of the time.
In an article presented by Sud Jhally, “Advertising at the Edge of the Apocalypse,” he mentions that consumerism is dominating our culture and also the hazardous acts of it (2000). To analyze these dangers in our culture, I have presented an evaluation that illustrates my consumption behaviour in regards to fashion. Through this interpretation, it is hypothesized that the consumption of fashion is highly dangerous. This is seen through the influence it has on emotions, class, alienation and the difficulty in attaining an identity. This is significant because in a capitalist society, consumption is a part of people's daily lives; being that so, it is important to be aware of the implications that it has.
It’s no secret that some women believe fashion portrays who they are. Therefore follow every season’s new trend. This leads to spending money that they don’t have. Waller Lea, a journalist, suggest that “for some communities, purchasing knockoffs or generic products are frowned upon, forcing minorities to spend more money. Now businesses and companies are targeting minorities, causing more debt problems.” Addicted to retail or brainwashed? Opponents claim that fashion is simply a creative way to express themselves. There are others ways to express ourselves that are no based on our appearance. Through drawing, painting or through our thoughts and ideas. What happens when someone can’t afford expensive clothing or doesn’t have access to fashionable clothes? They are singled out and excluded from society for being different.
Being judged by others for what you wear is not a pleasant feeling. Students get judged all the time by not wearing name brand companies such as Nike or Converse. School uniforms can fix not only this problem, but it eliminates distractions, boost self-confidence, and saves money to put into other areas of the school.
In today’s society, more than ever there is a great importance placed on beauty. In fact beauty is often associated with self worth, especially among women. This idea that beauty is more important than anything else is prominent in the media, specifically advertisements. Advertisements present ideas of beauty that women think they must conform to in order to be beautiful. This essay will analyze two advertisements from the winter 2016 issue of Fashion Magazine. Both advertisements present very different ideas of beauty. The Erin Tracey ad reproduces the dominant ideologies of beauty, which are traditionally white and thin beautiful women. On the other hand the Special K advertisement challenges these hegemonic
Often used synonymously with clothing, fashion is, in fact a generic term that encompasses a wide variety of architecture, furniture, clothes, accessories, etc., all integrating into a statement of “lifestyle”. It is so multi-faceted that its connotations and denotations are numerous. To an average person it implies a particular style of clothing or accessory that is contemporary and trendy, one that becomes outdated in the next season/year. To an economist, fashion presents an ever changing dynamic scenario because it has the inherit potential to make any new product obsolete within a short time-span, including the need for replacement even though the newer item may not necessarily perform a substantially a better function. A sociologist may perceive fashion as a product of socio economic, political factors prevailing in any country and the world at a particular time, while for a psychologist, it is an expression of human behavior, a manifestation of the personality, and a reaction to human perception of the environment around. Fashion is perceived by the youth as an outlet and reflection of their thoughts, aspirations and contemporary
This ad by American Apparel shows a woman figure in a tight fitting, flashy red dress with her bum cheeks sticking out from a man’s leg lifting up the dress, no humanistic qualities in either sex just a body of a female on her knees and man’s leg and foot, but no faces. Being a young girl growing up in today’s society is much different than it was a few decades ago. The unrealistic images seen in American popular culture, in mass media and advertisements like billboards or television commercials are giving false hope and teaching the youth that one has to look perfect to be noticed. Being perfect has so much attached to it, one must have the perfect body, right hair and clothes, keep them closed but don’t be a prude. Media is teaching younger generations that being a Men’s Women is okay, from females in ads being portrayed as physically attractive slim, young, and revealing clothing. What should be taught to all ages is that being true to yourself is the meaning of
Many hidden, underlining messages of advertisements are used in order to market products in a sexualized manner. Instead of selling the product itself, advertisements sell ideals or certain things that have nothing to do with the actual product. Advertisements attempt to appeal to the public in order to convince consumers to purchase their products. In the case of the Yves Saint Laurent ad, romance, sex, and the promise of being able to live life to the fullest are all being marketed in the form of the “Parisienne” perfume. Not to mention, its influence on gender roles and how its contribution to the stereotyping of Caucasians. The setting and visual aspects of the advertisement campaign as well as the race of the selected model behind the perfume ad provide a wide variety of messages to its audience that are not always clear at first glance.