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Objectification of women in advertising
Objectification of women in advertising
Is the sexualisation of women in advertising reasonable
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“In the twentieth century, advertising evolved into a form of persuasive social discourse intended primarily to influence how we perceive the buying and consumption of goods,” (Danesi 179).
Does sex sell? American Apparel’s advertisements use sexual images to sell their products, it is a strategy that has caused much controversy because it is the woman being put in the advertisement in a suggestive way to model American Apparel’s clothing. From having American Apparel female employers exposing their bodies to female models seductively placed in overtly sexualized positions to having a pornographic actress.
American Apparel has been a controversial company when discussing their advertisements. The company advertises their clothes in a sexual and erotic way, generating much publicity about the advertisements and even having some advertisements banned.
One advertisement to look at is a 2005 ad campaign of a blonde female who is topless and her legs and hair are covering her chest, slightly parted to expose her underwear covering her female body parts as she wears American Apparel’s knee-high socks/tube socks.
American Apparel is a slightly higher priced brand, compared to Walmart or Target, that produces clothing in the United States and is sold in North America. Their clothing is popular in mainstream, urban areas, which can be seen in the retail locations listed on the advertisement.
When looking at the brand itself, American Apparel, there is many meanings behind the word American. American originally meant the New World, but now, American represents the people or things from the United States of America. The word American gives a sense of nationality, patriotism and unity.
The denotative meaning of apparel is clothing ...
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American Apparel’s advertisement is highly suggestive and sexualized and one that stirs up a lot of controversy. Some of the strategies used in creating this advertisement are beneficial, but they are overshadowed by the sexualization of the advertisement. There is so much going on in this advertisement that could be related to soft-core pornography. Even if the audience did not know who the girl in the advertisement was, the sexualized advertisement would still be the same. American Apparel is known for the models used in their advertisements. Not only do they use models, but sometimes they use their own employers.
What are these advertisements telling their target audience? There are deeper meanings within the advertisement than what is just seen on the surface. American Apparel should not have their models being submissive and posed in a provocative manner.
By describing the commercial in detail, and backing up her statements with evidence, Gray states that this commercial depicts the fantasy of women well enough to make them want to buy the product. The purpose of this article is to analyze a commercial and to inform about how that commercial was effective. Gray states that the audience of the Hanes underwear commercial is middle-class women, aged 12 and up. I think that the audience of Gray’s essay is also the same, because if men are not particularly interested at a
In December 2003, Abercrombie and Fitch decided to stop issuing its quarterly magazine, which it had published in addition to its catalogs since 1997. In a statement issued at the time of the recall, Abercrombie said, "While it has enjoyed success with the Quarterly over the years, the company believes it is time for new thinking and looks forward to unveiling an innovative and exciting campaign in the spring." "We just felt it was time to retire it and come back with something that has beautiful imagery and classical photos," said Hampton Carney, company spokesman, in the Times. "... But that doesn't mean they're going to go totally conservative and lose their nerve. According to CNN.com, Abercrombie said that the recall of the magazine was due to the need for counter space for a perfume, but opponents of the catalog are saying that it was in response to protests against its racy content, such as nude models and articles about sex. Criticism is not new to Abercrombie's marketing strategies; groups such as the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families, the American Decency Association, and the Focus on the Family organization have protested against its sexual content for several years, according to the New York Times.
Advertisers use whatever they can to attract the reader. From a sexual appealing look to a word. One of the most helpful approaches is sex of course which can capture anyone's attention. The ad for Opium perfume depicts a young brunet that has nicely shaped body and wears nothing but golden slippers, necklace and bracelet. Model is laying down seeming like she is enjoying herself and maybe experiencing orgasm. Again in Dolce & Gabbana ad, we see man and woman having passionate foreplay; with one hand he is pulling her bra strap down while with other touching her breast and she is taking her panties off. In this ad, the naked female body and idea of sex is used to get the image of their product into the reader's memory. "Newsweek wrote: The strategy is that, while the consumer studies the picture, the designer's name melts into the brain. And a big part of the message that was melting in was sexual." (Streitmatter, pp. 123) Anyhow, both ads use sexual attention to grab reader's attention. This is exactly what Calvin Klein had intended he wanted to "make sure, first and foremost, that anyone who was thumbing through the pages of a magazine would stop and look at the ads.
The author of this advertisement is all about sexual stereotypes such as blonde hair blue eyes and a very large breast size.
Clothing manufacturer American Apparel has a long notorious history for pushing the limits with their 'risqué ad campaigns. Their advertisements has been condemned sexual exploiting women and essentially using pornography to sell its clothes. American Apparel has become one the most pornographic advertisers of all time.
Chauduri, Saabira. "Nipples, Nudity and a Small Striptease: American Apparel's New Ad Campaign." Fast Company. Fastcompany.com, 21 Nov. 2008. Web. 24 Oct. 2011. .
American Apparel’s campaign marketing has always set themselves apart from other clothing companies with their captures of soft pornographic images. Many court cases have developed over American Apparel’s advertisements yet they continue to market their products with such controversial images. It is questionable why American Apparel is taking this route of commercializing to sell their clothing lines; could it be that American Apparel is selling the idea of sex rather than their products? In American Apparel’s “Meet (insert name here)” campaign the company uses many young regular women discovered on the streets instead of assigning models for their campaigns. They attempt to display their free-thinking and liberal beliefs by accepting young
Sex is one of the most controversial and enticing subjects in today’s media. No wonder it has become a dominant marketing strategy, it appeals to a basic human interest in sex and uses it to persuade an audience. Sex, as a marketing tool, has become extremely pervasive in the United States today. An individual living in America will certainly be exposed to this marketing tool. Music industries, television commercials, magazines and other advertising media have given in to this marketing technique. The fact that companies use people’s natural interest in sex to sell their products is upsetting. The way advertisers use sex appeal to sell their products reflects poorly on and undermines our society’s morals.
There are many companies that use sex appeal in their ads today. For instance Victoria Secrets is one of the top sellers in lingerie. They show skin in every one of their ads. All of their models put on the sex appeal for all commercials and magazines. That is what helps them sell. Women look at those ads and see those girls floating on clouds like angels and feel they could feel the same if they wore that purple bra or red underwear. By showing these girls constantly looking sexy in their ads make women feel sexy just wearing them. That is the whole point of using sex in your ads. It?s amazing what a little skin can do. "In advertising, sex sells. But only if you're selling sex (Richards).
Zimmerman, Amanda and John Dahlberg. “The Sexual Objectification of Women in Advertising: A Contemporary Cultural Perspective.” Journal of Advertising Research 48.1 (March 2008): 71-79. Business Source Premier. EBSCOhost. Howland High School Lib., OH. Web. 28 March 2014 .
One industry that has its toughest critics is advertisements. Victoria’s Secret is a nationwide brand that is known for its sexy, slim, beautiful women promoting their lingerie line. Does anyone ever closely look at the details of the models in the commercials? Victoria Secret is very good at slow motion movement, seductive looks, and camera shots at every model. Models that are used in their commercials tend to be very beautiful, radiant skin, blowing hair, and slim body that will draw more attention to their products. It is insane how a seductive commercial can have so much influence and can increase sales. Commercials also uses famous celebrities who has a excellent body image and a big fan base to promote their brand. Cindy Crawford’s Meaningful Beauty products advertise using women who has stressed over having wrinkles and age spots who tried everything to get rid of the unwanted. She used before and after pictures of each client but stressed that the clients feel and look better after using her products. JC Penney’s commercial always use women who are overly happy wearing their apparel and also give incentives while purchasing their apparel. Rihanna was featured in the Puma brand apparel and how great she felt wearing their clothing to train. With women products being advertised, commercials feature women to be happy,
“Today, any product is made of two things: a percentage of material and a percentage of image. And the part of the product that is made of image is getting bigger” (96, Andersson). In Violent Advertising in Fashion Marketing, by Svante Andersson, Anna Hedelin, Anna Nilsson, and Charlotte Welander, these authors illustrate a sense of how the advertising world has transformed into a competition to see which company has the most appealing or shocking image or even which image can spark the most conversation. No matter how offensive or unappealing it may be, in the eye of the ad company and the advertiser, there is no such thing as bad publicity.
(2014, January 23). 7 ridiculously sexual ads for totally unsexy things. Huffington Post, DOI: 7 Ridiculously Sexual Ads For Totally Unsexy Things
In many clothing advertisements, particularly jeans and lingerie ads, women are used as the main subjects to entice the viewer to notice the ad and most importantly, be excited about the product. In one photo, Calvin Klein Jeans promotes its clothing through what seems to be unwilling, reluctant sexual activity – rape. The advertisement displays the woman resisting the man with the palm of her right hand, and she is pulling her shirt down to cover her stomach with her left hand; yet he is still pursuing her and attempting to remove her top. Her body language and gaze – devoid of emotion – reveal that she is not interes...
Just how far should advertisers go to sell a product? Individuals are reminded that a new age in advertising has emerged when Britney Spears and Victoria's Secret model Tricia Helfer grace the cover of Forbes, a traditionally mature financial magazine. However, as any good advertiser knows, sex sells; all people need to do is look at a newsstand or magazine rack. But while it sells, it also offends as the promiscuous use of sexual images in advertising rubs many consumers the wrong way. The current increase of sexually explicit advertising, while increasing sales, has many detrimental effects on society. New regulations or other forms of control need to be implemented to protect children and others who are defenseless against the war to win consumers.