Download A Recorded Revolution: Sexy to Smart

Alex Chartier
Instructor: Ian Cresswell
English 100
March 2011
A Recorded Revolution: Sexy to Smart
Women have played a major role in advertising throughout the 1900’s, right up until today.
Advertisers have one main goal: to get the message across so people will buy their products. Everyday
items such as chewing gum, beer, toothpaste and perfume are portrayed to promise fun and romance
as indicated by the flirty, playful women in the advertisement (Manca, Luigi & Alessandra 5). Women
are expected to play every role. The role of the homemaker, independent woman, love tutor, sex kitten
and superwoman, all in one day (Kurtz, Jan 70). The way women were portrayed in the 1900’s is still
very similar to the way women are portrayed in today’s advertisements; beautiful, sexy, slim, playful,
flirty and unintelligent. What I have come to realize is that advertising has unintentionally recorded
women’s steps to independence. But I believe that the media today is still depicting women to be sex
objects, therefore being exploited for their beauty, body and sexuality.
Throughout the 1900’s, women took the main role in advertisements. They were depicted as
stupid and beautiful, all in order to sell a product. I came across an advertisement from 1930 which
showed a woman holding a ketchup bottle with the caption: “You mean a woman can open it?” The
first thing I noticed about this picture was the look on the woman’s face. According to Millum, “The face
is used as a symbol of the whole person: people, convicts and celebrities, are not recognized by their
whole physical selves, but by one small part of their bodies.” (Millum, Trevor 57) She seems surprised
that she would be able to open the ketchup bottle, in a sense this is undermining the intelligence of
women. The second thing I noticed was her body language. She is made to look flirty and vulnerable.
These are both non verbal symbols which portray an image of the woman, without saying anything at
all. Women, more than men are seen using their hands to outline a product, which is happening in this
picture. This seemingly depicts the soft, feminine touch women are known to have (Goffman, Erving 2931). The woman in this advertisement is clearly outlining the ketchup bottle, especially the lid,
promoting how easy it is to open; that even a woman could do it. The second advertisement I found
was a picture of a woman in an advertisement for “Lucky Strike” cigarettes. The caption says: “To keep
a slender figure no one can deny… Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet” (Kurtz 70). The woman is
sitting in a string top, with a puckered lip expression on her face. She is slim and sexy, portraying the
overall message of the campaign which is cigarettes are a resource to stay slim, which everyone desires.
This particular advertisement is targeted towards men, and the woman on the cover is made to get a
man’s attention; ultimately selling the product. The publisher of the advertisement is likely a man, as
many of female based advertisements are (Reichert, Tom 102). With a beautiful, enticing woman as the
star of an advertisement, the message is more likely portrayed because more people will be intrigued.
The portrayal of a nude woman is interpreted different ways by the two different sexes. To men, a
woman with her skin showing serves to arouse his sexual interest, therefore associating the beautiful
woman with the product. To women, a woman with her skin showing serves to enhance their self
confidence, and believe they can appear like the woman in the advertisement by using this product
(Reichert 101). Again, associating the beautiful woman with the product and portraying woman as an
object used to sell products. Reichert claims: “For example, surveys conducted by George Gallup
established that men respond to ads based on quality and sex, whereas women respond to sexuality,
vanity and quality (in that order)” (Reichert 101). This is a tool that worked one hundred years ago, and
is still in play today. The third image I found was a picture of a woman’s face, with big, beautiful curly
hair. The caption reads: “Beautiful hair doesn’t just happen. It starts with Wella Balsam.” This is a
psychological portrayal of women’s wants and needs (Reichert 132). Every woman wants beautiful hair,
and apparently the only way to get it is with this product; this is ultimately what the company is trying to
say. This advertisement is a prime example of how media can manipulate us. Many women will walk
away thinking, “I need that product to have hair like that”, and go out and buy it, which is exactly what
the advertiser wants the consumer to think. Reichert states that advertisements like these are usually
played by celebrities, because people are captivated by stars. “Women were captivated by the glamour
and celebrity of motion picture stars; advertisers used these starlets to motivate women to appear
younger, more beautiful, and more radiant.” (Reichert 132) Therefore, association between beauty and
a certain product is present. The woman in the picture has no connection to the product itself, but is
used an object, a sexual figure to sell. Reichert argues that there is a formula for advertising: “Singular
woman in revealing clothing or nude, but covering private areas with own limbs, headline referencing to
women emphasizing the finish of the varnish, company’s commitment to quality and a call to action.”
(Reichert 102). These rules are fully supported by Wella Balsam’s advertisement for hair products.
Throughout the 1900’s women continuously struggled for equal treatment in the home, in the
workforce and in the media. When a man and woman were cast together in an advertisement prior to
the 1920’s, before women could vote, the man had the executive role. He played the all-knowing, allcompetent, superman role of the picture. Which was stereotypical of the 1900’s because women have
evolved their role in society since then. Post 1920 and still active today, women are portrayed to be
more beautiful and more knowing then men in most cases. Any advertisements about bad breath, bad
health, bad exercise and dieting generally portray men to be the ones who need help (Manca 31). They
appear less competent than women. This is still a major role that men play in today’s media. Any
toothpaste, chewing gum or mouth wash commercial, the male is the one with the bad breath. This
highlights the major steps women have taken within the media in gaining equal rights.
In today’s generation, women are still depicted as sexual, beautiful objects. Nevertheless,
women are generally not portrayed as stupid, incompetent or belittled in many advertisements
anymore. Women have taken a large step since they won the right to vote in 1920 and their role within
advertisements clearly records this. Most women work outside the home now and men are taking on
more domestic roles, completely switching gears from the 1900’s. There is no such thing as a “man’s
work” anymore. Contrary, women still play the same general role in advertisements: sexy, feminine
and flirty. Take a GUESS ad for instance, the women in the picture has a small amount of clothing on, is
usually caressing herself or a man, if so she is physically beneath him, showing vulnerability. GUESS
advertisements tend not to have any script to them, but this is where the non verbal symbols come in to
play. Body language played by the woman is the key. She is portrayed as a sensual woman, with the
man in control. In these ads, the woman’s legs or stomach is the main focus of the image taking away
from the point of the sale – clothing. I find it interesting that when promoting a clothing brand, the
models tend to have little clothing on. This goes back to the idea of sex sells. Manca reviews an ad for
GUESS where a Marilyn Monroe look-alike is casted. “This ad demonstrates the power the image of the
sex object still has in our culture.” (Manca 40). Clearly stated here, women are still being used for their
sexuality to sell a product. Moving away from selling sex, L’Oréal tells consumers they deserve to treat
themselves. Their famous campaign is “Because you’re worth it”, which was originally “Because I’m
worth it”. This campaign targets normal everyday women by enticing their consumers that they deserve
it. L’Oréal doesn’t use sex to sell, but rather they use things that are already liked by the target
audience. The target audience in this case is women; women like makeup and hair products therefore
L’Oréal associates these basic needs of women with celebrities rather than sex. According to Manca
there are the “…necessities needed to live a good and beautiful life.” (Manca 31) In their commercials,
they have celebrities speaking about how their products have made their day easier, changed their life,
etc. At the end of each commercial the celebrity states: “Because you’re worth it”. The celebrity in this
case is building the consumer’s trust, and the slogan is the desire stimulator. The body language used by
the women in these advertisements is playful rather than sexy. According to Goffman: “It is a common
view that women spend more of their time and concern in shopping for clothes and preparing for
appearances than do men…” (Goffman 51). This fact here plays in with the target audience, and
women’s basic desires to appear beautiful. These products and campaigns as such teach women to
enhance their beauty because ultimately they deserve it.
There are still many similarities in the depiction of women in advertisements in the 1900’s and
the 21st century. Women’s sexuality is used to sell virtually anything, to anyone. Their bodies are
portrayed as delicate, flawless and sexy. When it comes to 21st century technology, Photoshop is the
key when selling products. Photoshop can change the look, size, imperfection and colour of a model.
This takes us back to an important question – what is real anymore? This tool was not available in the
1900’s, therefore beauty, sexuality and flawlessness was not enhanced nor toyed with. To conclude, the
main purpose of women in advertising in the 1900’s according to Reichert was: “Sexy women in
advertisements served to illustrate an unspoken dialogue among men. ‘Hey look at this gal. We know
that you, like all real men, like looking at sexy women. Keep us mind when it comes time to purchase,
okay?’” (Reichert 102) This is the problem here – women are not objects to be drooled upon. Women
have a brain just like men do, and are capable of achieving anything a man can. The main purpose of
women in 21st century advertising is to motivate women to appear younger, more beautiful and radiant,
sexier and boost their confidence; by using a certain product. That product is sold to women, by
women depicting an image that if you buy this product, you will be as happy and as beautiful as I am.
Manca thoroughly ties my point together by saying: “Advertising takes the stuff of everyday life and
magically transfigures it into idealized fictions – fictions set in a world where personal satisfaction and
positive human relationships are for sale.” (Manca 5)
Works Cited
Goffman, Erving. Gender Advertisements. New York: Harper & Row, 1979. Print.
Manca, Luigi, ed. Manca, Alessandra, ed. Gender & Utopia in Advertising: A Critical Reader.
Illinois: Procopian Press, 1994. Print.
Millum, Trevor. Images of Woman: Advertising in Women's Magazines. New Jersey: Rowman
and Littlefield, 1975. Print.
Reichert, Tom. The Erotic History of Advertising. Amherst: Prometheus Books, 2003. Print.
Kurtz, Jan. "Dream girls: Women in advertising." USA Today Magazine 125.2620 (1997): 70.
Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 24 Mar. 2011. http://0web.ebscohost.com.library.capilanou.ca
A Recorded Revolution: Sexy to Smart
Alex Chartier