This ad is sexist because the positioning of the woman's face in relation to the sandwich makes her look like a blow-up doll, objectifying her as if her only purpose is sexual. It also compares the sandwich to a penis ("seven incher"). This is harmful because of the gender messages it sends about both men and women: a man is just a penis (literally a hunk of meat) and a woman is just there for sexing.
This ad, and all the other Kelly Ripa for Electrolux ads, is sexist because of its portrayal of woman as do-it-all housewife. Cult of domesticity, anyone?
This is obviously sexist because of the message it sends: women are bad at driving, and need it to be simplified.
Vodka ads are usually salacious, and usually sexist. Here the woman is lowered, literally at the man's feet. She is scantily clad while he is fully dressed. He clutches his phallic symbol (the vodka) as she removes her sunglasses - her only shield - to see it.
This ad is sexist because, again, the woman is naked and the man is fully dressed. She is there only for sex, as she grabs his crotch while he's all "YEAAHHH! I GOT MY WHISKEY AND MY CIGAR! I'M A MAN!!!"
I think that popular culture has affected the way most of us view men and women, whether we'd like to admit it or not. It'd be impossible to grow up in America with any media exposure and not get ideas about gender from that. We learn the sexual double standard of men and women (he's a stud, she's a slut) pretty early. We learn that a single older man is a swingin' bachelor and a single older woman is an old maid (or, I guess, a cougar - as if to say that a woman who wants to date younger man is some kind of jungle predator).
Popular culture has also affected the way we view race and class. We learn that Asians are smart, Hispanics don't speak English well so they're probably lazy or drug dealers, that black people are either gangsters or really really funny.
I do tend to point out things I find sexist in advertising, TV and movies. I think it's important to understand how subliminal those messages can be - we can't just internalize everything without questioning it.
When I first hear feminist, I'm actually happy. Feminism has helped me in a lot of personal ways in the past year or so. I no longer carry the negative connotations of feminism with me. I see feminism as freeing and equalizing. These positive associations have come from feminist role models in my own life, as well as learning about feminism in my women's studies classes.
I agree with you Annika on thinking these advertisements are very sexist. In all these ads, women are portrayed as either sex objects or house wives. There are no examples of women being productive in society. I think these ad are very wrong and harmful to our society. They put images and ideas into our heads and create expectations and stereotypes that we ending up believing.
ReplyDeleteIN the 70's I would have agreed with you, the putting down of men in modern advertising, and the media in general far outweighs any sexism against women - modern women no longer see their sexuality as being used against them but as part of the power they wield in 21st century society the dominant gender driving social and political agendas is female - has been since the early 90's
ReplyDeleteSuggest you get a life or start campaigning for "Mens Rights"