postive and negative impacts of advertisements

Example 6 :

Gender Stereotyping in Advertisements

Male stereotypes

In these advertisements, men seem to have a more positive image about themselves. Instead of being passive and subservient as women are often seen as, they are strong and in control.
Problems:
1) Show ideal or body type, which can be unrealistic
2) Show men as aggressive and in control of things, including women

Example: Hero

This advertisement for Honda's sponsoring of the Los Angeles Marathon was placed on the back cover page of a news magazine in March of 2003. You see how the man is winning the race, with a female close behind him and in order for him to beat her, he must gain some more speed. He is the hero because he triumphs over everyone and has the control of it. The woman's face in the picture does not show her as confident in winning it is shown by his expression. The comic book cartoon also gives one the sense of the man having super human power adding to the "hero effect".

Example: Family Man

The man here is shown as a father figure. He is with his son as they both sleep. The slogan for the advertisement is "Looking out for the next generation", which is what the father is doing for his son in the picture. He is shown as caring and protecting.

Female Stereotyping

Many women are used in advertisements to sell items for the home or body. Many of these products are specifically to enhance one's beauty and by doing this, she is more in control of herself and the world around her.
Problems:
1) Very unrealistic goals for ideal body shapes, which might lead to high rates of anorexia nervosa and bulimia
2) Make women believe they are valued based on their body, therefore their self-esteem is also based on how their body looks compared to others
3) Show women as more passive and not in control of themselves
4) Give messages to women that changing their appearance, they will have a better life:

The text reads: "Hey, you look amazing. New job? New romance? Well something's new. You really look fabulous." Her life changed by just using this cream

Example: Beauty

This ad from a fitness magazine says that when you are done with your workout for your body, to make sure you firm up your skin with this lotion. Working out is not going to help with every aspect of looking good. This ad makes you realize that there is always something more to do after working really hard to have the ideal body portrayed in the media.