Women in Advertising Draft 2

Does the way the female body is used in advertising affect the way society views women and young girls?

Advertising is a form of mass communication, which can be delivered through signs, symbols illustrations, radio and film along with many other methods from the seller to the buyer. Advertising plays a very important role in shaping mass media especially in developed countries, where consumerism is so accepted. This essay will look in detail at the way advertising uses the female body to help sell products and what cultural, political and economic impact this has on women, and the way they see themselves and others.  Advertising today is taken much more seriously than it was  2 decades ago, In the year 1999 $120 was spend on advertising (Killbourne, Killing us softly 3). As well as products the industry sells the intangible 

"Ads sell a great deal more than products, they sell values, images and concepts of success, worth and sexuality, popularity and normalcy, they tell us who we are and who we should be, sometimes they sell additions" (Killbourne, Beauty and the Beast). Advertising is everywhere, and since the beginning of time women have been used in one way or another to help sell products. From the start of advertising when women were often placed on cigarette boxes, to more recently where women bodies are used to sell products such as cars. The average american is exposed to up to 3000 ads per day, (Killbourne, killing us softly 3) meaning that the message which theses adverts portray is repetitively revealed and even drummed into its audience making it the norm and therefore it is rarely questioned.  

Advertising theory looks in detail at the ways in which people buy into a product for particular reasons such as the way the product makes someone feel or how a certain product promises something to the buyer such as happiness or romance, in order to improve lifestyle. The text 'Persuasion in Advertising, by J. O’ Shaughnessy & N.J. O’Shaughnessy, looks at how persuasive advertising is it todays society, and talks about how competing markets make it difficult to sell products, making functional products unworthy. John Berger also looks at this and within his book Ways of seeing, talks about different techniques within advertising such as manipulation.

Gaze theory was a term made popular by Jacques Lacan, this theory explains the psychological effect of being consciously viewed by another. Writers onGaze theory include Sweeney, D., & Wagner and Once again John Berger, who all look at the effect which the 'male gaze has on women, and how women are objectified in film and other forms of media because men are nearly always in control of the camera or media type. They look at how history has always portrayed women as being items to display and women's attitudes towards themselves are highly effected by the Gaze. 

Violence within advertising is one problem which is often spoke about when referring to advertising, many agencies use the idea of violence to sell their products. Dolce and Gabbana are a prime example of these technique and in the past have been heavily scrutinised for it. Along with the idea that This type of advertising encourage violence in society it also normalises it,  Benokraitis and Feagin,  and Niomi Wolf  all explore this idea that advertising changes how women and the rest of society view other women. Objectification within in advertising is often argued to be the reason why violence in advertising comes about. There are many different arguments which focus on or reflect on this particular issue, one of them is Feminism. Many Feminists would argue that the advertising industry portrays the female as as sex objects, the same as it did towards the beginning of advertising, and that the most dominant message which it communicates is the most important thing about women is the way they look.

Adverting often creates an unrealistic image of women, which many women then strive towards, however this can often have a very negative impact, such as eating disorders, and casual attitudes to wards sex due to the  continuance of sex within advertising. Sell is used to sell anything from makeup and lingerie,  to food and beverages. Adverts tell women that if they aren't beautiful or sexy or both they are not acceptable, Through doing this women are objectified, meaning "the act of treating a person merely as an act of sexual pleasure, making them a 'sex object', Objectification more broadly refers to treating a person as a commodity or an object, without regard to their personality or dignity" (Oxford dictionary) This lack or regard can create unhealthily stereotypes and therefore lead to violence towards women.

Main Body // Part 1 Advertising Theory

There is no doubt that todays society is consumed by advertising, people are constantly exposed to ads which promote products and good which are seen as necessities, and without them life would be difficult. These products and goods are sold to us to enrich and even better our lives and everyday tasks.  Advertising if a form of marketing communication and is used to manipulate, persuade or encourage an audience to buy into a certain product. Branding is often used within commercial advertising to increase sales, this is done by creating a a product name which holds certain qualities which consumers can be reminded of when buying into the product. Edward Bernays is often referred to when discussing modern advertising, he introduced the technique of Tobacco advertising in the 1920's, which involved using images phrases and slogans in order the sell a product. Today advertising can be found in many different forms from banners and billboards, popups and street furniture to radio advertisements, web banners and vehicles, Advertising is everywhere and continues to push the boundaries of where and when it can be viewed.

One good example of where advertising makes us believe we need to consume ourselves in a product, is within the perfume industry, where all the ads persuade the audience that it is necessary to invest in the product. "Persuasion is becoming more important in advertising. A Major reason is that competition is finding it easier to erode any functional or price advantage attached to a product." (J. O’Shaughnessy & N.J. O’Shaughnessy, 2004, p.1) A case study which shows exactly this is the quintessential 1980’s styling of ‘L’Air Du Temps’ by Nina Ricci. The perfume advert has the tagline “the fragrance as romantic as the dreams a woman dreams”, it shows a young elegant looking woman who looks to be dreaming of a Male figure, whilst amongst a flock of what appears to be white doves, a symbol of harmony and peace.  This therefore suggesting that by buying into the product it will make you feel sophisticated, beautiful, romantic and therefore attractive to the opposite sex, Making the perfume even more appealing. The advertisement itself targets those who already long for a life of serenity,grace and natural beauty, by marketing itself at those kinds of women it also targets those who aspire to want a life of serenity and grace.  In addition to attempting to appeal to a particular type of target audience, the advert also sticks to a more traditional way of advertising a product, It does this by leaving a third of the adverts length to an image of the perfume bottle. This informs the audience about the brand and why the company itself believe it should be bought by that particular 

“Sex has long been used in advertising to sell just about everything - from champagne to shampoo, from chainsaws to chewing gum.” She goes on to remark that these sexualised images have become increasingly graphic over time, and their larger impact is “sexist, demeaning, and harmful to everyone,” with “a cumulative effect that is profoundly anti-erotic. Kilbourne (2005, p. 119)

The 80's were decades which were a significant time of change in terms of social history. Women status in society changed dramatically and due to this change they became more and more likely to become breadwinners in the household  more likely to have equal pay and were being views more equally in society in general. Fashion followed with women straying away from creative styles which were popular in the 60's to fashion which looked professional  sophisticated, glamourous and more masculine, with structure and shoulder pads being common. This mimicked the shape of a Man's body, many argue this gave a sense of empowerment in the workplace. With this new age of style came a sense of freedom and a new demand for modernised products, especially within the perfume area of industry. Competitors were now trying new techniques, such a persuasion to attract their audiences. John Berger’s ‘Ways of Seeing’ programme, broadcast in 1972 (‘Ways of Seeing- Advertising 1⁄4 www.youtube.com) shows how and why is it necessary to glamourise products, in order to get high sales, Glamour was necessary especially in a time when glamour based itself on success. “Glamour is for everybody who believes they can be glamorous, or, perhaps, more accurately, everybody who finds that they cannot afford not to be glamorous.” Adverts such as this one are creative and stylistic as well as highly manipulative and strategic. Through choice of music, model and surroundings they make the audience think that the product is so much more than it is, subconsciously they make you believe that the perfume gives you a life changing experience which can only ever had through purchasing this particular product. By doing this the advertisers create envy amongst its buyers, people believe if one has this experience then all should be revealed to it,  “Without social envy, glamour cannot exist.”. (J. Berger, ‘Ways of Seeing- Advertising 1/4, www.youtube.com)

“The consumer buys not just a product, per se, but a product under a description. How a product comes across in that description determines how it is envisaged and how attractive a buy it is likely to be. Persuasion appeals can provide a new perspective on a brand and create a whole new aura for it.” (‘Persuasion in Advertising, J. O’ Shaughnessy & N.J. O’Shaughnessy, Pg 5.2004).

One of the worlds most successful perfumes of all time in terms of its sales, which were estimated at one bottle sold every 55 seconds (www.theguardian.co.uk, 2004) is that of Chanel no 5, (‘Chanel No. 5 the film, www.youtube.com).

with nicole Kidman as the leading role, it was filmed by Baz Luhrmann, a famous filmmaker and director, who channeled the same film in this advert as in his film 'Moulin Rough' in 2001.The campaign is sophisticated and more than memorable, as well as subtle in the ay it persuades.   The adverts shows a famous actress exiting her limousine after she looks like she has had a nervous breakdown, she then all of a sudden experiences a world she has never known, a world of peace and tranquility, and the promise of romance and a different lifestyle. In comparison which many and most other adverts this one is entitles 'Chanel No 5 - The film, this couldn't be more true, the advert is one of the most subliminal perfume adverts of all time, other than a few shots of the Chanel logo, there is rarely anything which is linked to the product appearing in the short 3 minute film. This type of advert is so subliminal that it reaches out to get a deeper reaction from its audience, it aims to persuade people to change their minds about the product to realize that the product is modern and exciting, and buy into in, Subliminal Persuasion: Influence & Marketing secrets they don’t want you to know, (D. Lakhani, p.2, 2008)

 Like the previous case study shows modern advertisements are persuasive but in a more subtle way, the persuasion method has increased often playing on emotion to sell the product, 

“The consumer buys not just a product, per se, but a product under a description. How a product comes across in that description determines how it is envisaged and how attractive a buy it is likely to be. Persuasion appeals can provide a new perspective on a brand and create a whole new aura for it.” (‘Persuasion in Advertising, J. O’ Shaughnessy & N.J. O’Shaughnessy, 2004). 

Another example of where this occurs is within the advert for ‘Miss Dior Cherie’ Dior perfume, filmed by Tim Walker, again an advert which had received a lot of media attention. The Adverts plays on the idea of a young woman living the parisian lifestyle, she is carefree and playful yet sophisticated and feisty. We follow her throughout her day as she visits a bakery and florists and rides a bike. The short film gives out a 1950's feel to it, which generated thoughts of elegance, femininity and glamour, she appears to be having a wonderful time, the adverts makes the audience feel involved and therefore tries to mirror this feeling to the watchers. Again showing how adverts can effect the way in which its audience feels about themselves. “The imagery may be public, but the dreams are intimate.” (John Berger, Ways of Seeing- Advertising 1⁄4, 1972) As the quote above suggests these adverts do portray an unrealistic image, the viewer themselves are highly unlikely to experience a day such as this one within the adverts, but they can be inspired by it, so that smaller aspects can be brought to life. 

It is therefore correct to say that the existence of advertising itself has a huge impact on its audience no matter what message it is trying to communicate, As shown above there are many different cases where adverts try to communicate a message, by being subtle, especially more recently, where they are made into short films and often seen more as works of artistry, rather than advertising. However it is quite obvious that the scale in which an audience of an advertisement can be effected is large, Women are given an ideal figure, she is more than often beautiful, sophisticated, elegant, playful and feisty, all of which can be achieved and are all down to the eye of the beholder, it is often forgotten in advertising that viewers have different thoughts and feelings about what beauty is. As a society we are lead to believe that these positive traits can only be achieved by buying into certain products and goods, and that there is a very fine line between what is beautiful and what is not beautiful. 

Main Body// Part 2 Gaze Theory  

Everyday we see images in the media, In fact the average American sees around 3000 ads a day Killbourne, Killing us softly 3), without being aware these ads can effect how individuals view themselves and their place in society. Within this chapter I will look at how patriarchal Images within advertising play a role in influencing women, and how they are often manipulated into acting a certain way, through Advertising, Art and Film.  Theories of the Gaze will be explored, as well as how these theories link to the media and advertising itself, All of the above will be supported by theorists such as Michael Faucault and Rosalind Coward.   

Objectification of women refers to the act of treating someone as if they are objects, without rights or feelings of their own. (Oxford Dictionary)     For hundred of years this has taken place through the medium of art, throughout time there has been an undeniable male dominance in art production, and it continues on today in forms such as the media and advertising. Many would argue that the entertainment industry is dominated by men and that culture is set us to benefit the men within society.  

"While I don't wish to suggest theres an intrinsically male way of making images, there can be little doubt that the entertainment as we know it, is crucially predicted on a masculine investigation on women, and circulation of women's images for men. (R, Coward)

  

Due the the way society was formed hundreds of years ago, the high number of male artists within the last few centuries resulted in art which was created by men for men, which led on to the artistic genre of 'The Nude". Although popular this os often not a realist depiction of the female form but in fact a male fantasy. Art Critics and Historians, who happen to also so be men, celebrate within their writing how wonderful this era was, they convey a positive opinion that the female form is beautiful and more worthy of artistic study.  The way these critics approach this subject, and the the fact they hold a high status, the pornographic function of the art piece is disguised and often justified by removing the guilt and the negative connotations which therefore retains the persona of class. 

Many would argue that the idea behind "the gaze" and the Nude genre is about power and the power dynamic between the genders, showing a difference in the two and therefore sexually objectifying women. Through this portrayal of women as the passive and docile sex, society has come to believe and sometimes even insists that these are the real traits of the female form. This therefore allows males to retain the control and power over females, and in many cases take advantage of of the idea that women are subordinate in capacity or function to men. A Contemporary example of this is within Tom Ford advertising, a perfume for men is advertised by highlighting gender differences between men and women. The adverts shows a slender sexually available women with the bottle of perfume placed in sexualised places of the body. From the advertisement, it is evident that the perfume bottle is implying a man’s genital parts placed in between a woman’s genital parts, the fore suggesting that consumers buy into the product with the promise of sexual satisfaction rather than the object itself.  This reflects the idea of patriarchy which states that men have advantages over women (Allen, J. B. (2011). Difference matters: Communicating social identity (2nd ed.). Long Grove, IL: Waveland.)   Within  this advertisement, it is evident that the man has power over the women; because, he can control her through demanding where the perfume bottle is placed. According to John Allen the advertisement is a form of sexism which is defined as “discriminatory behaviour and attitudes based on a person’s gender”. The advertisement is discriminating towards women as it conveys sexism and shows a lack of value for the women in society. It objectifies women by placing importance on the idea that they are just 'sex objects' and that they are used to earn profits. Similarly, Sweeney and Wagner (1999) describe that objectification of women in the society leads to negative consequences. Sweeney, D., & Wagner, S. H. (1999). Depicting women as sex objects in television advertising: Effects on body dissatisfaction. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 

More ideas about the persona of women were created by male artists through their work, female vanity  is commonly used to help sell products. Since the beginning of art females are often shot whilst posing in a mirror, looking at themselves. In todays advertising techniques women do the same thing. This tactic is created by men and is used so that the female in the image cant return their gaze, making sure that her own reflection is what she she's, this allows men to feel more at ease and comfortable when looking at the image, of the often naked female. More traditionally the idea that women were objects to be viewed was a much more popular and generally accepted view. In the painting 'Vanity' by Han's Memling, a women stands tall with long flowing hair and highly exaggerated curves, she is in the nude gazing into a mirror. this once again reinforces the idea that women are there to be viewed, her eye line reflects herself, making sure that the gaze of the viewer is not questioned or challenged. Instead of looking back at the gaze she accepts it by looking away in a passive manner, this supports Berger's theory that 'Men look at Women. Women watch themselves being looked at'. John Berger, Ways of Seeing- Advertising 1⁄4, 1972). 

The idea of 'The Gaze' has continued into todays society, and finds itself most prominent in advertising,  in the past the the type of art form where 'the gaze' would be most apparent would be in classic art. However this type of medium would only of been accessible to the upper classes, due to the status of fine art at the time. With today's development of media it is now available to be seen by the masses, meaning that it therefore has the potential to affect the masses or at least a much higher percentage of the population. With modern media, comes modern advertising, a slightly different take on "the Gaze" has come about and instead of women averting their eyes so that the gaze is unchallenged , it is a much more common that the female in the advertisement will look directly into the gaze of the audience questioning it instead of accepting it. Rosalind Coward talks extensively about ideas of the Gaze, she is concerned with the way advertising makes the female audience feel and the way in which women are expected to deal with being trapped in this particular  ideal. She describes it as '

Women's experience of sexuality rarely strays far from ideologies and feelings about self- image, there is a preoccupation with the visual image - of self and others, concomitant anxiety about how these images measure up to a socially prescribed ideal. (R, Coward, The Look, Pg 33-39)

"Human Beings don't all look at things in the same way, innocently as it were. In this culture, the look  is largely controlled by men. Men also control the visual media. The film and TV industries are dominated by men, as is the advertising industry."(R, Coward, The Look, Pg 33-39)

"Entertainment as we know it crucially predicated on a masculine investigation of women, and a circulation of of women's images for men. The camera in contemporary media has been put to use as an extension of the male gaze at women on the streets. Here, men can, and do, stare at women."(R, Coward, The Look, Pg 33-39)

Some would argue that the way women have been portrayed for hundreds of year within art and other mediums has affected women today in the sense that women now believe that this is how they are expected to act, and therefore compare themselves to others in the process, however Gauntlett would argue 'its unlikely that the media has a direct and straightforward affect on its audience. Its unsatisfactory to just assume that people somehow copy or borrow their identities from the media'.  In society today, an individuals appearance can act as a form of domination, there are many images within advertising, which play on the idea of male dominance over women. For example in 2007 Britain’s advertising watchdog Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) publicly criticised Dolce & Gabbana due to their controversial advertisement that showed a male model physically holding down a female whilst another group of men watched, it was branded as “illegal and humiliating to women” by Spain’s Labour and Social Affairs Ministry. This advert is a prime example of the stereotypical idea of male dominance, which can be dangerous, as it makes this kind of behaviour more normal and therefore acceptable. Again the way the female is lying with her hips thrust into the air makes it look as if she is willing to give herself to the man sexually, although really she is struggling. The men within the Image  Gaze at her intently whilst she stares away vacantly, some would argue that this type of passive behaviour is no longer a passive thought but instead behaviour which is programmed into her personality, and she is in fact acting on behaviour which is now expected of her. By constantly viewing images such as this one each gender is forced in to submissive and dominant roles, each of which are very difficult to break away from. "The relations involved in looking enmesh with conceived beliefs about the appropriate behaviour for men and women" (R, Coward) These types of gender roles are usually created by men, as this type of industry is dominated by men, and so this industry will continue to create images such as this one in order to provide constant reminders of male dominance within society. It allows men to retain their power over women and gives them a heightened belief of their own status. 'The saturation of society with images of women has nothing to do with mens natural appreciation of objective beauty, their aesthetic appreciation, and everything to do with obsessive recording and use of women's images in ways which make men comfortable'. (R, Coward)

R, Coward would also argue that this kind of advertising s made to make the man feel confident and powerful but the female anxious to conform, bring the male fantasy to life as the females feel she must act this was in order to be accepted. 'Clearly this connection with feeling secure and powerful, women are bound to this power precisely because visual impressions have been elevated to the position of holding the key to our psychic well being, our social success and indeed to wether or not we will be loved'  

One obvious advert which can be applied to Cowards theories is that from Wonder bra in 1999. The model has an assertive and confident pose, along side looking straight into the camera she looks very different from the tame persona in previous Campaigns. The image is appealing to women as it reflects a powerful women instead of a shy passive one and asserts femininity. The Advert's tag line is "I can't cook. Who cares?" This creates the believe that it is not essential for a women to be a domestic goddess and that she can be successful in other areas, without these unnecessary skills.  However this Advertisement also appeals to men, once again the male feels in control,  in the dominant role as he is viewing the semi naked women, who is in fact displaying herself to him.  It could be argued that as the women is unable to cook, she is disappointing the man, she tries to compensate with sex. This relates back to to the idea that the women is a object which can be used by men, but is disguised as women's  independence. D, Gautlett argues 'Modern women are not generally very bothered about fitting their identity with the idea of 'femininity', it is not typically a core value for women today. Instead being feminine is just one of the performances that women can choose to employ in everyday life- perhaps for pleasure, or to achieve a particular goal'.   This suggests that women have a certain level of power within their femininity to control those around them, however it could also be argued that this way of advertising normalises nudity on the street and as a result allows other advertising companies to produce similar campaigns. It also takes the shock out of the advertisement, as repeat exposure allows the audience to accept it as the norm, leading the female gender to believe this is how they should look and behave, and does the same to the male, making him believe this is the only acceptable ideal. 

 The Beauty in industry has seen a boom due to the constant scrutiny of women, and as a result Writers such as Berger and Coward would argue that this is due to the Behaviour which The Gaze creates. It is quite clear that the media had an undoubted influence over society, forcing ideas about appropriate male and female sexual behaviour and ideals. Constant reminders from advertisements and other media forms manipulate the public into the ideal way to act, this idea of The Gaze has been around for centuries in different media form, from back when the nude was popular to Dolce and Gabbana ad campaigns in 2013, It is difficult to imagine how society would be without these particular notions. 

Main Body// Part 3 Violence against Women

In this chapter I will explore how beauty is a demand and the judgement upon women with specific emphasis on how the idea of beauty impacts culture, male behaviour  and violence. It reported that, Approximately 85,000 women are raped on average in England and Wales every year, Over 400,000 women are sexually assaulted each year, 1 in 5 women (aged 16 - 59) has experienced some form of sexual violence since the age of 16. (http://www.rapecrisis.org.uk/Statistics2.php). Advertising today plays a huge role in the manipulation of the media as a whole, Our culture cultivates the stereotypes of women often as sex objects and men usually as success objects. The link between violence and masculinity is often a focus point within advertising, and it is often emphasised leading to an increased belief that men should be competitive, strong and sex orientated, as well as violent. Although these specific qualities in men are not intentionally created to exploit and degrade women, research has shown a direct link with sexualised violence. J.Killbourne. Kaufman suggests that the substitution of violence for desire is a predominant aspect of the construction of masculinity, As a result of this women are judged and also judge themselves against the standards in which advertising and the media create for them.  Benokraitis and Feagin suggest that 'advertising often connects sexuality with aggression or violence against women' , while N.Wolf discusses “beauty sadomasochism”—the prevalence of violence and sex in many ads. 'In spite of the inferior role which men assign to them, women are the privileged objects of their aggression,” Simone de Beauvoir  and“glorification of violence against women” (Ford and LaTour 1993, p. 43 Ford, John B. and Michael S. LaTour (1993), “Differing Reactions to Female Role Portrayals in Advertising,” Journal of Advertising Research, September/October, 43-52

In societies all over the world Women and their bodies are seen as the property of men, prior to women gaining the right to vote, they were believed to be second class citizens, once the vote was won, women posed a social economic and political threat to the superiority of men. The ideal image of women was and still is created by men through certain mediums such as pornography, it is simplistic in approach. 'Dream Girls' By Kurtz looks at women in advertising from a historical perspective. The article discusses the various “roles” women have played in advertising, and argues that there have been a number of roles which women have played in advertising throughout time. They include: the superwoman (a multifaceted machine who nurtures and seduces without pause, the independent woman, the love tutor, the sex kitten (who transfers eroticism to the product) and the homemaker (who is queen of the domestic sphere). Kurtz, J. (1997). “Dream girls: women in advertising - advertising history.” USA Today. n. page. All of these different roles are appealing to men, as many men routinely paying to see women disrobe, but still at some pointing wanting to settle down. James Montogomnery Flagg in 1932 wrote 'Every man likes to think his prize package in a virgin wrapped in cellophane  direct from makers to consumers, untouched by human hand'. This view of women has continued through to modern day advertising, where these stereotypes of women have been combined together to make the ideal women, who is in fact 'Sensual yet free of shame'. 

There are hundreds of advertisements which glorify violence against women, there seems to have been a shift from 'Sex sells' to something far more extreme. For example his advertisement by Relish an Italian fashion brand , which pictures Rio de Janeiro police officers groping two models, shows violent and unacceptable behaviour. The men in the image are in control due to the fact they have authority over the women, both women seemed to be struggling  which suggest they are being touched or held against their will, this kind of advertising again normalises abusive behaviour amongst men, and makes women believe that it is normal to be treated this way.  

Specifically looking at this idea of objectifying women in relation to power, Naomi Wolf argues that advertising and other media forms around us tend to make women devalue themselves, which therefore keeps them in a lower status than men. 

“There is no legitimate historical or biological justification for the beauty myth; what it is doing to women today is a result of nothing more exalted than the need of today’s power structure, economy, and culture to mount a counteroffensive against women...The beauty myth is not about women at all. It is about men’s institutions and institutional power” (Wolf, 2002, Pg 1955)

 Meaning that  it is in fact the impact which advertising has upon women's opinions of themselves which maintaining patriarchal divide in society today.  To many a product is something which is desired or in demand, something which can be purchased or gained. At first glance of a product there is no moral issues, however when the product includes the human body things begin to become ethically uncomfortable. We live in a time when advertising dominates society and plays a huge role in the media as a whole, it is therefore relevant to question wether Advertising and the idea of "Sex Sells' has a direct impact on gender inequality and violence. There are many theorist which have looked into the reasons why women are objectified and made into something which can be commodified, role portrayal and the representation of women are two of the many contributions. However would argue that women in advertising are often presented as passive and rarely make any important decisions, in turn this often means they play the role of carer of helper and this can lead to victimhood (Kurtz, 1997)

Some would argue that many women today feel confused about how they are expected to act, many women have grown up watching these famous advertising campaigns and due to the ever-changing ideas and themes within them women are filled with mixed messages about how to be. They are a combination of personalities and take on multiple roles within society. "In a variety of ways the mass media helped make us the cultural schizophrenics we are today, women who rebel against yet submit to prevailing images about what a desirable, worthwhile woman should be...the mass media has engendered in many women a kind of cultural identity crisis...We are ambivalent toward femininity on the one hand and...feminism in the other" Susan Douglas (1984) Where The Girls Are    

"American women today are a bundle of contradictions because the media imagery we grew up with was itself filled with mixed messages about what women should and should not do, what women could and could not do" Susan Douglas (1984) Where The Girls Are, 

 Sexual violence within advertising doesn't stop at women however, within many adverts today the male is the victim, such as this Dolce and Gabbana Campaign. The sexualisation of the body is objectified and is often disguise as innuendo, humour, or artistic expression. 

Advertising corrupts relationships and then offers us products, both as solace and as substitutes for the intimate human connection we all long for and need 'Most of us know by now that advertising often turns people into objects. Women’s bodies, and men’s bodies too these days, are dismembered, packaged, and used to sell everything from chain saws to chewing gum. But many people do not fully realise that there are terrible consequences when people become things. Self-image is deeply affected. The self-esteem of girls plummets as they reach adolescence partly because they cannot possibly escape the message that their bodies are objects, and imperfect objects at that'  (Hinshaw and Kranz, 2009pg.124)

This advertisement shows controversially the dynamics of dominance and submission. The original idea behind the campaign was to show the audience that by buying into these products you will feel dominant and powerful,  however it shows a divide in gender. It suggests that the dominating figure will always be the more masculine figure, as shown in both the image of the female and the image of a gay man being looked at by other men.  A second Advertisement by Dolce and Gabbana shows violence towards women in the same violent manner,  the image  features four dressed men standing and crouching over a restrained woman, she looks to be struggling as her lower body seems to be trying to push away from the male figure. This image is similar to the previous in the sense that the victim is dominated by a group of Men, in a certain way both of these advertisements glamourise gang rape, encourage violence and adding to the numbers of victims. The difference between them is  within this image, all of the mens faces can be seen, which almost shows that they are not ashamed to be acting they way they are. However in the previous image you cant see all of their faces, this could be due to the fact that they are ashamed, and trapped in roles created by the media, this could link to the outdated view that 'gay sex is a taboo'.  

"Advertising is one powerful force that keeps us trapped in very rigid roles and in very crippling definitions of masculinity and femininity. We need to get involved in whatever way moves us; to change not just the ads but these attitudes that run so deep in our culture and that affect each one of us so deeply; whether we're conscious of it or not." - Jean Kilbourne. Killing us softly 4

“At the same time that we allow our children to be sexualised, we refuse to educate them about sex. The United States is the only developed nation in the world that doesnʼt teach sex education in the schools. And our children pay a very high price – we have the highest rates of teen pregnancy and the highest rates of sexually transmitted illnesses by far in the developed world.” Killbourne, Killing us softly 4 

  This Egyptian advert (http://thesocietypages.org) to help prevent sexual abuse almost blames the victim,  “You can’t stop them, but you can protect yourself" is the tagline,  The lollipop wrapper  which could represent conservative clothing is removed in the second part of the advertising suggesting that women ask to be abused by dressing 'inappropriately' and the advert mocks women in the sense that flies (representing men) flock towards them if they decide to dress any other way. 

 Women are often portrayed as victims of sexual violence and abuse in an erotic way, this suggests that it is almost acceptable to be violent to women, or that women should accept being abused like in this  Egyptian advertisement.  In a broader perspective, the influence is much more damaging. There has been  much research to suggest that when women attain more influence and take a greater role in society, which suggest a correspondence between pornography becoming more extreme, advertising using more violent images and passive females. It is therefore justified to say that there is a direct link between Violent advertising and violence towards women, the way advertising objectifies the female body and often the male body,  it normalises this kind of behaviour  making it more acceptable to treat it as an object with no sense or emotion. Dehumanising a person has dangerous results and this is when violence occurs. This type of advertising is becoming ever more popular as Advertising agencies are aware that in todays society sex will sell nearly any product. ' 

The publics fascination with sex,  and the advertising and Graphic designers acceptance of it as a potent tool, have fed each other for the run of the twentieth century  But society has always been divided on the lengths in which sexuality can and should be used to sell, if at all.' (J. Sivulka, 2012,  Soap, Sex and Cigarettes, A cultural history of american advertising, Second Edition.)

Main Body// Part 4 Impact on society 

This chapter will explore in detail the effect advertising has on society focusing specifically on Women, J Killbourne and Wilson & Edredge both look at the repercussions of women being objectified in the media, and their studies show how dangerous this can be.  It is unfair to say that advertising only has a negative impact on society, as there are many advertisements such as those which encourage health screening or those which encourage people to give blood, there are many health benefits of advertising and these can only have positive effects on society. However  when it comes to the impact advertising for fashion or cosmetics has, it is a different story, women see other women in different forms of advertising such as magazines and film and they try to make themselves look like the women in the advertisements, however many of these women, don't even look like that themselves  It takes hours of photoshop to make the models in these advertisements look this way, skin is freed from all blemishes, limbs are lengthened and waists are made smaller, meaning that the type of women who is seen as a role model is not even real. This creates a false ideal for women in society, as they try to achieve a look which is unachievable. This kind of reaction to this particular advertisement and the pressure surrounding it can cause a number of problems for young girls and women, such as Anorexia, bulimia, sexual disfunction and depression. 'According to the sociocultural model of bulimia, eating disorders are a product of the increasing pressure for women in our society to achieve an ultra slender body (Wilson & Eldridge, 1992. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, vol. 13.) 

'Sociocultural factors are thought to play a central role in the promotion and maintenance of eating disorders. These sociolcultural pressure include the ultra slender ideal body image ( or think-Ideal) espoused for women in western cultures, the centrality of appearance for women's societal success'  (Stice, in press; Striegel-Moore, Silberstein, & Rodin, 1986). 

"Men defend their scrutiny of women in terms of the aesthetic appeal of women. But this so-called aesthetic appreciation of women is nothing less that a decided preference for a 'distances' view of the female body."

"Perhaps, this 'sex-at-a-distance' is the only complete secure relation which men can have with women. Perhaps other forms of contact are too unsettling." Coward, R ., 'The Look' Pages (33-39)

This means that there is effects of anxiety in both men and women and the expectation of men to be dominant is too much and this creates anxiety for everyone including the male population. The amount of importance placed on women beingiing beautiful has taken over advertising, nearly all women within these advertisements are Caucasian, with light hair and green or blue  as many women go to great lengths to manipulate and change their faces and bodies. Even those women with darker features, hair, eyes or skin often try to achieve the look of a Caucasian women, this is done by bleaching skin, dying hair and often light contacts are worn, although their appearance in general within advertising is rare.  Almost every perfume advert showing some part of the female body in a sexual manner. Actresses are becoming thinner, according to an online study 'Twenty years ago, the average model weighed 8 percent less than the average women, but today's models weigh 23 percent less'. This shows a drastic change in the way advertising portrays women, as women get smaller in size there is no evidence to suggest that the industry is unaware of this “The first thing the advertisers do is surround us with the image of ideal female beauty, so we all learn how important it is for a woman to be beautiful, and exactly what it takes. ( Killbourne, 2010 ) She would argue that it is within advertisings nature to make women feel this way, the more a women is effected by advertising the more successful it is as a campaign.  Nearly every fashion magazine for women will somewhere on the cover include a message about weight loss, exercise, diet or sugary, another way in which women can feel like their own bodies are not good enough, and therefore need to be changed. 

“Females have long been categorised as either virgins or whores, of course. Whatʼs new is that girls are supposed to embody both within themselves, and that even very little girls are encouraged to look sexy long before they have any real understanding of what that really means. This creates an impossible double bind. In the same way that the girdles and the corsets of the past have been replaced by an internalized standard even more suffocating, so the sexual repression of the past has been replaced by something in some ways even more demanding and constricting.” (Killbourne 2010) Killing us softly 4

This Overt kind of message again normalises the idea that the body needs to be perfect, women can easily access sugary such as breast enlargement and other forms on the NHS, or will go about it privately,  Women in general are willing to spend a lot of money to achieve the 'right look'.  When looking a specific cases where underweight models are used in advertising to sell products Abercrombie and Fitch are a prime example, they use tall skinny blonde models within their advertising, There is rarely any models of mixed race or any race other than Caucasian, when looking at a Abercrombie & Fitch Catalogue or website, there will be a long haired half naked white women, who is most likely to be a size zero. When entering the store there will also be  greeting by a similar looking model,  'Abercrombie and Fitch executives continued to demand white employers until 16th November 2004 when the U.S District Court Ordered a settlement to a class action discrimination suit initiated by African Americans , Asian Americans and Latino Women applicants and Employees' (http://www.naacpldf.org/case-issue/abercrombie-fitch-employment-discrimination). It was found that minorities were not allowed to work on the floor in shops but were in fact allowed to work in the storerooms out of sight of customers, The Caucasian Models working on the floor were only allowed to wear clothing from the shop and were in fact paid more according to how closely they looked like they had the 'Abercrombie & Fitch Look' 

“On the deepest level, the obsession with thinness is about cutting girls down to size. Now one could say this more vividly than this relatively new size in womenʼs clothing, size 0 and size 00. Imagine a man going into a clothing store and asking for anything in a size zero, but our girls are taught to aspire to become nothing.” j.Killbourne 

The media also has a huge impact on attitudes towards sex, especially in young girls. Advertising approaches sex in a pornographic way, it dehumanises people and turns them in to objects with no personality or individuality. As mentioned previously in part 3, there has been a change in how society sees women in advertising, there is in fact a 'New Woman' who is similar to that of superwomen, she is efficient in housework and in her paid job,  or often portrayed as an independent women who owes her freedom to the product which she uses e.g. hoovers, dishwashers etc. Killbourne would argue that this 'new woman" shows no sign of progress but in fact creates a 'Myth of Progress, an Illusion that reduces complex sociopolitical problems to mundane personal ones. This could also be linked to the idea of the tripe shift, this refers to a woman working three jobs, one is to take care of the children, the second is to do housework and the last is to work a paid job, Dunscombe and Marsden concluded that women undertook most of the emotional work required to hold a relationship together, in addition to the majority of the household chores. Many of these women also worked in the labour market which added up to the equivalent of three jobs, or a ‘triple shift'. The progress which women have made in the past century linking to women's rights and the vote, are not reflected in advertising. The female is either seen as a loving mother / house wife or in a more sultry seductive manner, there is no in between. 

This constant scrutiny of women has led to a huge boom in the beauty industry 'as the unconscious hallucination grows ever more influential and persuasive because of what is now conscious market manipulation: powerful industries - the $33 billion- a-year diet industry. the $20-billion cosmetic industry, the $300 million cosmetic surgery industry and the $7- billion pornography industry - have arisen from the capital made out of unconscious anxieties and are in turn able, through their influence on mass culture, to use, stimulate and reinforce the hallucination in a rising economic spiral (N. Wolf The beauty man). It has been suggested before that female vanity is the reason why these big businesses  are booming, Freud once suggested that women are 'more narcissistic' with self obsessed qualities However R. Coward contradicts this with his quote 'Advertisements, health and beauty advice,fashion tips are effective precisely because somewhere, perhaps even subconsciously, an anxiety, rather than a pleasurable identification, is awakened. we take an interest in criticism, yes. But these images do not give back a glow of self love... the faces that look back imply a criticism' (R, Coward) This once again implies that women are pressured to be perfect, they are not innately vein but are pushed into being this way be the media. this type of advertisement plays on modern day anxieties such as anorexia, bulimia and flawless skin, as well as hair colour and often race.  This suggests to women that in order to be happy they must has a strict beauty regime which will eventually rule their life. 

Conclusion 

To conclude, it is quite clear that the media has an undoubted influence over the way society views women. Advertising forces pre-concepted ideas into both the male and female viewer. All types of media, such as advertisements on TV, in magazines and billboards, all manipulate the public into the 'correct' way to act and behave, Dolce and Gabbana, Wonder bra and Tom ford advertisements have all been studies within this essay, all of which portray different images of women conforming to the rules which advertising create about the way women should act. 

Section one has explored how modern Advertising has a huge impact on society, wether it is used in a more traditional way or in a more modern way, advertising uses different methods to try to sell a product such as short films,  or other alternative ways. Writers such as John Berger and J. O’ Shaughnessy & N.J. O’Shaughnessy show that women are often portrayed unrealistically within advertising, they become something which is unachievable and therefore makes it difficult for other women in society to be accepted for anything other than this ideal image. 

Theories of the gaze were looked at in detail within chapter two,  it is very important when looking at the way the female body is used in advertising and the effect in which it has on women and young girls,. The media today has a very big influence over society, it constantly shows images of male and women acting in ways which encourages sexual behaviour and forcing ideas about the way women should look and feel about themselves. Gaze theory proves how negative using female body in advertising is and how it  does dramatically effect the way women are portrayed and treated in the media, and the fore in society. Writers such as Coward,  Sweeney, D., & Wagner, S.  all write about how objectification of women in the society leads to negative consequences.

Within Chapter three there is a huge emphasis on why women are portrayed as victims of violence within advertising, as within many campaigns this is projected in an erotic sense. This can be very damaging to women, violence is often glamourised and therefore it almost allows this kind of behaviour to become acceptable, for both the man to act violently and the women to act submissively towards it. This type of advertising is become ever more popular as advertising agencies know that sex will sell a product, however it could be argued that the link between violence pornography and advertising is a strong one, and one which is highly influential, especially for those in their teens. 

Within the area of advertising consumers are exposed to products which they are made to believe are necessities, women are made to believe that in order to be accepted they must be beautiful and flawless, when actually this is unrealistic, Writers such as Jean Killbourne, John Berger and R. Coward all argue that this ideal women is often created by men for men, Feminists would argue that this type of divide keeps Patriarchal society and advertising does not show the progression of women within society at all. Resulting in a twisted view of women, where they are objectified and often viewed as nothing more than sex objects. This leading to problems such as domestic violence, rape, eating disorders, body anxiety, sexual disfuction and many more. Theorists such as Kurz, Douglas and Wolf looked into this mapct which advertisements have on women and found that most women are affected in some way or another by them, But what do people, especially teenagers, learn from the advertising messages? On the most obvious level they learn the stereotypes. Advertising creates a mythical, mostly white world in which people are rarely ugly, overweight, poor, struggling or disabled, either physically or mentally J.Killbourne. Overall it is Correct to say that advertising and everything surrounding it affects the way in which women view their own bodies and has a huge impact on self esteem and confidence. It also has a huge affect on the way men view women, so much so that the impact it has on men keeps women in a role which is controlled by men and cannot easily be broken free from. 

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