Advertising

…Because if a man does anything remotely nice for a woman on Valentine’s Day like buy her flowers, don’t worry, she’ll be there to wait on his every want and need.

Using this particular ad as an example, it perpetuates the idea of patriarchy and enables men to use their idea of “manliness” to get what they want. This ad pushes the idea that a sexy, beautiful woman will spend the day pampering themselves to prepare for a night of “giving” and all they need to do is get her some flowers. What does this say about women but that they are easy and submissive. This ad may or may not reflect the opinion of the creator, but the creator is definitely capitalizing on this woman’s image to appeal to men and reinforce their superiority. This ad also clearly illustrates what Kimmel discusses in “Misframing Masculinity” – “And it is through media images that we come to know what that performance [manhood] is supposed to look like” (3).

Kilbourne discusses an important topic when it comes to advertising: their audience. The most targeted audience members are teenagers. It’s the time in their lives where they are more vulnerable to self-consciousness and they are learning and absorbing all the things they see in the media and from their friends. Since their friends are more or less exposed to the same kinds of advertisements, it’s no surprise that the ever-present patriarchal concept remains so pervasive in our society.

For example, I remember reading magazines like Seventeen and Glamour when I was in middle school and high school, and it was full of things that made me want to question everything about myself. There were ways to improve the way I dress, how to do my makeup, and quizzes about which kind of men I would attract based more on the color of my hair than my hobbies - which bothers me so much now that I think about it. 



While women have definitely made strides in society – women’s suffrage, breaking into “male” professions, etc. – it is still mystifying how women continue to perpetuate patriarchy and sexism! Like what Wolf discusses in “The Beauty Myth,” the role of these magazines easily illustrate women’s roles in relation to historical events of the time, but it can easily dictate what the role of women will be for years to come. When magazines are full of advertisements that tell women all the things they are doing wrong and how to make themselves more noticeable to men, there is clearly something that needs to be done. 


How do we re-define masculinity so that it doesn’t reinforce a patriarchal society? 


WE NIP IT IN THE BUD!
 

I think children are way smarter than we give them credit for. They perceive everything around them and absorb everything like a sponge. From young age, they grasp the values and morals presented to them. For both boys and girls, it is from bedtime stories and Saturday morning cartoons when they’re young to magazines and movies when they’re older that I think is the best way to debut the concept of feminist manhood. We can start to re-define masculinity by disbanding it from the holds of patriarchal domination starting at a young age (hooks 115). More stories need to be written where the princess saves the prince and more movies need to be made about a brotherhood of the traveling pants.

This approach may not be original, but I think it remains unique because little has been done to really make room for “feminist manhood” where masculinity entails the ability to connect in a relationship and allows for other emotions to be “acceptable” as opposed to anger/violence being the only “manly” emotion. What little progress is evident in the abundance of advertisement images that still exist today that pretty much undo what every feminist works so hard to prevent.


In an alternate non-patriarchal society…



…girls should not have to grow up wanting this:





Alternative: Scrap the excessive makeup and cosmetic alterations!
  The show should focus on actual talents and overall charisma of these little girls. Some may want to show off their Lego building skills rather than a frilly tutu dance.  



…and boys should not have to grow up to idealize this:




Alternative: Just add a “How to Connect with your Partner” headline and see if there’s really going to be an uproar for “threatening masculinity.” I highly doubt it.