The Non-Changing Gender Roles

I don't think advertising has changed. Gender stereotypes are present in so many ads, and although the denotation of some ads doesn't always seem as strong as ads from the past, the connotation of the ads are extremely bold and suggestive. When both a man and a woman are present in an ad the woman is assigned the position subordinate to the man. The men are always given more power and sometimes a higher status than the woman. I think that ads like these have become more aggressive than ads in the past.


This ad for Sky Vodka is extremely suggestive! There is a woman laying out sun bathing, in a really revealing swim suit. She was obviously disturbed since she just recently took of her shades. Standing above her is a man fully dressed in a nice suit. He is not standing beside her, but directly over her. It is as if he came to this position without the woman's consent or even knowledge that he was there. He is in a dominating position where she has to look up at him. I think the fact that the man's face is not in the ad shares that he is confident, and it almost says that it doesn't even matter what you look like; 'If you have sky vodka you are like a glamorous man in a nice suit and can grab any woman you want'


This ad is simply advertising Valentino Clothing. I find the idea of the man having such a tight grasp around the woman's neck to be completely useless in selling the clothing.The woman has blonde hair. Blond hair, as many woman have in ads commonly represents innocence, purity, or femininity. The man, who is taller, has dark hair which in most cases is dominant and shows some type of authority. The couple is wearing sun glasses, so despite the height difference and color of hair/attire, we as an audience would see them pretty much as equals. What makes this ad so stereotypical is the fact that the man has a a tight grip on the woman's neck, and she seems to be totally submissive towards it. This ad is telling society that men are dominant in relationships and that woman should openly accept it. The ad suggests that woman should be compliant with anything the man wishes to do. Woman should allow men complete control.



These two ads are what I think advertising has done to try and stop gender stereotyping. I don't think they are ethically effective in undoing stereotypes. These two ads the gender roles are reversed. In the ZU ad the woman is more dominant than the men. Although the woman is now the subject of dominance the subordinate subject is highly exaggerated. It is not only one man that is subordinate to her, but tons of men. Men are piled on top of each other leaving a trail following closely behind the woman. ZU is a brand of shoes, so the men symbolize the trail of destruction. This, like most a lot of imagery in ads, has nothing to do with the shoes. By putting the woman in the position of power the advertisers are selling the idea of power along with the shoes. In the Doritos commercial, gender roles are reversed but again exaggerated. The ad creators go against the roles society has placed and has a man playing dress up with the little girl. When the group of men enter the shot they are dressed in their own clothes ready to play football. They look like a manly group of men, one of them even has a long beard. The next shot after they see that the little girl has Doritos they are dressed in long pink puffy dresses with boas and veils. The also have an abundance of make up on their face. It is an extreme exaggeration of what girls do in society.
Advertising has come a little way since the past, but gender stereotyping is still present. It is difficult to fully erase suggestions of gender roles in advertisements. It is not impossible, but it is difficult to stray away from the idea of gender roles, especially when society contributes to them so much.

Extreme Makeover:Rose Petal Cottage Edition

Rose Petal Cottage has an extremely gender stereotypical message. The basic message is that girls should grow up and become stay at home mothers and home keepers. This is not the case. In today's society there aren't any lawful restrictions that can keep a woman from pursuing any career she desires. To get rid of the racial stereotypes in this play cottage, it needs to undergo a few changes!
Title: My Own Play Home
The first scene is the front view of a play house. It is set in a large backyard right next to a growing tree. It's colors are similar to the colors of a real house, but are a lot more vibrant, to appeal to young kids. The walls of the house are a bright tan, the doors a nice cool blue, and the roof of the house is red. On the outside of the house there is a little green gardening area.
A song sung by a little girl begins:
In my Own Play Home I wake up to start my day!
Open up the doors and brush my teeth then wait
for my friends to come and play!
While this is going on she opens up her play house and pretends to brush her teeth in vanity sink. The sink and mirror are the color orange. The little girl is not fixing her hair or applying make up. She is simply brushing her teeth. When she is quickly finished, three more young kids run in from out of the shot. One girl, and two boys, all smiling and excited to play with each other. In the play house they sit around a table each with giant Go-fish cards.
The song continues, this time a little boy sings:
I love playing with my friends it's so much fun
playing lots of games including everyone The kids are then shown in the kitchen area of the play house. It has a yellow fridge, a round table with a red and white checkered table cloth. One boy is removing a pizza from the oven, one girl is pouring some lemonade into cups. The other two kids are setting plates down on the table.
The song continues sung by a little girl.
When we get hungry and want something to eat
Making lunch with my friends is such a treat!
After the kids are shown enjoying their meals they then move to the outside of the play house. One of the boys is watering the garden, one girl is walking a pretend dog. The other little boy is raking fake leaves with a rake that matches the blue color of the house's door and the other little girl is holding a bag for the boy to rake the leaves into.
The boy continues the song.
After lunch we go and play outdoors
We like to get fresh air, while doing some chores
The kids all help to push the play house closed, then the three kids wave goodbye to the original girl and skip off screen. The sun starts to set and the original girl, in her play home smiles and waves to the camera then closes her green colored window. The song Finally ends sung by the girl.
I can't wait for a brand new day
When my friends all come back to play play play
In my Own Play Home!