Advertisements are a capital part of our lives. Anywhere we look, we see an ad for a
product or service. They affect our decisions on purchasing an item. Therefore, we have to be critical in seeing, interpreting, and analyzing commercial discourse to make suitable choices for ourselves. As a woman, I analyze commercials in a gender-sensitive way since commercial businesses apt to represent gender stereotypically. Over the years, many studies have been conducted in analyzing gender representations in advertisements. The unanimity of these
studies was that there are an unequal portrayal and gender bias in commercials (Bartsch et al.,
2000). Also, Bartsch et al., (2000) state that while advertising domestic and non-domestic
products, the former includes female representatives while the latter has a larger use of male product representatives. That’s why in this essay I would like to do a multimodal analysis on an American Airlines ad from the 70s that advertises a nondomestic product that targets men.
Also, regarding the year it’s advertised, and the similarity made to “mother” instead of “father”,
this ad highly targets men.
When you look at the ad, the first thing you notice is a beautiful woman in a white dress with her makeup and her hair done. If you don’t read what’s written on the ad and analyze her brooch closely, you might probably think that it’s a photograph from the Vogue shoot. She is positioned unconventionally on the chair, having leaned her chin on her hand as if she is tired.
A smiling, cheerful face doesn’t exist, just like a fashion model in a magazine. The second you realize it’s an airline ad this “beautification” seems unnecessary and even disturbing regarding the addresser of the ad. Though it’s expected to show a woman in service, a stewardess as a
beautiful, almost sexually attractive, emotionless, and stagnant woman. Since the target is a
man, portraying a desirable woman in looks and aspects of a mother/server was seen as suitable.
Kumar (2017) argues whether it would be “ethically correct to demean women and position them as sexual objects” since it’s considerably high in commercial business. I reckon it demeans and objectifies women rather than empowering them. If the product is the quality of the service
of American Airlines, then why is a flight attendant not holding a tray in a plane handing in the
beverages to passengers?
After seeing the photograph, the ad has a striking statement which is the declarative mood of grammar. In a way “Think of her as your mother” commands prospective passengers in an imperative mood. It evokes an internal experience in the reader. Other than establishing an addresser-addressee exchange, this statement has a relational process which later explained in the text, classifies women and services they give by expressing and establishing an identity.
The identity that classifies women as caring mothers and servers. Even a stewardess is expected to look up to certain standards that are not only related to her job but also women’s role in society. Mental and verbal processes are also involved in defining “the mother” role of women in the text. After services provided by the mother and the stewardess are paralleled, a social myth is presented: maternal instinct. It’s still a question of debate whether a woman has maternal instincts. Reed (1923) cites Thorndike’s words “all women possess from early
childhood to death some interest in human babies ... series of situations and responses constitute
the maternal instinct in its most typical form.” Though Reed (1923) says “so-called maternal
love is the pressure brought to bear by society through the conventional attitude with respect to
the emotion that should be manifested toward the child.” Even in the 1920s society’s expectations from mothers could be seen. Bartlett (1995) states that motherhood continues to be seen as a woman’s highest achievement. Society’s pressure and expectations of women never end. They are rated, measured, and as it says in the ad: trained.
We won’t be stretching the argument if we say the product in this ad is the woman and
the features she needs to possess. In addition to that, she is objectified physically by using her beauty. “Training in service, not just a beauty course” almost puts forward the idea that beauty is expected (which is also standardized as having a slim and symmetrical body and face).
However extra skills are also needed to accompany the “American way” and “professional treatment”. Society has been seeking certain body and beauty standards from women throughout the years. And when women are being allowed to work in certain appropriate jobs
-stewardess being one of them- here again, they are put under pressure to be liked by mostly men and to serve them. It is not an object of ridicule that women are affected severely. Studies have found that female college students compare their physical attractiveness with that of models in advertisements (James & Gentry, 1997; Richins, 1991; Martin & Kennedy, 1993).
Furthermore, the ad has the third-person singular “she”. The agent, doer of the action is the stewardess though somebody else is representing her. I’m not sure whether she is quite happy and thrilled to be serving. Then the pronoun turns to “we” to create a sense of unity within the company. However, we know the service advertised is not done by the company but by the stewardess’. So the company makes sure that every passenger gets the same treatment with a quality check. The woman’s sense of self is also diminished by resembling her to someone’s mother. She has to be like “his mother”. Also, the theme starts in the beginning with a
statement and the rheme is developed throughout the text. This coherent and cohesive text is almost like modern poetry both in shape and utterance.
Overall this ad attributes specific societal roles, positions, and portrays them in a certain beauty standard. Even at the first glance, a lot of problematic futures that should never flourish are seen. Bartsch et al., (2000) in their study found out that male voice-overs are more prevalent than female voiceovers. And I think if this ad is voiced, a female voice wouldn’t be the one that
would be heard.
References
- 26 Sexist Ads Of The Mad Men Era - Business Insider. (n.d.). Retrieved January 16, 2021, from https://www.businessinsider.com/26-sexist-ads-of-the-mad-men-era-2014-5#1973- its-a-wifesaver-25
- Bartlett, J. (1995). Will you be mother?: Women who choose to say no. https://www.google.com/bookshl=tr&lr=&id=Zn8UCgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=Will+You+Be+Mother%3F:+Women+Who+Choose+to+Say+No+Yazar:+Jane+Bartlett&ots=766o8nQKAb&sig=i88qciKyDVqxIkObOqjP6yBdrzo Bartsch, R. A., Burnett, T., Diller, T. R., & Rankin-Williams, E. (2000). Gender representation in television commercials: Updating an update. Sex Roles, 43(9–10), 735–743.https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007112826569
- Kumar, S. (2017). Representation of Women in Advertisements. In International Journal of Advanced Scientific Technologies in Engineering and Management Sciences (Issue 1). www.ijastems.org
- Martin, M. C., & Kennedy, P. F. (1993). Advertising and social comparison: Consequences for female preadolescents and adolescents. Psychology & Marketing, 10(6), 513–530. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.4220100605
- Reed, R. (1923). Changing conceptions of the maternal instinct. Journal of Abnormal Psychology and Social Psychology, 18(1), 78–87. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0068452
- Richins, M. L. (1991). Social Comparison and the Idealized Images of Advertising. Article in Journal of Consumer Research. https://doi.org/10.1086/209242
Yorumlar
Yorum Gönder