Stereotypes of Men in Advertisements

2024 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Advertising and gender

Stereotypes of Men in Advertisements

Visual representation of reality, as seen through mass media, is acknowledged by sociologists to be influential in shaping people's views of the world. Our everyday realities are articulated mostly by what we see in the media. The role of advertising in this interpretation of reality is crucial. The target audience's self-identification with the images being a basic prerequisite for an advertisement's effectiveness, makes advertising one of the most important factors in the building of behavior models and values systems. The way a certain notion is managed at a visual level determines how people will perceive this notion and whether they will identify with it or not. Meaning is encoded in the structure of the images, which thus become potent cultural symbols for human behavior. The framing and composition of the image, the setting, the symbolic attributes and every other element in its structure, all are engaged in the effective presentation of the underlying notion.

What do images of the male body in advertising reveal about the notion of masculinity today? What is today's model man? Is there consistency in the visual representation of masculinity or are there competing images of it?

In this study I will do a content analysis of the portrayal of men in 20 magazine advertisements. 5 ads were taken from "Maxim," a men's magazine targeted at 20 to 30 something males. 4 were taken from "Men's Journal, a men's magazine targeted at men from 30 to retirement age. 5 were looked at from Harper's "Bazaar," a women's magazine targeted at adult women. 4 were taken from "Allure," a women's magazine targeted at women in their 20's and 30's, and two were taken from "Entertainment Weekly," an entertainme...

... middle of paper ...

...to a woman.

Bibliography:

Works Cited

Fejes F(1992) Masculinity as fact :A review of empirical mass communication research on masculinity, S Craig (ed), Men, masculinity and the media Newbury Park 9-22

Saco D (1992) Masculinity as signs: Post-structuralist feminist approaches to the study of gender S Craig (ed) Men, masculinity and the media Newbury Park 22-39

Wernick A. (1987) From Voyer to Narcissist: Imaging men in contemporary advertising, Toronto University Press 277-279

Foucault M The history of sexuality ,volume 2 , Pantheon(1978)

Foucault M Discipline and punish . Penguin books

Kimmel, M. (1987) (editor) Changing Men: New Directions in Research on Men and Masculinity. London: Sage.

Millum, T. (1975) Images of Women: Advertising in Women's Magazines. London: Chatto.

Morgan, D. (1992) Discovering Men. London

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Tough Guise

    1161 Words  | 3 Pages

    The movie, Tough Guise: Violence, Media and the Crisis in Masculinity produced by Jackson Katz and Jeremy Earp, deconstructs the concepts that create the social constructs of masculinity. Masculinity, a set of behaviors, roles, and attributes correlating to men, is earned, not given (Conley 190). Starting from television shows to children’s toys, the idea of masculinity has infiltrated their minds starting at a young age. Moreover, the concept of masculinity has physical attributes, such as muscles, a deep voice, and be able to protect themselves. Masculinity, for boys of any races, socioeconomic classes, or ethnicity, has grown up with the same stereotypical image of what a man should entail. Since many media outlets show that a form of masculinity

    Read More

  • The Use Of Masculinity In Michael Kimmel's Guyland

    1728 Words  | 4 Pages

    Whatever we see in movies, television, video games, or any other source of entertainment, there will always be a male figure who symbolizes masculinity to the fullest extent. All that masculinity representing empowerment is what seems to appeal to men nowadays. In Michael Kimmel’s Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men the novel presents the irresistible desires that men seek in order to receive the approval of other men. An approval where men gain access to the concept of Guyland, where young men become masculine in order to fit in socially and to feel empowered. However, achieving absolute masculinity leans toward the use of violence that is presented in the media, presenting a message where violence is used for the purpose of

    Read More

  • Shotgun Lovesongs Analysis

    2003 Words  | 5 Pages

    The concept of masculinity is considered as the qualities and characteristics of a man, typical what is appropriate to a man. In this article, A Community Psychology of Men and Masculinity: Historical and Conceptual Review, The author Eric S. Mankowski and Kenneth I. Maton, analyze four main themes: "Men as gendered beings, the privilege and damage of being a masculine man, men as a privileged group, and men’s power and subjective powerlessness. The second and fourth themes are described as

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Bros Before Hos: The Guy Code

    1607 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Kimmel’s essay “’Bros Before Hos’: The Guy Code” he argues that the influence of society on masculinity is equal to or greater than biological influences on masculinity. In the essay, Kimmel uses various surveys and interviews to validate his argument. He points to peers, coaches, and family members as the people most likely to influence the development of a man’s masculinity. When a man has his manliness questioned, he immediately makes the decision never to say or do whatever caused him to be called a wimp, or unmanly. Kimmel’s argument is somewhat effective because the readers get firsthand accounts from the interviewees but the author does not provide any statistics to support his argument.

    Read More

  • Masculinity In Fast Food Advertising Essay

    1087 Words  | 3 Pages

    Professors Carrie Packwood and Debra Merskin, authors of the essay “Having It His Way: The Construction of Masculinity in Fast-Food Advertising”, repudiate the stereotypical macho behaviors that are used in several commercials to build a reputation for men while women are used as objects. Media use this stereotype to sell nearly every product; being fast food, beer, and cars on top of the list. Furthermore, Packwood and Merskin claim that advertisement present men, compared to women, as superior individuals with total freedom who see women as prizes. The perfect macho type is a strong resource to sell beer; the Tui beer commercial “Temptations can be dangerous, stay focused” applied this stereotype, where men are on the spotlight and women

    Read More

  • Hegemonic Masculinity in American Society

    1499 Words  | 3 Pages

    ... E Glenn, and Nancy B Sherrod. The psychology of men and masculinity:Research status and future directions. New York: John Wiley and sons, 2001.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Feminist Studies Of Men

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    Masculinity is a subject that has been debated in our society for quite some time. Many wonder what it means to be masculine, as it is difficult to define this one –sided term. Pairing this already controversial term with “feminist studies” can bring about some thought - provoking conversation. Feminist studies of men have been around for many years with regards to the feminist movement. It seeks to create gradual improvements to society through its main principle of modifying the ways in which everyone views what it means to be a man. Feminist studies of men bring forth the discussion of hegemonic masculinity; how this contributes to the gender hierarchy, the radicalized glass escalator and ultimately the faults of this theory.

    Read More

  • Gender Discrimination in Sports Media

    1867 Words  | 4 Pages

    Stets, Jan E., and Peter J. Burke. "Femininity/Masculinity." Encyclopedia of Sociology. New York: Macmillan, n.d. 1-21. Web. 8 Apr. 2014.

    Read More

  • Hegemonic Masculinity By Micheal Kimmel

    806 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the views of Micheal Kimmel “hegemonic masculinity” is a socially constructed process where men are pressured by social norms of masculine ideals to perform behaviors of a “true man” and its influence on young male’s growth. It is the ideology that being a man with power and expressing control over women is a dominant factor of being a biological male. The structure of masculinity was developed within the 18th to 19th century, as men who owned property and provided for his family with strength related work environments was the perfect example of being a generic “American man.” Kimmel introduces Marketplace Manhood and its relation to American men. He states, “Marketplace Masculinity describes the normative definition of American masculinity.

    Read More

  • Hegemonic Femininity Essay

    1412 Words  | 3 Pages

    What is it that makes a man a man? Is it testes, firm handshakes, the ability grow facial hair, physical strength, and being sports-minded?Hegemonic masculinity can be defined as the social and cultural expectation of what a male should be and how their power and dominance is sustained over women. Aside from hegemonic femininity, this standard places the focus more on a patriarchal social order but does pertain some focus into what a man’s appearance should consist of (Connell,

    Read More

  • The Bro Code

    718 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Bro Code: How Contemporary Culture Creates Sexist Men. Dir. Thomas Keith. Media Education Foundation, 2011.

    Read More

  • Domestic Violence Essay with Annotated Bibliography

    1594 Words  | 4 Pages

    Tough Guise: Violence, Media, and the Crisis in Masculinity. Dir. Sut Jhally. Media Education Foundation, 1999.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Susan Bordo´s Beauty (Re)discovers the Male Body

    1623 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the essay “Beauty (Re)discovers the Male Body,” author and philosopher Susan Bordo discusses the history and current state of male representation in advertisements. While using her feminist background, Bordo compares and contrasts the aspects of how men and women are portrayed in the public eye. She claims that there has been a paradigm shift the media with the theory that not just women are being objectified in the public eye, but also men too. Since the mid-1970s, with the introduction of Calvin Klein commercials, men have started to become more dehumanized and regarded as sex symbols. In a similar fashion to how Bordo describes gender, race plays a similar role in the media. People of all different ethnicities and cultures are being categorized into an oversimplified and usually unfair image by the media over basic characteristics.

    Read More

  • The Portrayal of Women in Advertising

    2734 Words  | 6 Pages

    4) Kilbourne, Jean. Killing Us Softly 3: Advertising’s Image of Women. Dir. Sut Jhally. DVD. Media Education Foundation, 2000.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Garnier Fructis Advertise

    939 Words  | 2 Pages

    Curry and Clarke’s article believe in a strategy called “visual literacy” which develops women and men’s roles in advertisements (1983: 365). Advertisements are considered a part of mass media and communications, which influence an audience and impact society as a whole. Audiences quickly begin to rely on messages sent through advertisements and can create ideologies of women and men. These messages not only are extremely persuasive, but they additionally are effective in product consumption in the media (Curry and Clarke 1983:

    Read More

More about Stereotypes of Men in Advertisements

Open Document