Pollay's Argument Analysis

Advertising is a primary socializing agent in society. Pollay views this to have profound, negative consequences due to its stereotypical portrayals, ideological representations of consumerism and materialism as well as its manipulative and persuasive nature (Yeshin 18). While there is some validity in Pollay’s argument, it is particularly one-sided. He does not recognize the favourable effects of advertising such as its role in raising awareness about social issues and reinforcement of positive ideologies and fails to take into account that the way the viewer decodes the message as well as their response to that message shapes the potential effects that advertising has.

Pollay critiqued advertising for “simplifying real human situations

into stereotypes” (899). While these were predominantly gendered they also portrayed stereotypes of race, age, occupations, and family relations. Stereotypes “map out the boundaries of acceptable and legitimate behaviour, insisting on boundaries when in reality there are none” (Dyer 16). Pollay argues that by portraying these within advertisements they are reinforcing these stereotypes within society and normalising structural inequalities, particularly due to the pervasiveness of advertisements and their correlated role as a socialising agent. This is particularly evident throughout the portrayal of gender roles in children’s toy commercials where girls are sold dolls and miniature household products whereas boys are sold toy guns and cars teaching children from a young age what their place is in society and what it means to be masculine or feminine. While much of the scholarship on stereotypical advertisements is dated, it is still the case that entire industries such as the fashion industry are based on the “assumption that men and women will continue behaving according to stereotypes and so the commercials they produce act to reinforce them,” socializing children accordingly.
Alternatively, rather than reinforcing inequalities and social roles, stereotypes can be used within advertisements to raise awareness of social issues. An example of this is the 2014 ‘Like a Girl’ campaign by the company ‘Always’. In this, two different groups were asked what it meant to do particular things “like a girl.” The first group, predominantly made up of teenagers, portrayed the stereotypical idea of what that might entail such as girls being weak. The second group, made up of young children, portrayed these things normally, without the stereotype. Campaigns such as these use stereotypes in order to highlight inequalities in society and shed light on preconceived ideas such as women being less competent or inferior to men. While gender stereotypes are present in modern advertisements, their effects are not inherently negative as Pollay discusses, but can also be advantageous. The effect of stereotypes in advertising is therefore determined by the way the stereotype is portrayed.