Women in Beer Commercials
"The sexual exploitation of women in beer ads supports the misperception that women exist for men's pleasure alone; as well as, it creates a standard of beauty that is impossible for the average women to achieve, often resulting in feelings of inadequacy and blah, blah, blah, blah.""
My response: That is absolute baloney!
The media's use of attractive and even provocative women in beer ads is not an exploitation of women. Anyone with any depth or sense will realize this is an advertising tool and the target audience is men. The women are made up, airbrushed, placed under perfect lighting and surrounded by equally as attractive men. These women's profession is to look as attractive as possible, and it is obvious that not all women look this way. Furthermore, the men used in these commercials are just as attractive as the women, so if one was to take the position of "exploitation", it would have to be said that it is an exploitation of not only women, but the human race.
To take this one step deeper, we have to ask ourselves how effective of an advertising tool is this "sex sells" stance? Men may have a favorite beer commercial, and these types of commercials may promote a sense of camaraderie, but ultimately a man will base his beer choice on the taste, and the price.
I definitely think there are several reasons why sexy, physically appealing women in beer ads appeals to women as well as men. Firstly, the use of such women in these commercials indicates and even highlights the "power", women hold over men. The women in the commercials have all eyes on them, the men are wrapped around their little fingers. They are gifted with the ability to make a man sit, beg, or heel with a simple flick of the wrist. In a sense, even though these women may appear to be selling out, they are in command, portraying a message that women have power over men.
Secondly, all women thrive under attention. Let's face it, we all enjoy having our special someone listen to us, snuggle up with us, surprise us and buy is pretty presents, (aside from the deep, meaningful relationship part we all crave.) As much as the men love the chase of getting a woman's attention, the women also enjoy being pursued just as much. While it may appear that the man is the predator and the woman the prey, sometimes it is just the other way around, the woman reeling the man in without him even knowing.
Finally, every women likes to feel sexy, desired, adored and worshipped. These types of commercials relay the message that the women who drink this beer will achieve that feeling, and have the men chasing her. The advertisers want it to look like the women drinking this beer will be the belle of the bar, with all eyes on her, a powerful element that attracts some women to these commercials.
Published by Karen Lewis
I am a 19 year old student in Idaho, and I have been writing all my life. I am considering a major in English Composition, and my dream is to publish a novel, but I had better start small first! View profile
- Sexism in the MediaSexism can be found in all different types of media such as commercials, shows, movies, and ads. People of all ages are exposed and affected by this.
Special Effects and Faulty Logic in the Latest Anti-Marijuana PropagandaThe government can not explain its position on marijuana in a concise yet conclusive fact-based manner without contradicting other drug control policies. The ATI campaign is fr...- Sexual Exploitation of Women in the HolocaustThis article discusses the experiences women faced in concentration camps during the Holocaust. The sexual exploitation of both women and children is exposed and their unique experience is explored.
- Emotional Exploitation of Women: Professionally and Sociallybased on a Bartky article, thie essay explores the possible emotional exploitation of women in todayh's society, professionally and socially
- The History of Sexual Suppression and Exploitation of Women in PrisonA brief history of the sexual suppression and exploitation of women prisoners throughout history.
- Sexism and American Beer Culture
- How to Become a Better Husband Than Those Guys in Beer Commercials
- 5 Great Places to Meet Women in Shreveport, LA
- The Differences Between Men and Women
- Hip Fractures in Men: The Estrogen Implication
- Girls, Can We Talk About Men? What Men Want Women to Know
- Back in 60 Seconds
7 Comments
Post a Commentalthough i completely agree about the advertising aspects of "sex sells" and i also enjoy attractive people in my commercials regarless of gender but serioulsy the idea of being portrayed as "so powerful b/c i'm sexy and lucky to be the object of his affection when hes drinking" is kind of rediculous and it's been done a milllion times. Time for a change..Lets have the women as the "powerful" beer consumers and the men only there to pick up the tab!
(as in, ignores the fact that not all men like women, & sometimes women even like women!). No men to be found. The text itself has nothing to do with the actual qualities of Skol beer, the price, or the taste. In fact, I fail to see the point of the advertisement all together- other than SEX SELLS.
Bottom line: FAIL.
xxx
to buy Heineken on their own, when in fact they are subliminally influenced by the latest ad, commercial, song, music video. That's when you know the ad's been successful (again, by industry's definition). This is an industry that traffics in a LOT of money- if sex didn't sell, it wouldn't be used as pervasively as it is (& not just in beer ads). To even wonder how effective it is is DUMB. Sorry. Again, it's not a coincidence. It's extremely naive to assume that a powerful, affluent, & successful industry doesn't know exactly what it's doing. The industry does NOT exist to create "camaraderie." If men ultimately based their beer choices on taste & price, then once again- the advertising industry would NOT exist. It's not an entertainment industry. It's SALES. It's meant to influence.
Nice. It's good to know that as a woman, I am meant to appreciate advertisements that exploit my basic form because it implies a control over men-- a control, by the way, that is exploited to sell a fr
never gonna look attractive "enough" for this. Similarly, it's not "that not all women look this way"-- it's that NO women look this way, including the women used as a jumping point. As I said earlier, not even Cindy Crawford looks like Cindy Crawford on the cover.
When beer ads feature women more regularly than men, & when they feature parts of the female body more often than those of men (especially considering that all genders & sexes can & do enjoy beer)-- it says something pertinent about our culture. It's not coincidence.
The point of advertisement is to work unconsciously but effectively on its target audience. A good ad, as defined by the industry, is one that succeeds in capturing the revenue of its audience-- without its audience feeling like it was influenced by the advertisement. I can't find the quote at the moment but I know I've read that basic sentiment expressed by an advertisement exec. The target audience of men is meant to feel as though they made the choice
undermines any depth or sense the author may harbor. Sorry. When women are reduced to THINGS-- specifically, advertising TOOLS-- not human beings, it counts as exploitation. Women's bodies are being used- exploited- to sell a PRODUCT to the target audience of men. Does that not illustrate the reality of 1) women being dehumanized, for the mere purpose of selling a product; & 2) women being presented as though always available for male consumption? Turn on the television & watch a few commercials. Flip through a magazine next time you're waiting in line at the store. We're so accessible that we're used to sell everything from alcohol to fast food burgers.
It's also ignorant to state that it's these women's profession to look as attractive as possible, especially after she herself wrote that these "women are made up, airbrushed." With the right program, you can re-do any woman. It's NOT their profession to look attractive- that's what Photoshop is for. A real, flesh & blood woman is
response to this cover that "I love my body. I'm very much OK with it."] & that it's "the truest we have ever put out there on the newsstand." Can someone explain to me how an electronically altered photograph counts as a true, literal representation of a woman? If that's the truest photo Self has put out, then that's REALLY sad. FAIL.
One study postulated that "pictures of women's bodies and body parts appear more often than pictures of men's bodies. Men's faces are photographed more often than their bodies. This present study is the first to confirm this finding for television commercials. Results showed that men appear twice as often as women in beer commercials. The body-isms of women significantly outnumbered the body-isms of men. Women also appeared in swimwear more often than men, thus increasing the photo opportunities for body-isms." None of that surprises me.
To say that "this" is an advertising tool & the target audience is men (keep in mind that "this" is WOMEN) unde
It's an ignorant perspective to hold to believe that we do NOT live in a culture that regularly exploits women (in particular, their bodies) for men. Sorry. It's in the advertisements. It's on television. It's on the internet. It's in a lot of mainstream porn. It's in magazines. It's in movies. It's in music videos. Additionally, it's just flat out stupid to believe that it doesn't provide an impossible standard of beauty for women. Even Cindy Crawford didn't look like Cindy Crawford. There's not a single model on the mainstream magazines these days who was NOT airbrushed & Photo-shopped into some unattainable fantasy version of herself- even when her real self is perfectly acceptable & attractive. Latest case in point- Kelly Clarkson on the cover of Self magazine. Editor-in-chief, Lucy Danziger insisted that they airbrushed her "Only to make her look her personal best" [who gets to decide what that is? Apparently not Clarkson herself, who stated in response to this cover that "I love