Zaire Peoples - Final Paper

Sexual Violence and Objectification of Women in Advertisements

Cartoon that depicts the lack of correlation between sex /objectification
of women  and certain products that are advertised.
Original Cartoon.

Since our 21^st century shift from an analog world to a digital world, advertising agencies have negatively portrayed the subordination and abuse of women in the Western world all the while satisfying the male species. Many advertisements,whether they relate to fashion, food or cigarettes, have used sexual abuse and manipulation of women to market their products. While one would assume that over time corporate insensitivities towards these issues would diminish, this has not happened. Provocative advertisements such as the infamous 2007 Dolce and Gabbana advertisement which glorified “gang-rape” have caused uproars around the world. Advertisements like these make it seem okay to objectify women because it is “classy” or “in-trend”. Perhaps what seems even more ridiculous is the fact that these advertisements have little if any correlation to the product or service that is being advertised. Do advertisers only value its male consumers and their opinions or do they believe that women will be equally swayed by these insensitive depictions of sexual violence and brutality?  

Van Heusen Ties and Tipalet cigars advertisements shown side by side
with words that describe the images in the middle. 

The only difference between advertisements that objectify women today and the previous decades is the approach. While in today’s society, one has to look beyond the expensive handbags and attractive men, during the 1940’s, for example, the message was more clear. During this time period, women were expected to be subordinate and were merely used as child-bearing instruments rather than human beings. Due to these views, companies like Van Heusen released advertisements that belittled women. In its infamous tie advertisement, a women can be seen kneeling down next to her husband’s bed as she serves him breakfast. While this may seem shocking enough, the worst part of the advertisement is the caption. In bold letters above the image, the words “show her it’s a man’s world” are displayed. Van Heusen’s advertisement along with other advertisements such as that of Tipalet cigar ad whose caption reads “Blow in her face and she’ll follow you anywhere” shows that sexual violence and the objectification of women is not a recent development. Rather, this has been going on for decades (Suggett, “Vintage Ads From America”)

The infamous 2010 Calvin Klein advertisement that depicts a women being gang-raped.
The words " No More" are written to show that women and men need to take a stance against this.

    Just when we thought advertising agencies couldn't become more provocative, there was an explosion of sexually charged ads in the following decades. As mentioned before, advertising agencies have the ability to make you focus less on the behavior that is portrayed in the image and more on the sexual appeal and clothing (if there is any at all). A less direct approach can be seen in the 2010 Calvin Klein advertisement in which a woman is surrounded by men. The photograph is suggestive of sexual violence or rape. While captions like “it’s a man’s world” does not need to be printed, the same message is emphasized whether in big, bold text or not (Nudd, “Calvin Klein Ads Banned For Promoting Rape”).

Founders of Dolce and Gabanna are shown with their "defense statement"
in response to their controversial advertisement that glorified gang rape. 

In 2007, fashion house Dolce and Gabbana released an advertisement that immediately caused citizens in various countries to turn their heads. This advertisement glorified gang rape as a woman appeared to be held down by a man as other men looked on. After protests in Spain, the advertisement was eventually pulled and other regions would soon follow. However, in defense of their racy marketing strategy, the fashion power-house accused Spain of being “a bit behind times” rather than apologizing for its insensitive marketing (Dowsett, “Spain Behind the Times on Ads says Dolce & Gabbana”). Because this event sparked so much controversy, one would assume that other fashion companies would also learn from this and try to better their sexually charged advertisements. Calvin Klein would release a similar advertisement three years later that sparked just as much controversy. Similar to Spain’s Labour and Social Affairs Ministry’s opposition to the Dolce and Gabbana advertisement, the Australian Advertising StandardsBureau was one of the first groups to demand that the advertisement be pulled (White, “Calvin Klein Ads Featuring Lara Stone Ordered to Be Taken Down in Australia”).

A brutal advertisment in which two women are depicted as
animals and inferior. A quote by Ellen Hopkins is written on the walls to emphasis
that the individual is still important. 

          Of course, these advertisements would not come without negative impact. Not only are advertisements that portray women as sexual animals and objects to men damaging to girls and women but also young boys and men. As women see advertisements like these all around the world and in almost every form of media imaginable, they will begin to see themselves through this lens. Women and young girls especially will start believing that this is what is expected of them and that they are invaluable. Likewise, men will also think that this kind of behavior is acceptable, bearing little consequence. Young boys alike will began to “support male dominance [which in turn] generates rape-supportive attitudes…” (“Sexual Violence in the Media: Indirect Effects on Aggression Against Women”). In the end, these types of advertisements represent a "lose-lose" situation for both women and men.

The 2007 controversial Dolce and Gabbana ad can be seen in
black and white. 

As noted earlier, a few groups in the past have protested advertisements that glorify the objectification and sexual violence of women. Spain’s Labour and Social Affairs Ministry and Australia’s Advertising Standards Bureau stand as leaders against this fight. In addition to these state run groups, individuals such as American activist John Stoltenberg believe that men should be more involved in this opposition. On the website, Genderads.com, Scott Lukas explores a variety of issues related to gender in society. On his page, “Sexual Violence”, he states that American activist John Stoltenberg believed that men should take initiative by “work[ing] to not have their sexuality manipulated by the pornography industry, drugs or alcohol”. When men began to take a stance against the way they are perceived in the media – as sexual predators – then perhaps women will no longer be seen as prey (Lukas, genderads.com)

Altered photograph of a women who was originally depicted as battered.
She has flaws on her skin to represent the average person. However, she
still represents beauty.

 Do media act as a collective scapegoat? Do insensitive advertisements like the Dolce and Gabbana’s glorify sexual violence to the point where both women and men believe that it is acceptable? Media in Society by Richard Campbell and Joli Jensen argues that when media is used as a scapegoat, there is no solution given but rather “it leads to a dead end” (Campbell, Jensen 19). We can not continue to blame the media as there are other factors that should be accounted for. Our decisions and upbringings as individuals also shape the way we perceive others. However, for the naïve young boys and girls who are exposed to these advertisements, the illusions that all women enjoy forceful sexual activity and that sexual violence bears little consequence are given. Children and adults need to understand that poor representation of women is not okay and this is most certainly not how it is 'supposed to be'. 

A collage of just a few companies who have used the sexual violence
and manipulation of women to sell their product or service. 

In closing, advertisements are becoming more and more provocative and inappropriate towards women. Industries like fashion, food and cigarettes fail to realize the negative effects of their advertisements on the public. Not only does it make women seem subordinate and invaluable it also causes young boys and men to believe that this kind of behavior is acceptable. Our 21^st century digital world has normalized a dangerous idea. Many of the advertisements today seem to suggest that we are moving backwards, as representation of women put them in a subordinate state. Advertisements that promote Tipalet cigars and Calvin Klein also prove this point. Unfortunately, this situation is not getting better as a plethora of advertising agencies under major companies like Peta, Ford, and American Apparel have also jumped on board (Lukas, genderads.com). Only through challenging the negative representation of women in society will we move forward.

Bibliography

Campbell, Richard, Joli Jensen, Douglas Gomery, Bettina Fabos, and Julie D. Frechette. "Understanding Media in Society." Introduction. Media in Society. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2014. N. pag. Print.

Dowsett, Sonya. "Spain behind the times on Ads Says Dolce & Gabbana." Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 23 Feb. 2007. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

Lukas, Scott. "The Gender Ads Project." Sexual Violence. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

Malamuth, Neil M., and John Briere. "Sexual Violence in the Media: Indirect Effects on Aggression Against Women." Journal of Social Issues 42.3 (1986): 76-91. Journal of Social Issues. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

Nudd, Tim. "Calvin Klein Ads Banned for Promoting Rape | Adweek." AdWeek. Adweek.com, 21 Oct. 2010. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

Suggett, Paul. "Vintage Ads From America." About.com Advertising. About.com, n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

White, Belinda. "Calvin Klein Ads Featuring Lara Stone Ordered to Be Taken down in Australia." - Telegraph. N.p., 22 Oct. 2010. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.