Gender Discrimination

Men vs Women

What are you buying when you purchase a magazine? Are you buying the articles, the tips, or newest gossip? Unfortunately, you’re buying the advertisements embedded in the magazines. Every magazine has hundreds of advertisements that are woven in between editorials and fashion layouts. And it seems as though ads are also included within the editorials and fashion layouts as well: branding the perfect cologne/perfume, clothes, or shoes. But what messages do these advertisements insinuate?

It’s funny how magazines are filled more with advertisements than with written articles from its writers. Not to mention the repetitiveness of the ad in other similar genre magazines. If you’ve flipped through a couple of fashion magazines, then you can claim that you’ve probably seen the rest because you’ve seen the ads. But gender associated magazine’s ads are targeted to that sex through their own lifestyle, appearance, and money. The ads not only instill an unconscious standard of how a female or male should act or look like but also implant brand names into their memories. These ads use what appeals the most to each sex: women care about fashion, hair, makeup, shoes, staying toned, having a great tan; basically the upcoming trend. While men care about cologne, shoes, cars, alcohol, and clothes. But this is what you would think after flipping through the hundreds, or thousands of ads in magazines.

Sex is a main intention behind many ads. Sex appeals to both gender; women want to look sexy so men would believe that she is sexy, vice versa. There are many cologne and perfume ads that have sexual innuendo slogans with a man and a woman in very sexual positions. So it basically implies that if you buy this product, then you will get the woman or man of your dreams. But ads are more degrading towards women more often than men. Women are passive, innocent, and the object of desire. In a Nivea body lotion there is a woman closing her eyes, leaning back, with a passionate look on her face while her man kisses her neck. And its phrase reads “the difference between going out and staying in. Nivea. Touch and be touched.” This ad has the woman as a definite desirable person, tempting the man; and even the phrase blatantly explains the picture. It implies that this lotion will make your skin so smooth that your man will not want to go out but stay inside with you and do “things” with you such as softly kissing your neck. In another DKNY ad for a perfume, there is a woman eating an apple while the man is placing his forehead on the side of her head. And the catchphrase says “Be Delicious” implying that this fragrance will make women more “delicious” and tempting; basically degrading her as only something to be eaten. Another woman’s fragrance ad has a seductive woman as the center point and the man is off to the side gazing at her while she faces the reader. And it reads “Armani Code. The secret ode of women.” As if the perfume will suddenly make you more seductive and have men flocking and gazing at you. These two ads seem to tap into the secret fantasies and wishes of women: being desirable and sexy to men.

Money is another factor behind