A male oriented Advertisement An advertisement for Sun Cloud Sunglasses shows how the product can take a feminine male and make a man of him. The advertisement Targets a male audience, confirming Berger's idea that certain advertisements target specific genders. While the advertisement is directed toward a male audience it does have an effect on the female viewer. The advertisement makes the product desirable for a male viewer only. As a result the sunglasses become men's sunglasses therefore hightening a male viewers want for the product.
An advertisement for Sun Cloud Sunglasses depicts a feminine man and puts him in a heterosexual scenario in order to make the product seem like it adds to his manliness. On first glance the viewer would swear that the male in this advertisement was a women. The long hair, the thin body type, the extremely feminine features of his face, are some of the things that make the viewers see him as feminine.
"Get fat on Lorings Fat-ten-u and corpula foods"; ...
Advertising
Kodak advertisementThis initial impression of femininity confuses the viewer.
The woman's reaction to the sunglasses is very important to the advertisement's effects on the viewer. We wonder why it is that this gorgeous woman is going nuts over this guy if he is indeed so feminine. Then we look down to see what she has to say. " Only if you promise to keep those sunglasses on." she whispers into his ear sexily. We look back up and realize that it is only because of these sunglasses that this guy is such a hunk. In addition to the physical attributes of the form, this image presents a feminized male by placing him in a passive position. The woman pins the man beneath her in a kind of submissive position suggesting almost automatically that in our society a dominant female would play this role. Also, the way that the woman is kind of thrusting herself upon the man suggests that she is taking the initiative. This is a role that American culture generally assumes to be masculine.
By taking a feminine male and turning him into a masculine individual with the use of the product, the advertisement makes the sunglasses serve as phallus. This being because without these sunglasses the man would not only appear feminine but he would certainly lose the interest of the women on top of him. We are given this knowledge as a result of what the woman whispers to the man. She says" Only if you promise to keep those sunglasses on.". By associating the sunglasses with a phallus the advertisement works by showing the viewer that if this ultra feminine model could gain instant manliness from these sunglasses then they could surely increase their masculinity to a god like level with the purchase of the product. The advertisement may also work by convincing the viewer that he will never be a real man until he buys the phallus sunglasses.
The femininity of the man is key to whom this advertisement is trying to sell the product to. With the sunglasses serving as a phallus that attracts passion frenzied women the advertisement is destined to attract a male audience. By doing so it supports Berger's idea that advertisements use gender roles to target specific audiences.
Though the masculine fantasy nature of the advertisement makes me feel that it is primarily meant for male viewer, I can also see how this advertisement may work on a female viewer. Since the Advertisement tries to really push the idea that these glasses will increase masculinity I don't think that the product would seem reasonable to a female viewer.
The only way I could see the advertisement working on the female viewer is if she imagined herself purchasing the product for her male lover. She would have to place herself in the aggressive woman's shoes. She could imagine herself being rushed with an uncontrollable lust for her partner whom she just bought Sun Cloud sunglasses for. How she, like the woman in the add would take the initiative, assume the aggressive male position. These thoughts may indeed work to confuse the women since society has impressed the total opposite of sexual values into their heads. Again this is another reason why I feel this advertisement is more so male oriented.
The Sun Cloud Sunglasses Advertisement uses the feminization of a male form to sell the product. By physically and culturally feminizing the man in the add we are left to question why the woman is so interested in the man. When we read her quote on the bottom of the page we realize that the glasses are the key to his situation ( a sort of phallus). As a result the male viewer is left wanting to buy the product out of a need to increase his manliness. Since the advertisement specifically targets a male audience it may affect a female viewer but not in the way that would spur them to buy the product. By targeting a male audience the company has created an item that's just for men therefore making it more desirable to them.
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