The first ad gives the impression that skinny is cool. The hot new, modern things are skinny, just like these skinny beautiful women portrayed just above the television. This offends me because it is putting an emphasis on the thinness of the women, as well as the television. It also objectifies women, placing them next to a device we use for entertainment. Therefore, it places women in the entertainment category, meant to satisfy men. Even though I have not seen this ad personally, I have seen other degrading ads just like this one that display only skinny, unrealistically fit women.
The woman above is shown wearing mostly black, a slimming color, with grey, boring skin. The thing that stands out to me is the woman’s short, blonde hair. This stands out because many times, beauty is associated with having long, luscious, flowing hair. Also, the woman is standing in very awkward poses. The poses also show off her legs, making them look longer. Her appearance contributes to the message, and stereotype the audience receives from this advertisement.
If there are billboards advertising alcohol or tobacco, I haven’t seen them recently around the campus. I do, however see smaller signs posted in convenient stores that promote smoking and/or drinking. I believe these images are aimed at the youth of America, even if the subject is not old enough to drink, or buy tobacco. Drinking and smoking are portrayed as cool and fun, and also as adult-like.
The second ad shows a woman smiling, obviously having fun outdoors, and getting dirty in the mud. This ad challenges the stereotype on women that they don’t like the outdoors, or getting dirty and muddy. This ad does offer an alternate form of femininity, displaying to the audience that women can have fun getting dirty, as well as men.
I noticed in this ad, that the woman is smiling, showing a bit of her personality. I also noticed that the main focus on the ad is the woman’s face and smile, unlike many other ads that only include the bodies of women. Also, the woman isn’t perfect, so a stereotype is not being displayed. I find this advertisement appealing mainly because it goes outside of the normal to show a “real” woman, not a super skinny (clean) model.
In Feminism is for Everybody, chapter 5 talks about the movement for women's sexuality being one of the main focuses of the feminist movement. I was surprised that some women actually preferred abortions to the birth control pill. I can, however, see where they were coming from. Like Hooks says, " using the pill meant a woman was directly confronting her choice to be sexually active." Some women put their morals in front of the way they cared for their bodies. I believe that women should choose exactly what happens to their bodies, and I am glad that women have accomplished so much with their reproductive rights, to help make my life easier today.
In chapter 6, Hooks talks about women's self-esteem and beauty issues. When I read about women not being able to wear pants to work, I started to think about my own freedom to wear anything I wanted to. I have always had this freedom, unlike other women in the past, and the idea of restrictions on this seemed foreign to me. I was surprised when I read that the cosmetics industry started campaigning and labeling feminists as ugly, thinking that the movement would ruin their business. I also found it interesting that women continue to challenge and confront the medical industry, in the issue of health care. I want to go into medicine, something few women actually accomplish because the medical field is dominated by males. I am sad that it is still like this, and I would love to be joined by many more women in search of a career in the health field. Hooks also talks about how beauty is portrayed in our modern society, and how the media amplifies this. I thought it was interesting when Hooks says, " Today's fashion magazines may carry an article about the dangers of anorexia while bombarding its readers with images of emaciated young bodies representing the height of beauty and desirability." I very much agree with this statement. I even picked up a magazine that I own, and scanned through the pages, looking at the thin, young women portrayed in ads advertising beauty products. This was my favorite chapter so far in Feminism is for Everybody, and it's made a permanent statement in my mind.
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