Media Factsheet - Score hair cream
Media Factsheet #188: Close Study Product- Advertising: Score
1) How did advertising techniques change in the 1960s and how does the Score advert reflect this change?
Advertising techniques in the 1960s relied less on market research and relied further on creative instinct in planning their campaigns- the visuals of an advert were much more important, they would feature large visuals and minimal copy for a dazzling, dramatic effects. Print ads took on a realistic look, relying more on photography than illustration, and TV spots gained sophistication as new editing techniques were mastered
2) What representations of women were found in post-war British advertising campaigns?
In post-war British advertising campaigns the representation of women reinforced the idea that a woman's place was in the home. This came after previous propaganda posters of the Second World War had convinced women that their place was on farms and in factories while the men were away fighting in the war
3) Conduct your own semiotic analysis of the Score hair cream advert: What are the connotations of the mise-en-scene in the image? You may wish to link this to relevant contexts too.
In the focal point of this advert, there is a man that is being carried by five women who are dressed provocatively- the costume worn by the women sexually objectifies them and reinforces van Zoonen's idea of 'Western beauty standards' due to them being white, young and slim. The man has been positioned above the women and the women are underneath in order to reflect the patriarchy- the man has been placed in a position where he is asserting his dominance and superiority and the women are presented as inferior and submissive and obedient compared to men. This reinforces the patriarchy and the power imbalance that was present during the time of the advert but the Equal Act Pay of 1970 (a few years after the advert) helped subvert these ideologies. We can also see the use of make-up on the women in the advert and the emphasis on the women's heavily made-up faces reinforces the sexist idea that women are presented as a spectacle or a performance- this links to Mulvey's theory of the 'male gaze' which presents women in a way that pleasures men. Another notable mention is the setting that is in a jungle and this reflects Britain's colonial past and that this setting is likely to belong to a place that Britain colonised
4) What does the factsheet suggest in terms of a narrative analysis of the Score hair cream advert?
The factsheet suggests that in terms of a narrative analysis of the Score hair cream advert the man identifies as the hero (applying Propp's character theory) of the women who act as the 'reward' looking at him with adoration due to his masculine endeavours. It can also be said that the Score hair cream provides a new equilibrium for men which is being reassured of their masculinity while the disequilibrium could be seen as the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1967, the 1970 Equal Pay Act and the collapse of the British Empire in 1947. The gun in the man's hand also serves as an action code (applying Barthes' action codes) which is further reinforced by the leopard print seat he is sitting on which has strong connotations of hunting. This paired with the guns creates a clear image of violence that support toxic masculinity
5) How might an audience have responded to the advert in 1967? What about in 2019?
It is likely that an audience in 1967 wouldn't have taken a second glance at this advert due to the fact that this advert was a portrayal of what they deemed to be an appropriate and accurate representation of society. The advert features a hypermasculine representation of men which was a dominant and common representation of men in the 1950s-1980s. However, an audience from 2019 onwards would not be so passive to an advert like this. Due to their further education of gender and gender roles, they would likely suggest that the representation of women in this advert is extremely demeaning as it objectifies women by reinforcing the patriarchy
6) How does the Score hair cream advert use persuasive techniques (e.g. anchorage text, slogan, product information) to sell the product to an audience?
The Score hair cream advert uses persuasive techniques such as inadequacy marketing to sell the product as it suggests that the Score hair cream can solve the problem of perhaps 'not being masculine enough' if men use it. It also suggests that using the Score hair cream means that women will be all over you which in turn would make men feel as though if they don't have 5 women serving you then you're doing something wrong. The anchorage text is also designed to reassure men in an era of changing attitudes to gender and society that using Score hair cream doesn't make men less masculine and actually increases their masculinity instead. Considering all the hypermasculine representations of men in the media, this was likely to be what the majority of men at the time were aiming for. The slogan "get what you've always wanted" has an innuendo of 'sex sells' which once again reinforces hypermasculine stereotypes that men would have played into
7) How might you apply feminist theory to the Score hair cream advert - such as van Zoonen, bell hooks or Judith Butler?
- Judith Butler: Suggests gender is a performance and this can be applied to the advert because we can see that the man is presented as a stereotypical man who is dominant and admired whereas the presentation of women is that they are objectified and sexualised
- Mulvey's male gaze: Suggests that women in the media have been presented in a way for the male gaze and the pleasure of men which can be applied to this advert where the women are wearing revealing clothing to show large amounts of their bodies for men to enjoy
- van Zoonen: Suggests that the media reinforces Western beauty standards and this can be seen in the advert because the women are young, white and slim and been presented as a 'spectacle' as they are wearing revealing clothes in a jungle setting which is inappropriate which suggests that this advert has purely been done in order to present women as a spectacle
8) How could David Gauntlett's theory regarding gender identity be applied to the Score hair cream advert?
David Gauntlett's theory regarding gender identity can be applied to the Score hair cream advert because Gauntlett suggested that there are generational differences in views on identity. The Score hair cream advert is trying to make the hair cream seem masculine and they reinforce that it's made by men for men to reassure men that using this beauty product doesn't make them seem more feminine, a trait often associated with homosexuality. In modern days, gender has become much more fluid so constantly reminding men in modern days of how manly the product is could actually discourage them from being who they are and living how they feel comfortable with. The media and audiences have positively changed over time because while the Score hair cream advert wouldn't have received any backlash for the hypermasculine representation of men and the objectification of women, a modern audience would not receive this well and it would offend a lot of people
9) What representation of sexuality can be found in the advert and why might this link to the 1967 decriminalisation of homosexuality (historical and cultural context)?
The representation of sexuality in this advert is intentionally intended to reinforce heterosexuality by rejecting all the traits associated with homosexuality at the time and creating a more hypermasculine representation of men which was linked to heterosexuality. In 1967, homosexuality was just decriminalised but social attitudes did not change immediately so the reactions towards homosexuality could have been somewhat extreme. This means that it was accepted for the men in 1967 to not want to be associated with homosexuality because it would make them seem less 'manly' and this is presented by the hypermasculinity in the advert that rejects homosexuality and anything else that may indicate less masculine men
10) How does the advert reflect Britain's colonial past - another important historical and cultural context?
The advert reflects Britain's colonial past because everyone in the advert is white and wearing clothes that we would associate with explorers. This also suggests how the British would 'discover' land and claim it as part of the British Empire. The setting also resembles a jungle or a forest, climates seen of the countries that Britain colonised such as India
Wider reading
The Drum: This Boy Can article
The Drum magazine on gender and the new masculinity
1) Why does the writer suggest that we may face a "growing 'boy crisis'"?
Because we are much less equipped to talk about the issues affecting boys because there’s an unconscious bias that males should simply ‘man up’ and deal with any crisis of confidence by themselves. Men are committing suicide more than women, and are more likely to drop out of education and get involved in crime, drugs and binge-drinking. Moreover, as women are increasingly empowered, many men feel increasingly disempowered, accentuating these social problems
2) How has the Axe/Lynx brand changed its marketing to present a different representation of masculinity?
The Axe/Lynx brand changed its marketing to present a different representation of masculinity by undertaking a large-scale research project into modern male identity, men are craving a more diverse definition of what it means to be a ‘successful’ man in 2016, and to relieve the unrelenting pressure on them to conform to suffocating, old paradigms. This insight led to the step-change ‘Find Your Magic’ campaign from the former bad-boy brand
3) How does campaigner David Brockway, quoted in the article, suggest advertisers "totally reinvent gender constructs"?
Campaigner David Brockway suggest advertisers plays its part in identity- a 13-year-old boy of average build in one class had told him that seeing an ad made him feel fat- "He didn’t mean a bit out of shape. He meant everything that goes with that feeling such as seeing himself as lazy, unaccomplished and incapable.” In order to prevent a full blown crisis of self-worth, Brockway advocates that advertisers “totally reinvent gender constructs” and dare to paint a world where boys like pink, don’t like going out and getting dirty, or aren’t career ambitious, for example
4) How have changes in family and society altered how brands are targeting their products?
Changes in family and society have altered how brands are targeting their products completely- Brian Miller says that "historically the household purse has been controlled by the woman but now US men are running household budgets. If brands don’t recognise this, they are going to lose out because they’re increasingly ignoring their potential biggest audience. We hear a lot about women’s voices needing to be heard, but in FMCG men are a strangely silent group.” As a result of this, brands are doing a lot more market research into modern male identity so that they can shift their marketing to appeal to a more ABC1 male demographic
5) Why does Fernando Desouches, Axe/Lynx global brand development director, say you've got to "set the platform" before you explode the myth of masculinity?
No comments:
Post a Comment