Sexism in Advertising free essay sample

Chef food processor uses the stereotype of women being at the disposal of men. The audience is singled out through the text in the ad itself, which reads â€Å"I’m giving my wife a Kenwood Chef. As men working was the main source of income for the average family in the 60s, the obvious purpose of this advertisement is to convince men to buy the product for their wives. While the ad possesses a dual gender message, as wives may see it and ask their husbands to buy the product for them, but it definitely relates more to men. Before actually knowing what product the ad is promoting, seeing â€Å"The Chef does everything but cook that’s what wives are for,† one would think that by â€Å"chef† they meant the husband, since he doesn’t cook. Then the eye goes to the wife’s chef hat; this sends a mixed signal. We will write a custom essay sample on Sexism in Advertising or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Is the wife a different person when she’s cooking? The tone of the ad provides a light, casual humor, as if one’s home life will be better with this product. The female subject in the ad looks overjoyed to receive this gift from her husband, to be able to serve him that much better. The male subject’s personality seems distant. It almost appears as if the two have been photoshopped together, making him distant from the female figure. His face is grainy, while hers is bright and flawless. Keeping its target audience in mind, the tone of the ad is informal, humorous, casual, and plainspoken. The Chef’s slogan reinforces society’s idea of a woman’s duty in the kitchen, with one of her main responsibilities being to cook for the rest of the family. A stereotype, according to Merriam-Webster is defined as something conforming to a fixed or general pattern. The logical fallacy, hasty generalization, is one that â€Å"usually lies behind a stereotype. † The author of this ad uses the 1960s society stereotype that women shouldn’t work, rather they should stay home and care for their family. Thinking back to the time period, this ad was probably a perfect advertising tactic. It goes well with the wanting of having a stable home and family during the time. The wife cooking and cleaning at home and the husband out working, so that he may buy his wife a Kenwood Chef. The feeling of the ad is a light, casual, humor or general happiness. Most of this feeling is coming from the female figure, as if she’s just received the Kenwood Chef as a gift from her husband. The author tries to convey to the husband how much happier his wife will be to cook for the family if she had the appliance. In conclusion, men and women play different roles in advertising. Men are portrayed as the dominant figure, while women are portrayed weak or as objects. This ad has a strong appeal to the rhetorical appeals, kairos and pathos. Also, logical fallacy, hasty generalization, is quite present. The timing of the ad was during a time of family values and consumerism, so it made sense to have the male as the dominant figure. Works Cited Brasted, Monica. http://www. sociology. org/media-studies/care-bears-vs-transformers-gender-stereotypes-in- advertisements http://www. inforefuge. com/gender-roles-media http://dictionary. reference. com/browse/stereotype