Sparking from my interest in the ideal female body image, stereotypes and norms, I wrote a research paper analyzing three Femvertisements by Nike, Dove and Pantene. Within the three ads, they attempt to expel female inequalities and stereotypes, however all end up reinforcing the same issue: women are solely viewed through the lens of their beauty and bodies.
Feminist advertising are ads produced to celebrate rather than objectify women. Prior to this, I did not have a clear understanding of the feminist discourse in its entirety, and at times was even skeptical of the feminist movement. Nevertheless, the topic was selected to challenge myself intellectually. On the technical side, the level of literature review required was very advanced as I tackled texts like Foucault, Femininity, and the Rise of Patriarchal Power by Sandra Bartky and How Women Are Portrayed in Media: Do You See Progress? by Caroline Turner. It was also the first time that I was critically analyzing famous “Femvertisements”, dissecting every element of the commercials and ad displays. The extra challenge was also to overcome the initial skepticism. The investigation continued for six months, by the end of which my perspective began to shift, opening my eyes to the true complexities of the issue. It made me realize that the problem is so deeply rooted that finding a quick solution to terminate double standard is neither realistic nor desirable.
You can read my full research paper here.
Learning Significance