Women and the Language of Advertising, Research Paper Example

Abstract

This paper will explore the theory that the roles of women are socially constructed through the prevalent use of masculine and male created language in American advertising. Stereotypes used in advertisements to describe common activities in the home, the workplace, and social activities influence expectations of men regarding women and provide images women are influenced to imitate. The research was started with the question, “How does word choice in American advertising support a masculine society and effectively dictate roles for women?” This question remained my main angle throughout the research. Cheris Kramarae’s theory of muted groups and her supporting research was the starting base for this topic. Other established researchers whose theories and concepts are used to examine the topic are David Clarke, Deborah Tannen, and Scott Kiesling.

Women and the Language of Advertising

From billboards and posters to television commercials and product placement, Americans are subjected to thousands of advertisements every day. These advertisements appear as television commercials, cell phone messages, even floor tiles. But no matter what form they come in, ads only have seconds to catch the attention of rushed Americans. In order to be effective, every advertisement seeks to do four things: attract the consumer’s attention, maintain the public’s interest, create or stimulate desire, and create a call for action. (Maddox, 2008) Because all four of these things need to be done in so short an amount of time, advertisers need a quick way to disseminate information. Stereotypes provide easily recognizable and oversimplified images. For advertisers, stereotypes are perfect answer to how to quickly provide information to an audience. This method of stereotyping the media uses to deliver its bite-sized messages, however, ends up delivering much more than product information. The language of advertising plays a vital role in shaping how women are regarded in society, both in how men see women and in how women see themselves.

There is an undeniable connection in what we see on television and what we expect from our physical surroundings. The portrayal of female stereotypes in the media have affected what men expect from interactions with women. How a man may expect a woman to act around men and around other women, in various home, social, and professional settings, and in regards to themselves is influenced by the roles women play in advertising. Likewise, the way women view themselves is influenced by how they see women portrayed in advertising. It is easy to assume advertising represents the cultural norm, and so the roles fulfilled by women in advertisements are what women should aspire to. So women may base their own ideas of body image and self-worth on how women appear in advertisements.

As to the language used in advertisements, there are differences in the way men and women communicate. These communication differences encompass everything from the way emotions are shown, how body language is used, the topics discussed with friends, and word choice. The difference in word choice is especially important, since our world is shaped by the meanings of the words we use. A popular communication theory, Social Construction Theory, addresses this issue. Social Construction Theory is “concerned with the ways we think about and use categories to structure our experience and analysis of the world.” (Jackson) Social Construction Theory says the words we use and the meanings we attach to them shape our understanding of the world. This paper applies Social Construction Theory specifically to words used in advertisements meant to imitate conversations within the home, in the workplace, and in social activities according to gender.

Considering the gender difference in communication styles, it is no surprise that men and women may choose different words to describe the same event or object. And it would make sense for different language to be used in advertisements targeted to men or women. But what happens when one gender, the female gender, is coerced into choosing words predominantly from the male vocabulary pool? This is mirrored in advertisements, serving to reinforce the use of masculine vocabulary in replacement of feminine language in reality. When women’s own voices are muted, the opportunity to insert the voices of advertisements in place of real female identity exists. This is the voice of women as they are stereotypically represented in advertisements. The research work of Cheryl Kramarae, David Clarke, Ashley B., and Scot Kiesling is important in understanding just how word choice can be used to mute a specific group. This theory is best examined when broken down and applied to specific situations.

The first stereotype analyzed here is the “working woman” stereotype. One does not have to look hard to find evidence of male dominance in the workplace. Despite the many advances women have made within the American workforce, a disparity still exists between male and female employees. In 2009, women occupied the head position of CEO at only fifteen Fortune 500 companies. (CNNMoney, 2009) That means that three percent of all Fortune 500 companies are run by women. Furthermore, research gathered by Grant Thornton International shows that 20 percent of senior management positions in the US were held by women in 2009. (Grant Thornton, 2009) According to the 2000 census bureau report, women earned 75.5 cents for every dollar that men earned. (Longley, 2004) These figures indicate a male dominance in the workplace. This structure could be an imitation of how women in the workplace are portrayed in advertisements. In workplace advertisements women are often shown conforming to men’s dress and attitude, as incompetent, or else in an aggressive role and a danger to her male co-workers. The following two commercials are examples of the stereotyping of females in workplace advertisements. In this commercial, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mnJ20xLtHA, the woman is shown in a pantsuit, but one in gray while her male counterparts all wear black. And in this commercial, http://www.myspace.com/video/vid/39561192, the woman is depicted as less than competent, unable to handle even the simplest of office tasks. Findings from a study undertaken by Victoria University of Wellington, called the Language in the Workplace Project, shows that women who want to be successful in the workplace are likely to change their dress, language, and manner of speaking to adapt to a more masculine environment. In the first commercial, though the woman is wearing a pantsuit just like her male colleagues, gray color suggests a marked difference about her and even hints at weakness.

The workplace is not the only advertising scenario where the feminine identity is muted through the use of language and stereotypes. Whereas in the workplace, women are muted by coerced adaptation of the masculine voice in pursuit of success, specific vocabulary is used to mute women in roles at home. Consider these terms available to describe a wife: old lady, consort, little lady, housewife, homemaker, ball and chain, “the wife.” Old lady, consort, and little lady carry a connotation of being less than something. Housewife and homemaker, when used to describe a wife, confine a woman’s talents activities directly related to the home. Ball and chain gives an impression of entrapment and control by the wife. Using “the wife” to refer to one’s married partner portrays a woman as an object. It is these phrases that advertising uses to create its stereotype of the stay at home mom. Button down pastel shirts, sitting at a counter eating yogurt; yoga clothes pushing a stroller; jeans moving though the grocery store are advertising images that come to mind when the word “mom” is said. This woman does not work, and if she does it doesn’t matter; she is still responsible for the same home duties. Her ability to pull all of it off is admirable, but given because she is a superwoman with her multi-vitamins and Tysen’s chicken bites. Consider these advertisements at the following links featuring Kelly Ripa: http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=kelly+ripa+commercial&view=detail&mid=39E0DE48D9D08304B59B39E0DE48D9D08304B59B&first=0 and http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=kelly+ripa+commercial&view=detail&mid=E31CB91FA5B4159214D8E31CB91FA5B4159214D8&first=0. These advertisements show Kelly Ripa pulling off impossible entertaining and homemaking feats, yet is shown in such a way as indicate that this is the ideal attainment for the perfect housewife.

There is another area of life where advertising language is used to describe and place women in prescribed roles. Language reserved to describe many social situations is largely constructed by men and language from male dominant areas, such as sports and the military, is used widely across all areas of activity. Examples of sports terms that have crossed over include fumble, foul, and end zone. Examples of military terms used commonly in civilian life are deadline, drone, chicks, and chow. (Powers, 2010) Visual language of advertising can be just as detrimental to female identity, sometimes more so. Advertisements often present women as linked with products meant for pleasure and consumption, such as sports equipment or alcohol. Consider this Budweiser magazine ad:

(Cabrillo)The female models in this advertisement linked to the logo by being presented as an actual part of the logo, connecting the desire for and pleasure gained from the product with a desire for the women. This advertisement presents the women as an object meant to provide pleasure.

The language that we see in our advertising shapes how women are viewed in society, both from a male perspective and as to how women see themselves. Advertisements, though actually stereotyped bites of information, get in our heads in a way that we begin to pattern our lives after their depictions. Thus, the roles women play in society are imitative of those we see women play in advertisements, the stereotyped ‘stay-at-home mom’, the ‘working woman’, the ‘shark woman’, and the ‘sex kitten’. With the help of such advertisements, women are coerced into filling predestined roles in society. The result is generations of women that are torn about who they really are and who they really want to be. But what can be done? After all, doesn’t art just imitate life?

Bibliography

Cabrillo. (n.d.). Images of Women in Advertising . Retrieved April 2012, from Cabrillo: http://www.cabrillo.edu/~mmoore/imageswomen.html

CNNMoney. (2009, May 4). Women CEOs. Retrieved 2 21, 2010, from CNNMoney.com: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2009/womenceos

Grant Thornton. (2009, March 5). Women still hold less than a quarter of senior management positions in privately held businesses. Retrieved 2 21, 2010, from Grant Thornton: http://www.gti.org/Press-room/women_in_management.asp

Jackson, P. &. (n.d.). The Theory of Social Construction. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from Washington.edu: http://staff.washington.edu/saki/strategies/The%20Theory%20of%20Social%20Construction_files/frame.htm

Longley, R. (2004, September 1). Gender Wage Gap Widening, Census Data Shows. Retrieved 2 23, 2010, from About.com: http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/censusandstatistics/a/paygapgrows.htm

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Powers, R. (2010). Military Jokes and Humor. Retrieved February 21, 2010, from About.com: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/militaryhumor/a/words.htm

Tannen, D. (2002, August 30). Gender Differences. Retrieved February 19, 2010, from tripod.com: http://members.tripod.com/nwacc_communication/index.htm

Victoria University of Wellington. (2009, December 16). Language in the Workplace. Retrieved February 23, 2010, from Victoria University of Wellington: School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies: http://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/lwp/research/gender.aspx

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