Representation of women — half term homework

Analyse the ways in which the advertising in Woman constructs stereotypical representations of women, for example:

1 Women’s place in the home – wife and mother

2 Women don’t make important decisions3 Women are dependent on men for acceptance and protection4 Women as sexual objects, and inferior to men

Women in the media are stereotypically represented as sexual objects and inferior to men. we can see this for example in the first image of the woman advert, where the lady is not wearing any clothe and has her body covered by just some soap. This shows her slim figure, which is stereotypically considered a desirable body shape. In addition her body language and facial expression highlight how delicate and fragile she is. She is blowing the soap off her hands, which makes her look gentle and childish, and this can suggest that women can't be trusted into making important decisions, but always need the men's help.

At the bottom of the advert it says : "You need a soap that can promise you freshness" and this is very important as it suggests that what it is important to women is their looks and physical appearance. It suggests all women should concentrate on is looking stereotypically attractive. The fact that the women seems happy and enjoying playing with the soap bubbles also highlights how women should enjoy to look beautiful. The soap advert is targeted at women, as there is a main image of a woman, and this highlights how women should be the tidy and always clean ones.

In the second advert we can see a lady which is trying to decide which makeup product to apply. The fact that she looks very indecisive suggests how women can't be trusted in making important decisions, and how men are more important and superior. We can see in this advert that a man is standing behind the lady, and he is looking over what she is doing. This is important as it suggests women should always depend on men and seek their approval in everything they do.

In this advert from Vogue we see a lady who is applying make up on her face. She is wearing very bold make up which suggests women should always try and look their best and be stereotipically attractive. It highlights how women are expected to spend lots of time in trying to look beautiful, as it is one of their most important features. This shows how women are usually thought of as sexual objects. The facial expression of the women is really effective as she is smiling and looking happy while applying her blush. This suggests women should be happy to spend their time looking beautiful, and should not try to do other things like concentrate on a career. They should just stick to trying to look good, as it makes them happy and they are skilled in doing it.

The different shots of the woman applying her blush show her enjoying herself and having fun while doing it. It highlights how women are thought to be quite materialistic and superficial. It cal also suggest that women can't make important decisions and can't be trusted because all they care about is makeup and looking attractive.

In this advert from vogue we see a young woman looking over a child. The fact that she is holding a baby, and looking at it in a loving and caring way highlights the fact that women are expected to be nuriuning, which is a typical attribute associated with motherhood, as it suggests that she cares about the child, probably her child. The fact that the woman is linking her head with the one of the baby she is holding reinforces the fact that she is building intimacy and connecting with the cild. This Highlights the fact that women's place is at home, and they should look after the children and the house. Moreover this is reinforced by the facial expression of the mother, as she i smiling towards the baby. This can suggests that she is happy and desires bing a mother and staying at home, looking after the house and cleaning it. This advert is promoting a soap, and one of the cover lines says "you want a skin that feels soft". This is also effective as it portray women as superficial, and highgihts how all they should care about is their looks. It shows how women should concentrate on looking beautiful and stereotypically attractive.