Representation Analysis

Product advertisements have been a staple within the media sphere for centuries. With such a large amount of ads being consumed, it could lead to significant consequences. This can be seen based on how advertisers vary their representation on daily life/society depending on their target audience, which results in excessive stereotyping and unrealistic archetypes.

The first example of damaging representation is expressed through this Tide advertisement found below. This advertisement is aimed directly towards adult females, more specifically those who are white mothers. The narrative behind the ad is that a mom, who despises her child's masculine fashion choices, used Tide when her daughter's clothes were dirty. The mom expresses her dissatisfaction to the audience for Tide being such a good cleaning product that she was not able to get rid of the clothes she hates. By the mom specifically being the one handling the laundry, this enforces the stereotypes of all moms (or adult women as a whole) being the ones who clean inside the house. Since the mom is describing the effectiveness of the product, other moms are more likely to purchase Tide as well.  The mother in the advertisement is not only white, but she is also dressed sophisticated. This implies that people of her social class and race are too graceful to act "tomboy-ish". Women and young girls who view this advertisement are being talked down for attempting unique self expression and are being told to act more lady-like.  For these reasons, the representation in this advertisement is harmful.


My Tide Detergent TV Commercial - Hoodies _ Cargo Shorts copy.mp4


Another harmful advertisement comes from the brand Axe attempting to sell their body sprays. These products are aimed towards young male adults, more specifically those who want to seduce women. The narrative behind this ad is that hundreds of young, non-clad women are chasing after a man who is spraying himself with Axe. What this advertisement implies is essentially that their body spray will surround you with perfect, shirtless women. Not only is this extremely derogatory and overly sexualized, but women in the ad are also represented as weak-minded. This is because the idea illustrated through the advertisement, which is that Axe's body sprays are the only thing needed to win a girl's heart, treats women as animals versus actual human beings with emotion and thought. This could possibly lead to young men disrespecting women among them, with women also being encouraged to be fit and attractive in order to get male attention.


The AXE Effect - Women - Billions.mp4


In conclusion, advertisers tend to negatively represent multiple social groups, races/ethnicities, ages, and genders in order to reach a target audience. Dangerous advertisements like these can subconsciously effect viewers and alter societal perceptions. The weight and severity of representation is not just based on what appears on the television screen, but its impact among the rest of society.