It would have been virtually impossible to have never noticed the ways that advertisements target, objectify and manipulate societal views of feminine beauty. As a woman in her late 40’s, I’m not sure that I could accurately put into words just how much I appreciate Jean Kilbourne. Kilbourne’s Ted X Talk entitled, The Dangerous Ways Ads See Women was a welcome reminder for me, even now after years of concerted effort to consciously avoid buying into media standards of beauty and to fully accept myself as I am; this reminder is still needed.
For the most part, I’ve always been aware of the focus on the sexualization of female versus male. Even as a young woman I remember consciously thinking how attractive some men were with salt and pepper hair but how women of the same age, with gray hair just seemed un-kept and neglected.
As far as I can remember, there’s never been a time in my life when I wasn’t aware of the beauty standards set by advertising and the entertainment industry. My awareness of the unattainability of these standards have varied during different times in my life. I think I’ve always been at least somewhat aware of the unrealistic standards while also, more-or-less striving to try and get my own beauty as close to the standard as I could. I can honestly say that I went through my 20’s and part of my 30’s with a feeling duty to strive for this standard. At some point, I had a reckoning of my inevitable aging but also of the “harsh” realities of my body type and my skin (which is very freckly). Eventually, the feeling of harsh reality regarding what I saw as my physical imperfections, evolved into something closer to acceptance, which is where I’m at now.
I really enjoyed Kilbourne’s talk. I found myself cheering her on and chiming in approval during certain parts. It was interesting to see how the ways in which advertisers manipulate images have changed throughout the years, and then comparing these to what we now know are available in the form of endless beauty photo filters.
These advertisements are taken from two magazines that targets older and/or conservative women. I chose these magazines to specifically show the generational difference in targetted advertising. Ads for a younger generation of women would not typically be delivered via magazine these days and might focus on different issues but the basic message of the ads are the same: you are not okay as you are & buy this or that product or service to be your best self.
First for Women magazine, April 26, 2021
Woman’s World, May 31, 2021
