Research Investigation

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A Textual Analysis Contrasting Representations of Men and Women in Womens Magazines More! and Cosmopolitan.

Women have become increasingly aware of what they want from life, in aspects such as career and relationships. Magazines in particular, reaching a similar target audience of older teens-middle aged women, are being prompted to become more independent and sexually aware of their needs. Men are often presented as sexual objects in texts such as More! and Cosmopolitan magazine, living up to the well known masculine stereotypes. I am going to deconstruct how the representations are presented and whether men and women are portrayed in a realistic way. My analysis will be based on the constructionist view, the male gaze and the audience reading which will provide me with knowledge on ideologies of men and women within the magazine industry.

Masculinity is often said to be in crisis as women are becoming increasingly assertive and successful, apparently triumphing in all roles, men are said to be anxious and confused about what their role is today.1More! magazine was first launched in 1988 by Bauer London Lifestyle2 and it has become increasingly popular among women, even referred to as a magazine which can make men submit to your sexual will 3 However the magazine has come under criticisms for its tone and representations of men after one blogger claimed to finding particular distaste at the effect on young girls self-esteem, and the tendency to group men into identikit characters. 4 The first article I came across in More! was More! men of the week which is initially eye catching as the majority of the text is up-close images of attractive well known male celebrities, aiming to immediately engage the reader with attraction alone. The tagline wed speed date all of this lot is colloquial, implying the mode of address is friendly and down to earth to appeal to a broader audience of teenagers. It would also suggest how modern day women lead busy and chaotic lifestyles and only can offer men a short amount of time to get to know one another, and also how women are no longer devoted to the idea of being with just one man for the long term. This idea is supported by David Gauntlett who suggests like other 'girl power' texts, it (More!) emphasises that women should be able to get what they want from men, when they want it; that men should not dictate the terms of a relationship.5

1 2

Media, Gender and Identity (first edition 2002) David Gauntlett http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/More/ 3 http://www.theoryhead.com/gender/more.htm
4

http://reputationonline.co.uk/2010/06/23/more-magazine-left-red-faced-after-twitter-spat/ http://www.theoryhead.com/gender/more.htm

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The text is acknowledging the modern womans lifestyle and catering to her esteem needs so she is able to feel in control. All of the men featured are voted by readers via social networking site, Facebook which prompts the audience to interact with the text. The Facebook page6 allows the editor of the magazine to ask the readers to vote who they want featured, which creates an initial bond between the reader and text producer, this then develops into conversations between females discussing who is the fittest. It is as though men are competing for womens affection without even being aware of it, contradicting the stereotype that men are the confident, competitive sex vying for female attention. Gauntlett suggest how In the magazines for older teenagers and young women, the encouragement of women to be sexual actors - even predators rather than sexual objects or victims, reflects a 'feminist' turning of the tables. Feminists never really suggested that having sex with lots of men was a goal in itself, but the rejection of passive femininity, and the freedom to openly desire others, is feminist progress.7 Two of the men featured are shirtless actors who appear butch, muscular and handsome reinforcing the typical male ideology of The Big Shot, who is defined by his professional status. He is the "epitome of success, embodying the characteristics and acquiring the possessions that society deems valuable.8" This stereotype suggests that a real man must be economically powerful and socially successful.9 However as the males featured are all famous, it is hard for the everyday male to reach this wealthy, well groomed potential in life and feel able to provide, which overall could have a subconscious effect on the encoders that men must be powerful and successful in order to win a woman over. This is supported by Nick Laceys theory that there is an acknowledgement that women do have active desires and can be confident enough to assert them.10. Gender oppositions that men are dominant, hard and strong11 are all reinforced through mediation, through using such up-close and intimate shots has created a male ideology which is unattainable for most normal men to reach, which is the standard women are forced to expect. The men appear psychologically and body confident with broad smiles and cheeky grins reinforcing the unrealistic standards of male appearance a woman should aim for. When asking members of the public how they felt men were represented, sex obsessed and image obsessed12 were used to describe the encoders vision of More! magazine. The article also contains Fittest Facebook Face where a woman is able to send in an image of a friend on Facebook who is
6 7

www.facebook.com/moremag David Gauntlett Media, Gender and Identity (2002) 8 http://www.mediaawareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/men_and_masculinity/masculinity_stereotypes.cfm 9 http://www.mediaawareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/men_and_masculinity/masculinity_stereotypes.cfm
10 11

Image and Representation Nick Lacey Second Edition (2009). Published by Palgrave Macmillan Image and Representation Nick Lacey Second Edition (2009). Published by Palgrave Macmillan 12 Survey

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attractive. This is allowing normal men to be represented however only for their appearance. The column portrays men only to be good for one thing to look at. Laura Mulveys male gaze theory that internalization of the gaze, changes women's perceptions of themselves and makes them think of themselves as objects. Also men, as the dominant group have been the lookers (the subjects; women the objects.)13 However I contradict this theory as the encoders aim is to empower women and make them feel in control of men and their relationships. The article has been constructed to fulfil womens desires of sexual fantasy to be able to gaze from afar. It provides women with escapism and a standard of what she expects from the man in her life which is supported by Gauntlett of how Some people complain that the magazines reduce women to sex-obsessed predators, and objectify men as 'eye candy' - but this is a blatant reversal of the traditional 'male gaze', and remains powerful politically. Also, like all women's magazines (and to a lesser extent, men's magazines) they may promote an ideal of attractiveness which readers may be unable or unwilling to attain.14 Cosmopolitan has a long and varied history. The current content includes articles on relationships and sex, health, careers, self-improvement, celebrities, as well as fashion and beauty. Published by Hearst Magazines,15 The article in Cosmopolitan is an interview with a male celebrity singer. The title is The Man Manual which implies that men are hard to understand and women need to be guided in order to discover what men feel and need from a relationship. The tag line Usher isnt talking to himself he is addressing us ladies supports stereotypical male ideologies of being dominant and in control, it implies women are very submissive and again, need to be directed. The first question asked is You are a massive hit with the Cosmo girls, have you always been this popular? Instantly the female interviewer is gaining insight into the male world allowing only a female orientated response from the male in which he replies I knew how to identify with girls so it was a natural progression to woo the ladies. The singer is also asked what is sexy in a woman which prompts the male to discuss a womans body sexually. The statement supports the egotistical and self assured, negative male stereotype we are familiar with men who feel they have the right to self-expression and self-indulgence, to love and be loved16, yet it is the encoder who has set up this representation.

The laid back and non serious tone to the magazine could suggest why they regularly feature the article Men OVERHEARD in which women can send in any funny remarks they have overheard a man saying. The tagline Another day, another idiot suggests that men are dumb and have no
13 14

http://virtual.clemson.edu/caah/women/flc436/mulvey.html David Gauntlett Media, Gender and Identity an Introduction 15 www.cosmpolitan.co.uk 16 Barthel 1992:148 (Danielle Limpinnian The Portrayal of Men and Women in TV Ads)

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social awareness and women are allowed to laugh at their expense. This is a contrast as the celebrity males previously featured were shown to be something women should be in awe of, in this article the everyday male is suggested to be something which we should mock. The images of men, which frame the title, are all captured on the street and are not edited; each person appears to be doing a smug, joking face which doesnt look very self assured in comparison to the male celebrities. Cosmopolitan, however appeals to broader audience of the older generation of women, as the tone is formal yet friendly and the front cover is never busy and always exudes class. The tagline FOR FUN FEARLESS FEMALES is bold, striking alliteration which aims to emphasise its target audience of independent, confident women. Cosmopolitan has varied audience groupings, one being The Succeeder17 who will need to seek out the best as they feel its what they deserve, with Cosmopolitan attaining the highest readership of 1,571,000 18 the brand promise is that After reading Cosmo, the reader will feel engaged & empowered to achieve anything she wants to in love, relationships and work. The breadth and depth of content inspires ALL women to be the best they can be.19 The theme would aid the succeeder in their core values for control. The Aspirers20 who seek status and are perceived to be superficial with an interest in fashion would seek Cosmopolitan for its guidance and known repertoire as a self help text. As the magazine regularly features adverts for high end fashion campaigns such as Jean Paul Gaultier and Givenchy this would provide the aspirer with the need for attractive packaging as well as contents. This could suggest why Cosmopolitan have a bigger interest in finding out what goes on in the mind of a man and it provides readers with answers, it is more stimulating for the reader as opposed to having a man there to lust after which could prompt why Cosmopolitan appeals to an older audience.

The dominant ideologies in society are that men are the strong, dominant and unemotional sex, and that women are expected to base their lives around men, creating a family and domestic bliss. The ideologies associated with males could be linked to Hegemony. By hegemony, Gramsci meant the permeation throughout society of an entire system of values, attitudes, beliefs and morality that has the effect of supporting the status quo in power relations. To the extent that this prevailing consciousness is internalised by the population it becomes part of what is generally called 'common sense' so that the philosophy, culture and morality of the ruling elite comes to appear as the natural order of things21. Magazines such as More! and Cosmopolitan aim to empower women through their dismissive male articles, reinforcing how women have their own sexual identity and dont need to be
17 18

www.4cs.yr.com/public_ftp/ http://www.natmagnewsletters.co.uk/nmdirect/cosmo_info.html 19 http://www.natmags.co.uk/index.php/v1/Cosmopolitan 20 www.4cs.yr.com/public_ftp/ 21 http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-gram.htm

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dependent on the opposite sex. However there is still a huge emphasis on relationships being a vital part of life, with the majority of articles based on men and how to bag one which would suggest that a woman may be able to enjoy her life and being single, yet will never be fully satisfied until she is in a relationship, reinforcing the female weakness and gender oppositions. This could be linked the ideologies of women having a maternal instinct and feel their goal is to nurture and love, through finding their soul mate, these ideologies being supported by Lacey who claims The traditional image of a wife-mother-housewife is now being replaced by images of sexually assertive, confident and ambitious women who express their freedom through consumption. 22

Total Overall Word Count including bibliography: 2,182

22

Image and Representation Nick Lacey Second Edition (2009). Published by Palgrave Macmillan