Pearl-May Boorer

Media Coursework 2015

Why do expensive brands use such extreme

sexualization of women in their adverts?
Extreme sexual representations of women have become the common theme running through
advertisements for expensive/designer brands, with some adverts containing images similar to
those found in top-shelf magazines such as Zoo or Nuts and occasionally feature respected,
famous women who young children and teenage girls look up to. These images are shown on
TV, in magazines and on adverts throughout the community so it is impossible avoid these
renditions. These images have become conventional in society, yet somehow people arent
acknowledging the way they are effecting people from developing illness like anorexia to small
insecurities such as the size of their nose or the colour of their hair.
The advertisements offer a look and a lifestyle rather than a product. They know that women
want to be sexy and the adverts lead them to believe that buying a particular product, which
cost lots of money will help them to become sexy. The beauty myth, a theory by feminist
Naomi Wolf from her book The Beauty Myth (1990) supports this idea as it suggests that
sexualized images of women are used to discourage others and make them feel inferior and
subordinate. If a woman feels discouraged about her appearance because of the
representations shes seen in the adverts, she may buy the products featured to make her feel
better about herself. As more and more adverts start to represent women in this way, there are
lots more cases of adverts being banned for their extreme sexual nature and
inappropriateness.
The advert for Rihannas perfume Rogue was banned from being displayed in areas with
children because it presents the pop star in a 'sexually suggestive' way. As Rihanna is such a
well-known and respected woman, an image of her represented in this sexualized way may
give the impression to teenage girls that posing semi naked is acceptable and may inspire
them to take their own photos. It features her in nothing but high heels and underwear staring
seductively into the camera while using her arms to cover her breasts, which would be
exposed otherwise. Her legs are raised, drawing attention to them; they are also the centre of
the image and this is where the readers eye is naturally drawn to making this the focus point
of the image. The lack of colour in the image reinforces how insignificant she is compared to
the perfume on the left hand side of the image which is the only area if the page in colour.
Even though this advert is directed at women, it focuses on the male gaze, a theory by Laura
Mulvey. She writes in her essay Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1975: 808) their
appearance [are] coded for strong visual and erotic impact so they can be said to connote tobe-looked-at-ness. This is made clear in the advert as compared to the large image of the
bottle she is tiny. This reduces her presence and makes her become insignificant because in
real life the perfume bottle would be able to fit in her hand; the representation suggests she is
too just an object like the perfume; she is just there to be looked at as Mulvey stated. It is a
very graphic portrayal and extremely unrealistic as it suggests that women are seductive and
promiscuous. The use of Photoshop has also altered her appearance, as nobody is perfect
and blemish free. It is important to remember how common the use of Photoshop is in the
highly expensive production of these photos; many normal girls may compare themselves to

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Media Coursework 2015

this image and think that there is something wrong with them because they dont look like this.
However, this representation is seen as attractive and the sexual connotations of Rihanna are

applied to the perfume making women want to buy it without even knowing how it smells. This
is one of the reasons that advertisers for expensive brands continuously use over sexualised
representations of women to promote their products.
Some advertisers go so far as to use violence as well as extreme sexual representations of
women to promote their products. This is an advert from 2008 for Duncan Quinn a suit
designer for men. The picture features a rich man in a suit from their range holding a tie
around the neck of a dead woman who is only wearing underwear. The picture is in sepia tone
with high contrast making the two figures stand out from the dark background and it draws
even more attention to what is going on in the photo. Her limp lifeless body is flopped on the

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Media Coursework 2015

hood of an expensive looking car- another element, which men are attracted to and her face
cannot be seen; her underwear, body and the bottom of her head are the only parts of her that
are visible. She is represented as a sexual object she is so unimportant that her face doesnt
even need to be in shot. The man has a smug look on his face suggesting that he is proud of
what he has done. This photo sends a message to their customers saying that their suits with
make them feel empowered and superior to women however the advert hardly relates to
selling suits at all but it is these kind of shocking images which get the brand publicity and
these impressions appeal to a certain type of men who want to feel empowered and these are
the kind of men who spend lots of money on expensive suits and hold this misogynistic sexist
view.

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Media Coursework 2015

These adverts suggest tantalizing versions of reality, which are simply unattainable and are in
fact harmful to the minds of young people especially teenage girls who are part of their target
audience. By convincing girls that they must look, dress or smell a certain way when they are
at a young age, they are able to expose their brand to them while they are still impressionable
and when they get older they will feel as though they have grown up with the brand. Dr. Shari
Miles- Cohen from the American Psychological Association addressed how these extreme
representations are not only affecting the female conception of their gender, but the male
conception too. They lead men to believe that women look or act in a much more sexualised
way than they actually do and may cause them to have high expectations or treat them like an
object which is essentially what women are being presented as in the adverts. Some brands
are even targeting pre-teen girls, such as Victorias Secret who have produced a set of thongs

which read such slogans as feeling lucky?. These representations could also be one of the
causes of lots of cases of teenage girls posting semi-naked or even naked photos on the
internet, posing in the same ways as the models that they see in the adverts; this is an
extreme example of self-sexualisation (seeing yourself as a sexual object) which is a
consequence of all of the sexual representations that these girls see in the media. Dr Eileen
Zurbriggen professor of psychology at the University of California writes We need to replace
all of these sexualised images with ones showing girls in positive settings - ones that show the
uniqueness and competence of girls as the issues being caused by these images continue to
arise. Young girls are impressionable and vulnerable as they look up to women such as
Rihanna and see them as role models and because of this they believe that it is acceptable to
post such content on the internet. However, it is not only designer brands who use sexual
representations of women to promote their brands, but cheaper brands have joined the trend
too but the reaction these adverts have received isnt as positive. Psychological scientist
Kathleen Vohs writes about how women show negative reactions towards sexual images used
to promote cheap products due to womens vested interest in sex being portrayed as
infrequent, special and rare. Sex is something which a woman views as a treat, something
you have on a special occasion therefore they do not want to associate it with something of
low value. Having said that, research shows that women react more positively to sexual
representations when they are associated with expensive products. Vohs and her colleges
tested her theory by making men and women watch adverts for watches with the prices
ranging from $10-$1000 and the adverts included either sexual representations of women or
views of mountain ranges. She writes sexual ads promoting cheap products heightened
feelings of being upset and angry among women. These findings suggest that womens
reactions to sexual images can reveal deep-seated preferences about how sex should be
used and understood. This advert for Burger King from 2009 presents a woman with a

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Media Coursework 2015

shocked facial expression and her mouth open while a Seven Incher comes towards her face.
The image suggests something of a sexual nature and so does the caption itll blow your mind
away. Although the advert was criticised for being tasteless when it came out, it still appeals
to the type of audience Burger King are targeting, the D and E demographic group who are the
working class and non workers. Between 1983 and 2003 the percentage of adverts using sex
to sell their products rose from 15% to 27%, suggesting that many advertisers think this is a
suitable and successful way to promote a brand.

Finally, it is not only in adverts that we are being exposed to these representations; they are all
over the media- television, music videos, music lyrics, magazines, films, video games and on
the internet. They are inescapable. It is important to remember that the representations being
displayed are not realistic and can be damaging to younger, more impressionable audiences
who aspire to look like and act like famous celebrities. Also, as more people want expensive
products, more brands are copying their advertising techniques to try and win over those
customers. From my own research I found that 60% of the people I asked were primarily
drawn to adverts containing sexualised women and that seems to be the case throughout
society as well. Many of us have become immune to the shocking representations presented
to us every day and we happen live at a time where this behaviour is acceptable and
unquestioned; it would have been illegal to leave the house like this 100 years ago. Even so,

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Media Coursework 2015

statistics showed the rise in sexual images being used by advertisers and these
representations seem to have become a common aspect in adverts for expensive and
designer products. They do not only appeal to men but also to women, as they associate sex
as something special and desirable just as they do with a designer perfume whereas when
these images are used with a cheaper, less valuable brand, the representations turn negative
and the reaction from women is much different.
Bibliography:
Books:
Mulvey, L (1975) Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema an essay written by feminist Laura
Mulvey regarding this popular feminist issue.
Wolf, N. (1990) The Beauty Myth London: Vintage
Newspaper articles:
Morse, F. (2013) Sexy adverts turn women off, research shows The Independent [Dec. 13]
Primary Sources:
Boorer, P. (2014) Questionnaire: What is it that attracts you to adverts? [Dec 2014]
Web links:
Burger King (2009) advert for Seven Incher:
http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/web04/2012/5/24/12/enhanced-buzz-260761337876837-15.jpg
Drabik, D. (2013) The Sexualisation of Women and Girls:
http://womenleadingchange.wordpress.com/2014/03/13/the-sexualization-of- women-and-girls/
[13 May 2013]
Duncan Quinn (2008) advert for Duncan Quinn brand:
http://cdn.trendhunterstatic.com/thumbs/duncan-quinn-suit-ad-depicting-strangled-woman.jpeg
Mooney, P. (2013) Victoria Secret underwear photos:
http://cdn2b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/26/c1/26c1f4a2
6ca832b60b289b90b7b532ad.jpg?itok=3S8qABhZ
http://cdn2b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/c1/3e/c13ea103
46d8506efced1b04bf2674ed.jpg?itok=Ly3MtUrF
http://cdn2b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/ee/8e/ee8e4a8
b6f4d966fd1a24d322728714d.jpg?itok=A17oEo-0

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Media Coursework 2015

Rihanna (2013) advert for Rogue perfume: http://style.mtv.com//wpcontent/uploads/style/2013/07/rihanna-rogue-ad.jpg