Sexulization of Women in the Media
Brent Rosenauer
Advertise Me
The advertisement presented to me was selling what I believed to be women’s Nike apparel. The ad features a black women standing in a powerful pose, with her hands planted firm on her hips and with a face of seriousness and absolute stoicism. Her face is void of any obvious makeup, but at the same time she is void nearly completely of any blemishes. There is a slight glisten of sweat on her skin as if she’s just finished a total fitness kind of workout, and her hair seems slightly frayed, adding to the workout effect. Despite this towering per ponderous of masculine features, the women is in somewhat skimpy attire. She is wearing only a Nike brand bra and Nike brand sweat pants; with her shoulders, full arms and entire abdomen are showing. But back to the eyes for a moment, her gaze is one of previous ads; she is obviously aware that she is being watched, and her pose suggests that she is putting on somewhat of a show; as if to say, “Look at what I have” about her athletic and toned physique. The only three words on the page are “Make Yourself Strong”. The bright white letters contrast every aspect of the scene, but what’s interesting is that the word “strong” seems to be written into the frame with chalk, as if to suggest that the ad could be posing the ability for women to make themselves something, and the athletic women pictured is choosing to make herself strong. The last listed feature that is most striking is the background itself- it looks to be some sort of discolored concrete wall, as if to suggest that the women is in some sort of basement gym. The concrete backdrop also adds to the overall effect as if it’s contrasting the wall and its strength to the perceived strength of the woman in the shot. The final feature I would like to discuss is actually what is not picture within the frame- what the heck Nike is and what it can do for me. To be honest, the brand name “Nike” isn’t even anywhere in the advertisement; only the
Advertise Me
The advertisement presented to me was selling what I believed to be women’s Nike apparel. The ad features a black women standing in a powerful pose, with her hands planted firm on her hips and with a face of seriousness and absolute stoicism. Her face is void of any obvious makeup, but at the same time she is void nearly completely of any blemishes. There is a slight glisten of sweat on her skin as if she’s just finished a total fitness kind of workout, and her hair seems slightly frayed, adding to the workout effect. Despite this towering per ponderous of masculine features, the women is in somewhat skimpy attire. She is wearing only a Nike brand bra and Nike brand sweat pants; with her shoulders, full arms and entire abdomen are showing. But back to the eyes for a moment, her gaze is one of previous ads; she is obviously aware that she is being watched, and her pose suggests that she is putting on somewhat of a show; as if to say, “Look at what I have” about her athletic and toned physique. The only three words on the page are “Make Yourself Strong”. The bright white letters contrast every aspect of the scene, but what’s interesting is that the word “strong” seems to be written into the frame with chalk, as if to suggest that the ad could be posing the ability for women to make themselves something, and the athletic women pictured is choosing to make herself strong. The last listed feature that is most striking is the background itself- it looks to be some sort of discolored concrete wall, as if to suggest that the women is in some sort of basement gym. The concrete backdrop also adds to the overall effect as if it’s contrasting the wall and its strength to the perceived strength of the woman in the shot. The final feature I would like to discuss is actually what is not picture within the frame- what the heck Nike is and what it can do for me. To be honest, the brand name “Nike” isn’t even anywhere in the advertisement; only the