
Not only is this picture incredibly creepy, it also says a lot more than what one might first notice. When one initially looks at this advertisement, they see an advertisement for eye makeup. This is fairly obvious from the caption in the bottom left corner and even the remarkably unnerving photograph. These women literally look like dolls. Based on this idea of women looking like dolls, this ad constructs gender by enforcing stereotypes and shaping the ideal body image for women.
Because this advertisement depicts women as dolls, it enforces the stereotype of women as an object. Dolls, being the epitome of an object, have absolutely no say in what they do, they just go along with whatever is playing with them at the time. This is a horrible idea, especially when translated to be applied to women. Women just sitting there limp, waiting on their man and having no say whatsoever, is a sad, sad ideal that this advertisement is trying to get the viewer to buy into.
Furthermore, this ad, playing off of the idea of women as lifeless dolls, shapes the way women feel about how they look. Dolls, often considered to be flawless in beauty, have a sense of perfection that go along with them. Also, this idea of physical perfection goes back several decades to the invention of the Barbie doll. This revolutionary and iconic doll shaped millions of girls' self esteem around an impossible, stereotypical image. However, no woman could ever have perfect looks, even with the dieting, the makeup, and the clothes. When this dream falls short of becoming a reality, the results of the emotional states of these women could be catastrophic. As a matter of fact, almost all eating disorders are developed from a poor self body image.
Based on the fact that it portrays women as a stereotypes of sex objects and creates an unhealthy body image, this ad praises the regressive ideas that women have fought so hard to get rid of. As about as anti-feminist as something can get, this image truly constructs gender in a negative way.
Recent Comments