The new culture that women are buying into today is certainly different from the likes of twenty years ago. With the spread of mass media and popular culture’s new obsession with fame and looks, it is hard to escape the moneymaking trap. Advertisements are literally flooding our senses with subliminal message to try and lure consumers to buy their products. Children are exposed to “Raunch Culture,” as Ariel Levy discusses in her book, Female Chauvinist Pigs, at an earlier age than ever. Levy depicts the Female Chauvinist Pig like so: “She is post-feminist. She is funny. She gets it. She doesn’t mind cartoonish stereotypes of female sexuality, and she doesn’t mind a cartoonishly macho response to them” (Levy 93). Females today are to be more “comfortable” with themselves and their sexuality in order to embody all of the qualities that make them a woman, as it has been defined in this day and age.
I chose a Jim Beam whiskey commercial, entitled “The Girlfriend.” I think this video sums up every macho-stereotype that exists within popular culture. The advertising department at Jim Beam put out an ad, directed at young-single men who are looking for the hot commodity female who will do everything in her power to please him and look good on his arm while doing it. This woman is scantily clad; the commercial is screaming with sexual undertones and subliminal messages. The thing that was most shocking to me is that Jim Beam whiskey was not mentioned once until the very end of the forty-five second long ad. Until then, viewers only see this exotic looking female in lingerie, reciting the desires of every young man across America. This ad airs during sporting events, on channels such as ESPN – the targeted audience. Through the objectification of females, Jim Beam finds a powerful marketing tactic that will sell their whiskey.
Levy points out: “Nobody wants to be the frump at the back of the room anymore, the ghost of women past” (92). The woman in this commercial is in the spotlight, the sexy and empowered female woman that the media pushes into the faces of consumers and eager adolescent boys, the woman who throws her inhibitions out the window. Levy also makes another valid point that truly embodies what this woman is doing: “Hotness doesn’t just yield approval. Proof that a woman actively seeks approval is a crucial criterion for hotness in the first place” (33). This woman clearly exerts no moral self-confidence, or any value in the relationship between a man and a woman besides sex. The dichotomy unfolds here; the woman of the Second Wave feminist movement, in a way, were trying to get rid of the gender roles that had previously been bestowed upon them, leaving them lonely housewives with nothing to call their own. The “knight in shining armor” husband was no longer valued in the way it once was, rather female independence and liberation from the societal norms that had been created – oppressing women. Unfortunately, society has taken this to a new extreme. The respect that a man and a woman have for each other is nonexistent according to this advertisement, and the slew of others that are out there on the market today.
Aside from choosing a scantily clad woman as the focus of this ad, the fact that it is an ad for an alcoholic beverage cannot be overlooked. As Levy discusses with the founders of the CAKE organization, a trendy feminist group of today, the use of alcohol and strippers, appealing to a mainly male audience, is what makes things sell. There is no proper justification for this. The founders of CAKE could not put their finger on what makes this the new feminist movement, or the new definition of a female in today’s society. I think this is the dilemma that the teenage and young-twenty-somethings face today. There is a constant tug of war; do we follow in the footsteps of this sexy woman that “likes guys who watch a lot of football, and go out with the boys,” thinking that this is such a great thing for her? Or do we rebel? Is this something that has completely spiraled out of control that we are at risk of becoming as a whole if something is not done now, with this generation? Should she be or idol? Or a nemesis? All of these questions must subconsciously haunt the minds of young females today. What is socially accepted is something that is rather new and edgy.
Women have come a long day from the post-WWII days in this country. We have finally had our voices heard, in some shape or form. Even if we have not seen the amounts of change that were once hoped for, part of the success of a movement is making the general population aware of what is going on in society. Today, more than ever, woman are educated and in the workforce in hopes of climbing to the top. We have seen it done – big execs at large corporations, like Sony and HBO, are women. Even at Jim Beam, a woman executive comments on this ad in a news article: “It's tongue-in-cheek, and we wanted to tap into that humor," says Kelly Doss, senior director of Bourbons and Whiskeys for Beam Global. To that end, "The Girlfriend" has been airing since Jan. 19 on ESPN and TNT. "We did a very focused TV buy with this," she tells Marketing Daily," because we know [our targets] are sports fanatics, focused on the NBA--they're online, creative and they have passion.”[1] These execs are focused on the moneymaking aspect of this business, overlooking any misogynistic approaches towards women! It is mind boggling, but unfortunately the reality of our times. Christie Hefner, a woman who Levy highlights in Female Chauvinist Pigs, shows that she is engaged in feminist causes and works for the betterment of women and young girls on a daily basis. However, she also runs one of the biggest empires that denotes the power of the WOMAN. Levy finds from this interview: “many more women appear in Playboy for the simple reason that they are paid to” (43). Society has come to a tipping point.
The woman in this commercial says about ‘her Jim Beam drinking man:’ “I know they sometimes go to the striptease, but it’s okay, I’m not jealous – he can do whatever he wants.” She has turned herself into something that looks like she is about to perform a striptease. She is trying to “fit in with the boys,” just as Levy has pointed out this problem in our culture today. I do not think it is wrong for a girl to try and “hang with the guys” on occasion. However, putting down her own identity as a female is something that has little impact upon the reciting of the words, but a larger implication. I think all females need to take a look at this advertisement, and ask themselves, what is the real message here? We are at a point where we need to redefine respect, but that does not necessarily mean abandoning the fun and youthful aspect of today’s popular culture.
[1] Nina Lentini. “Jim Bean Invites Fans to Spoof its Ads.” Marketing Daily, Media Post News. January 24, 2009. http://www.mediapost.com/publications/index.cfm?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=99013
I think this news flash encompasses a lot of topics that we've discussed in class this semester. Levy would have a field day with this commercial. Firstly, I do not understand what this girlfriend has to do with the brand of whiskey. As Katherine points out, the senior director of Bourbon is a woman. This is exactly what Levy points out! By allowing this commercial to run, Kelly Doss is attempting to prove herself and prove that she is "one of the guys." I'm sure she realizes how degrading this commercial is, but lets it run anyway.
ReplyDeleteThis commercial also demonstrates how women are objectified as sexual objects. The woman in this commercial is supposed to be the "perfect" girlfriend in comparison to the perfect whiskey. The fact that this women lets her boyfriend "do whatever he wants" is supposed to make her the ideal mate. It seems that the only reason she is in this relationship is to look good, as Katherine previously pointed out.
I think the comments on youtube pose another problem. Many of the commenters say that they've fallen in love with this woman and many of them praise this commercial. No doubt these commenters are male. None of them are fighting the path of least resistance and noticing that this commercial is very degrading.