complete essay

Gender construction is the process of creating gender differences that exist in a society. Gender construction can be seen in the majority of advertisements that appear on tv and other devices. In advertisements men generally come across as empowered, and in control and women are portrayed in the complete opposite way e.g. helpless, vulnerable or weak. There needs to be a stop to these sorts of advertisements and there are groups who are trying to get ride of these gender stereotypes, for instance the UN. Words that can be associated with gender construction are; objectification and patriarchy. Objectification means when you treat someone as if they’re an object and in today’s society it happens to women a lot in and out of averts.

Advert one : Hugo boss-Theo James

In the Hugo boss advertisement, the first thing we see is a close up of a women’s hand on a black suit this is followed by a matched cut. The black suit creates mystery, darkness adventure; this creates a very seductive vibe for the fragrance. The matched cut allows the audience to see that Theo James is in control and empowered by this perfume and of this women; this is because it changes from the women touching him to his hand around the nape of her neck. The hand being around the nap of her neck conveys absolute control and dominance of the women which is a typical male stereotype thus making women look inferior. Furthermore , the editing technique ‘cut’ is used frequently after the matched cut , this is significant because it allows us to see different shots of the product and supposedly how the women reacts to the product when Theo James uses it. In the series of cuts Theo James’ face is serious yet seductive this is called the female gaze theory. This is where women look in awe and appreciate his good looks, which is very fitting for the advert, as the perfume is mean to convey the message of being seductive and luring women to whoever buys this product. Further, the serious expression on his face connotes power and dominance and this makes him seem authoritative. Authoritative people are normally associated with masculinity because of the way our society is ran and Hugo bosses advert carries on with this stereotype and does nothing to break the gender differences barrier. The women in this advert is portrayed in multiple close ups, this is because the producer wanted to show how desperate she was to be with Theo James due to the fragrance. Not only does it convey that women are desperate but it suggest that they are obsessive and compulsive , this is shown by the way the women flings herself over Theo and hovers around him.

Advert 2: Chanel –Kristen Stewart

Similarly, the Chanel advert opens up with a close up but of Kristen Stewart's face, this is good because it allows the audience to instantly see how the fragrance makes her feel or what the fragrance suggests it changes. The expression we see on Kristen’s face is helplessness and wonder. However, that changes in the first few seconds and this is done by a matched cut, where she reaches out to get rid of something that is in her way. From this there is a series of breaking out and ripping of what i would describe as rags. Realistically these rags represent gender differences and Kristen is ripping them down, she’s making a change because of the fragrance. The advert is portraying that the product will empower you and makes you in control. As stated before women are not usually empowered and in control in advertising, they are traditionally shown as vulnerable and hopeless.  In the background the song ‘Running’ by Beyonce is playing, as we all know Beyonce is a very influential strong women , which was done on purpose to emphasize empowerment of women. Not only is she influential but her song is to as it is about breaking down walls and this is fitting because in the advert Kristen is shown in a long shot  breaking away from what we would call gender norms and differences by running up to a wall and smashing threw it. Once she does this there is an amazing hue of white light, almost heavenly to show that she was successful in getting away from stereotypes. This is what the product was made to do In addition, bright and radiant colours such as white, yellow and gold are used; these colours connote hope, freedom, wealth and success. Freedom and success are the most important connotations because it’s what the product is about, the advert is saying if you buy this perfume you won’t be chained or linked to these stereotypes of women and they are successful in conveying that.

In conclusion, these adverts have taught me that gender stereotypes still do exist within advertisements. However, not all adverts are stereotypical, for example the Chanel advert tackles women being portrayed as inferior and completely empowers them. You see Kristen grow from hopeless to hopeful in just a few seconds and that creates other women to feel empowered and causes consumers to adore this idea of women finally being empowered. Unlike the Chanel advert, Hugo boss portrays women as obsessive and easily led which is stereotypical. Here we have to contrasting adverts and they have taught me that there is still a long way to go in order to destroy gender differences e.g. pink is for girls and blue is for boys.