Before diving into the specific Vogue advertisements, a brief history on sex in advertising and its ties with feminism is necessary in order for one to gain full knowledge of the issues at hand. The publication of The Feminine Mystique in 1963 by Betty Friedan, a former writer for McCall’s Magazine, marked the beginning of a new investigation in t

While it would be beneficial to dissect each and every one of the hundred or so advertisements in Vogue, it is perhaps more practical for the purpose of this study to closely and fully analyze one ad from the 2003 March issue. There are certain myths, values and beliefs within the ads that expose something new and unique concerning both advertising in general, and the product itself. Through Nachbar and Lause’s notion of ‘houses’ and the myths, values and beliefs located within each ‘house’, one can clearly dissect the ad in its entirety (Nachbar and Lause 93). However, for this particular study, the focus will be only on how the ad uses overt sexual imagery in combinations with the myths to sell the product. The imagery also reinforces, and perhaps shapes a negative view of women’s social status by reducing her to a decorative piece, sexual object and dependant on outside sources for affirmation of their worth – all of which were prevalent issues in the 1930’s (Courtney and Whipple 11).

The Perrier ad “Stoop” is a prime example of how sexual imagery can sell a non sexual product. In the ad three women (referred to as woman #1, #2 and #3 from left to right for simplicity sake) lounge on the stoop of what appears to be a city apartment, drinking Perrier from the bottle in brown paper bags, while a party continues inside the apartment. The women are the focal point of the ad. They are all seemingly in their mid-twenties, sexily sophisticated, fashionable, alluring and the epitome of chic. While this might seem like a positive portrayal of women, a closer look will show that the ad really just portray the women as sex objects, decoration for the Perrier, and relying on the drink to affirm their worth. Yet, the product is desirable because it makes women want to be like those models in the ad. All of these conclusions of the women are drawn from their attire, posture and disposition (Nachbar and Louse 95).

In mainstream America today, it is widely excepted and well known that the ultra couture fashion magazine Vogue is a forerunner in using sexual advertisements to sell its sponsors products. However, the Conde Nast publication claims in the 1999 Publisher’s Editorial Profile that “Vogue is edited to report on the changing roles and concerns of women, covering not only evolutions in fashion, beauty and style, but the important issues and ideas of the arts, health care, politics and world affairs.” With such a noble mission statement, one might never guess that nearly every glossy advertisement page oozes with potentially offensive sexual images and editorials. Continual academic research and criticism of the advertisements as well as the implications there of in Vogue, hav proven that “women are depicted in low status, or subservient positions” (Plous). Research such as the “ ‘Lesbian Chic’…” academic journal report by Tom Reichert, “Gender Bias…” psychology study by Scott Plous, online editorial “Confessions…” by Cosmic as well as many other studies, all use Vogue as an example when specifying sexual advertisements that have a negative effect on women’s view of themselves. Reichert’s 2001 academic journal article actually pinpoints seven different Vogue ads as examples of “sex in advertising…that reinforce messages of female subservience” (Reichert 12). The abundant amount of sexual advertisements, as well as a large amount of research conducted on Vogue ads, made it an easy and obvious industry to focus on.

The sexual atmosphere that the and phallic image of the bottle creates, not only leads the consumer to think the product is better than other waters because it is sexual and thus desirable, but also shows how the women are merely decorations for the drink. While at first look, it might seem that the women were the focal objects, a second glance will prove that the eye naturally moves from one bottle to the next, thanks to purposefully pr

Some topics in this essay:
Scott Plous’, Courtney Whipple, Stereotyping Advertising, Nachbar Lause, Bunkin Bunkin, Feminist Consciousness, Scott Plous, Editorial Profile, Ford LaTour’s, Cunningham Haley, courtney whipple, sexual imagery, overt sexual imagery, women’s social status, overt sexual, social status, women’s social, product desirable, fashion magazine, woman #2, women advertising, sexual images, advertising ties feminism, sex advertising ties, history sex advertising,