Damsels In Marketing

Advertising can be a cruel game played on morals. In fact, advertisers have tested the boundaries ruthlessly over the past few decades, pushing them further to allow edgier ad campaigns to be published and, essentially, become the norm in our society. In all sorts of media, women are degraded, shown in skimpy clothing and in sexually appealing poses, to draw in the audience (particularly men) to purchase the product. In no ways is this practice new, but the ways women have been portrayed has change drastically. Still, we as a society seem to keep moving further away from dignity. What is it about women in these ads that drives the audience (literally) crazy for them?

There are a lot of trends and patterns when looking at the depiction women on movie posters as a whole. Dealing with women as the main character, the poster largely focuses on their face, not allowing the audience to be drawn in to their sexual body features. Looking at Angelina Jolie on the cover of Salt, she looks fierce, determined, and mean; all qualities that are often not associated with women in advertising, especially when promoting products to a male audience (it may be argued that Jolie is an exception, as he persona as a tough woman from her success in the Tomb Raider Franchise). Again, Natalie Portman on the cover of, The Black Swan, and Meryl Streep in, The Iron Lady, all feature the actress’ from the neck up, leaving the rest of the body out of the equation.

This is not the same when it comes to male lead roles. Typically, action films will depict a “man in charge,” with the damsel in distress clinging on to him to survive. A growing trend with women as support actors is displaying them as vulnerable, and unable to care for themselves. This is common everywhere, with men holding women back, such as in the Twilight Saga, where Kristen Stewart is not able to defend herself (thank goodness Robert’s there). His hand is firmly planted on her wrist, holding her back from potentially running into any danger. This vulnerability speaks to the audience, putting feelings of macho-ness into the already inflated male ego looking at the poster. The poster aims for men to look at the poster and think, “I’ll protect you, Kristen,” as well as building drama for fans of the actual film.

Hands also play a vital role in movie posters, as seen above with the Breaking Dawn poster, particularly with what the men’s are doing and what the women’s are not. According to her article, “What’s Wrong With a Little Objectification,” Sut Jhally explains that “women’s hands usually are shown just caressing an object, or just barely touching it…whereas men’s hands are shown strongly grasping and manipulating objects.” Looking at the movie poster for Drive Angry, this message is hit spot on, with Nicholas Cage in full control of the vehicle, while the actress looks vulnerable, only to be kept safe by Mr. Cage. Her hair flies in the wind, untamed and out of control. Simply if she cannot take care of her hair, she can definitely not take care of her own wellbeing.

Jennifer Pozner explains that men feel entitled to sexiness, and the advertisers are going to exploit it in order to sell their product. There is a standard of beauty that must be lived up to, as putting any woman on a poster may have mixed results, and essentially, cause a failed campaign. This standard, along with making the woman look vulnerable compliment each other to draw in the audience. Not only are these posters giving the audience an attractive woman to look at, but there is also the need for them (again, the men) to protect this woman from the dangers that could possibly lie ahead.

Is there really any stop to the exploitation of women, or have we gone too far as culture that it will only be pushed further and further? I believe the latter will continue to dominate, as the ultimate deterrent is not the dignity of said model exposing herself, but the dollars that are brought into the pockets of the advertiser.