sexist – objectifies and sexualises women by representing them in revealing, tight clothing.
racist – all white characters in an African jungle setting (white privilege)
around 1967 abortions and birth control became more acceptable, therefore it was more normal for an advert to allude to sexual outcomes.
The Score advert was produced in the year of descriminalisation of homosexuality and as such, the representation of heterosexuality could be read as signalling more anxiety than might first appear.
The advert is a representation of white patriarchy in the 1960s as it is a white male with a gun (likely to be loaded) situated above 5 white females who seem to be ‘swooning’ over him.
The females are also dressed in little clothing which would be done to attract The Male Gaze.
The advert is a snapshot of a Narrative story. Before this photo the man was most likely putting the hair cream on and then looking around to hunt with his gun. This photo can be interpreted as a poacher sat with his prey.
There is also a strapline ‘Get what you’ve always wanted’. This strapline is quite vague but then on the advert there is copy which is a relatively large chunk of writing for an advert. I believe this isn’t the best thing to do because adverts aren’t for much in depth attention.
within this image we can see many women surrounding a man and holding him up in his sedan chair representing that he is of importance and that he is to be sought after the African safari type style is very bland with its white background and plastic foliage and there is not one African female or male the way the women look at the man is very suggestive as if that he’s their “prey” the woman are wearing very tight shorts and very revealing clothes where the man is coved up. the way of levelling of the man being higher than the man suggests matriarchy where the product is using women as eye-candy for their the non-relevant product for an anti-balding cream/liquid. the line at the top says “get what you always wanted” suggesting that its not just the affects of the cream but what you get after it..
in my opinion the narrative of this product is that the man uses the product and the woman smell the alluring scent of the cream and when they see him they look at his full thick hair and decide to take him away and worship him and then take him back to the tribe and “admire” his manliness
the desire of the product is that if you have thick hair you will look more younger and hotter than before and saying that you will have women surround you
The Score hair cream advert is an historical artefact from 1967, as such it can be examined productively by considering its historical, social and cultural contexts, particularly as it relates to gender roles, sexuality and the historical context of advertising techniques. 1967 can be seen as a period of slow transformation in western cultures with legislation about and changing attitudes to the role of women – and men – in society, something that the advert can be seen to negotiate.
Similarly, feminist critical thought became much more prominent and pronounced during the counter cultural movements of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, which heralded, among other changes a greater acceptance of birth control and divorce, abortion and homosexuality.
There was also the abolition of hanging and theatre censorship, and the Obscene Publications Act (1959) which led to the Chatterly trial. Nevertheless, as Johnathon Dollimore wrote: ‘all this should not be seen as a straightforward displacement of dominant conservative attitudes‘ (1983:59).
Mise-en-scene analysis (ie Textual analysis) – targets a heterosexual audience, suggests male hierarchy and power over the female gender, due to the position in which the women are suggesting to have a sense of desire over the male. We can see a group of women holding the male character on a platform in what seems to be a safari forest in a place like Africa.
Semiotics: Dominant signifier can be the male in the top middle Paradigm can be the women surrounding the women to put emphasis on the man Reactionary as supports the stereotype that men have power over women, this is because the women are carrying him suggesting that he is superior.
Representational Analysis: –The idea of the male being superior to women and therefore dominating the scenewould have been a normal reactionary look on advertising around this time, this is because at this time women were desperately fighting for their rights. -At this time in history, racism was more common and it was more likely for people to have a problem with people of colour therefore all characters in the ad were white.
How does Score construct a narrative which appeals to its target audience? The narrative suggested to us behind the scene is the idea that the man before hand started using “Score Liquid Hair Groom” therefore making him superior and made him seem more important then everyone else meaning he was then worshipped by everyone and carried by attractive woman. The strap line “Get what you’ve always wanted” can imply that the male gender have the desire to be above everyone else or seen as superior and also being more attractive than other characters of the male gender.
How does this advert create desire for the product? This advert creates desire for the product as it shows a collection of women with an obvious desire to be with the male character suggesting that the reason for this desire is because of the hair product. This could make the audience may want to have the product in order for girls to have desire over them also.
Think about brand values, brand message, brand personality and brand positioning should inform the analysis. The brand values can suggest a high number of sales and supports the ideal male world of having women desire over you and find you attractive. The advertisement can suggest a message to the audience to say that if they buy the product they can get what they want.
Think about how and why audience responses to the narrative of this advert may have changed over time. Audience responses may have changed over time as at the time this ad was created women had less rights and were seen as less important then men so it wouldn’t have come as a surprise that the ad suggests the stereotype that men are superior then women or have more rights, whereas nowadays females are more likely to be bothered about what the ad suggests to us, this is because they now have more rights then they used to and it is more common that men and women are treated as equals.
Textual Analysis – In the CSP, I see a white guy who is on top of a sedan chair with lots of women who are surrounding him, wearing very revealing clothes. The women are all white and look conventionally attractive, and they are trying to touch him and are admiring him, almost as if trying to worship the man. The background is one which suggests that is is a Jungle, and it gives off a sense of an African king because of the fact that the man is above everyone else.
Semiotic Analysis – The dominant signifier is the male character who is above the women in the picture. There is also a paradigm in that there is a collection of women surrounding the man, and the CSP is also reactionary because it would satisfy the stereotypical heterosexual male’s viewpoint. The indexical sign of a gun which the man is holding gives connotations of violence and gives the audience impressions of masculinity, and how he is the dominant person who is in control. It also shows what he could do to the women if they did not abide by his expectations.
Representational Analysis – The fact that the man is above the woman relates to the idea of patriarchy, which was particularly poignant in the time of this advert’s release (the 1970s) when women were still fighting seriously for their rights. In addition, there is selective representation in that even though the entire CSP has an African atmosphere, everyone in the CSP is white, and not black, so consequently the advert is holding back the entire truth. Finally the body types on the females show that back then, there was a common way that women were supposed to look and had to be like in order to somewhat succeed in society.
Narrative – I think that there is a story being told in the CSP, which, in short, involves the man previously being ignored and sad, but then after he applied the product advertised, he started to become the man in the advert, and started being loved by women and living a happier life.
The mise-en-scene contributes the theme of male hierarchy and power over females, due to the position of the women looking like they are worshiping him. Their revealing outfits suggest that the male wants them exposed for his pleasure.
The trees and cheetah print referee to them being in a jungle. The sort of stretcher he is on also links with male heirarchy. The advert slowly tells a story with a beginning middle and end, and that before he used the product he was ‘greasy’ and smelt bad also not getting any attention from women and after buying and using the product, he is now transformed and he’s loved by women and worshipped which men want.
This advert communicates a negative view and opinion of sexuality, the tag line ”let what you’ve always wanted”, translates that the product only attracts women, this is demonstrated when the women are overjoyed when the mans hair is perfect as a result of using the product. The advert informs the gay community that this product only attracts women and it would be pointless to use it. The main aim of this product is not to look good to yourself but to the opposite sex, which for the LGBTQ community is useless.
The products reactionary representation of men and women link to the male hierarchy over women in the media and daily life. The date of this advert, 1963 explains the sexist reasoning behind it. The ideology of women being stay at home mothers and the stereotypical women cook and clean was still very much distinctive. Therefore advertising a product that shows women working hard to please the man, ie, holding him up on the stretcher teases the men that the product brings this. The distrigarding focus on women shows them in a negative and gullible light, and that we would do anything for them as long as they are happy. The only aspects of women that the advert show are those that are favourable to men are their bodies and their submissive tendencies, illustrating the voyeuristic tendencies of the patriarchy.
Furthermore less obvious aspects of representation are lack of the racial variety, there are no asian or black actors in the advert. This creates a message that the product is not for them and only for white people. The racist and lack of black representation was highly problematic in the time this advert was made. The cultural appropriation is highlighted by the exotic setting which reflects the colonialism when white people exploited and stole land from the black natives once again reinforcing the white supremacy idea.
In conclusion the variety of negative and morally wrong representations to the public in this advert shows that time have changed since 1963. The advert highly celebrates male patriarchy and the disregard for women and that their only meaning is to please and assist. The lack of representation for sexuality and race effectively creates a box for a desired human/person, white, straight and arian.
Textual analysis- The guy is sat on a stretcher- looking seat wearing what looks like safari/hunter clothes surrounded by women with less clothing or altered clothing in a certain way to reveal cleavage, tummy, neck and thighs. The women also have ammunition as belts which could make them seem sexier as it implies they are bold and daring and plays along to a fantasy for some men. They are all conventionally attractive and all white. The guy is above the women and the women are all trying to touch him and look at him, almost as if worshipping him.
Semiotics- strap line-“get what you’ve always wanted” to show that this was his fantasy and it came true all because of this product. The dominant signifier is a masculine figure which is reactionary content for an advert that targets men. The connotations with the name of the product “score” could be that he “scored” women. That he is now winning in life.
Representation- He is sat higher up then the women to show his dominance over the women and that he is more superior. It oppresses both women and men as the woman only think he’s sexy because he’s used the product and objectifies women saying that this is what you will earn/own if you look after your hair. It has selective representation and conveys a certain attitude towards the people involved with making this advert. Appealing to the male gaze.
Narrative-The message from this advert is that this guy was nothing until he bought this hair cream. He was probably boring and average and then after using this product he became who he wanted and got what he wanted.
Context- The Score advert was produced in the year of decriminalisation of homosexuality and as such, the representation of heterosexuality could be read as signalling more anxiety than might first appear.
textual analysis- In the advert there is a male on a lectica surrounded by females wearing minimal clothing. They are all attractive white people. They are dressed in jungle like clothing surrounded by jungle trees. The clothing they are wearing is short. The people in a are also represented as more of a upper class type people. The male is on a lectica which is linked to richness and power above others. The male is also being carried by a bunch of females representing the fact that he is above them, above all females and everyone else.
semiotics- subtext this is his dream that he wished to come true and now his fantasy has come to be real after this product
representational analysis- the male in the advert is shown to have only had this power after using the product, he is shown to be higher up and more important than everyone else as he is sat on a lectica being carried by females. The advert is also highly sexualised as its shows lots of women surrounding a male who is higher up. All the women are wearing short clothing and the male is presented as highly masculine.
The male is presumably a straight male who is enjoying the female attention this has a reactionary representation and and stays in line with the social stereotype. Specifically the lack of homosexual representation at the time of production, (1967). All of the characters being portrayed are white, there is no representation of people of colour. This advert is racist in a sense as it could be suggesting that people of colour are at an even more inferior position.
The advertisement is also classist. The male and female characters are seemingly of a high class due to their well groomed appearance.
1 main male, showing off his clean shave with the product.
5 main female models, in awe at this man, supposedly because of the product.
Leaves around the models, trying to identify and show that they are in “Africa” to allow the female models to wear the skimpy clothes they are wearing.
“Get what you’ve always wanted” text to attract customers attention.
Semiotic Analysis:
Dominant signifier (Male in the top, centre)
Paradigm (Collection of woman to show off the male)
Anchorage (Collection of woman carrying the male)
Code (Paragraph shows how this man has ended up being worshipped)
Reactionary (At the time, it was a patriarchy, so the man is being carried above everyone else and is being praised)
Representational Analysis:
The idea of the male being above the women and dominating the scene would have been a normal reactionary look on ads and thing within the advertising world in the 1970s. At the time men were above woman and woman were fighting for their rights.
In addition to this all the characters are white within the advert which relates to how race diversity and equality wasn’t fully supported and in motion for companies and the general public.
Furthermore the advert uses thin, curvy females which displays how body equality was not fully supported and that men and woman had a certain way they needed to look and a certain role they needed to fit. Where men were the workers of the house and they earned the money, and woman were staying at home, being submissive, doing whatever their husband requests or needs for them.
The Narrative:
The narrative behind the scene is the idea that the man before hand was not using “Score Liquid Hair Groom” therefore he was with everyone else, and wasn’t worshipped. However he then used “Score Liquid Hair Groom” which put him above everyone else and he was worshipped by everyone and carried by woman. The strap line “Get what you’ve always wanted” implies that every man wants this idea of being above everyone else and being more attractive/better than others. The advert implies the woman that are carrying him are going to take him somewhere to indulge in adult activities with him. This shows how the advert is directly targeted towards men because as well as the idea of being better than everyone, the strap line also implies the product “gets you what you’ve always wanted” which is sexual activities with one or more attractive woman.
Audience:
Desire: The product appeals to men’s attention because of the female models.
The brand: The brand values the idea of many sales and goes along with the ideal male world. The message that goes with the product is the idea that if you use it, you get what you want.
