Hana Saker

Female Dominance

in Advertising

Thesis Over time, the line between

femininity and masculinity has begun to shift and blur, leaving room for a dominant female image to emerge. In magazines like Cosmopolitan, the idea of a powerful, sexy woman appeals to the reader and is used to sell products to consumers. In this paper, I will analyze how the physical appearance, mise-en-scène, and copy of the Gucci Guilty perfume ad in the October 2010 issue of Cosmopolitan magazine portray a hypersexual vision of male/female interaction in which the female plays the dominant role to a feminized male.

Physical Appearance The advertisement is

featured in on the back cover of Cosmopolitan, a magazine known for their emphasis on the sexuality and power of women; the image helps to perpetuate that stereotype. Furthermore, both the male and the female in the ad are clearly wearing makeup and are both very airbrushed. The fact that the male is wearing makeup contributes to his feminization.

Mise-en-Scène Page layout wise, the

female clearly takes up the majority of the space. Not only that, but she is also positioned higher than the male, a strategy which successfully features her as the most prominent element of the image.

Copy Within the copy is the name

of the product being advertised: Gucci Guilty, a perfume. In the image, the female is shown as being the one who is supposed to be guilty of something, but is instead enjoying it or even taking pleasure from it. She is also looking straight at her audience, while the male’s eyes are closed, indicating an exhibitionist characteristic. Through this, she is letting the viewer know that she is in control of the situation.

Conclusion

As a whole, this ad demonstrates the link between what appeals to Cosmopolitan magazine’s readership of 18 to 24 year old women and how those women both view and wish to view themselves.