"There is difference and there is power. And who holds the power decides the meaning of the difference." --June Jordan

Thursday, November 20, 2008

When Commercials Objectify Men

Just wonder what you all think about this new Clearasil commercial in which a (rather Bowiesque) guy seduces a female ice cream shop worker by unbuttoning his shirt a little:



Aside from the inversion of traditional gender roles in the ad, there's something about this guy's version of masculinity that interests me, too. As silly as the situation is in the commercial, I somehow find him more believable as enticing to women than the typical macho/muscular guy women are usually seen drooling over in ads.

Like, for example, in the old classic Diet Coke ad:



Thoughts?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I liked th clearasil one. Then I watched the other one, and my main thought was---that was written by men; first was written by a woman. Had to be.

Tracey said...

I know, right? I had the same reaction.

Anonymous said...

that guys sexy, whats his name? haha

habladora said...

Great post, but I'm not sure the difference in the type of guys featured isn't just a change in fashion. I do think that men are more likely to believe that women want them to be hulking, but the second commercial was produced before emo, hipster, and skinny jeans... slim and Irony (note the capital) are what all the cool kids are doing these days.

Tracey said...

hablodora,
Yeah, that thought crossed my mind. I still can't get it into my head that that look might be mainstream cool, since I've always felt like my tastes were so opposite of the mainstream.

Male entertainer said...

As a male stripper and entertainer I think women want different things in different contexts. In an everyday setting they often prefer a guy who just unbutton his shirt as the first video, in other settings they like to see shirtless or even naked men.