Sharpen your critical mind

This activity requires you to keep your critical mind sharply in gear. You will be looking for an advertisement or magazine feature that tries to convey the idea – either blatantly or subtly – that you have to look a certain way to be considered sexy or attractive. 

Not only women are depicted in this way. Frequently men are too. You can search for an example of either one. 

Find images in the media that falsely try to persuade us that there are only certain kinds of “beauty” or “perfection”. Cut these out (or you could look at the advertisements shown here).

Lets talk about this

Now look at the two adverts above, and think about the questions below. 

“Love your shape” – but only if you can transform it to fit this stereotype?
How does this advertisement try to convince us that we have to look as “perfect” as the image it shows us? How can we see through this notion, and understand what it really is? 

Notice how very young this Guess model is – a child, really – and how provocatively her clothing, hair, pose and expression have been crafted. What message is being conveyed here? What image is Guess putting across, and why? Is it appropriate to her age?

Do you think these advertisements are attempting to influence us to change our way of being – to become someone we are not? Explain your answer.

If the advertiser can persuade us all that in order to be “sexy” or “attractive” we will need their product, then they will sell more. Selling more is their ultimate aim. So is there a reason to believe them?