Comments on: A Set of Ads Suggesting that Men Must Eschew Femininity

By: Satirizing Advertising for Men’s Personal Hygiene Products » Sociological Images

Sat, 10 Jul 2010 20:31:57 +0000

[...] real men don’t worry about body hair, Power deodorant, using women’s hair gel is a small step from cross-dressing, Axe toughens up the Israeli army, Nivea mocks Axe-type marketing, men who don’t worry about [...]

By: Zaphod

Zaphod — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 08:56:28 +0000

The first one was what got me – it sounds like an advocacy of gang violence: “built for a gang of six with plenty of room for everyone’s equipment” Seriously?

By: Sociological Images » Rejecting The Gender Binary In Fashion

Sociological Images » Rejecting The Gender Binary In Fashion — Mon, 04 May 2009 05:17:55 +0000

[...] other examples of antrocentrism, see our posts here, here, here, here, here, and [...]

By: Ben Zvan

Ben Zvan — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 04:20:30 +0000

@K: When I bought my kilt (in Scotland) the salesman said “Eye, it’s a skirt, but it’s a mans skirt!” I think it’s mostly non-Scots who don’t think of them as skirts. Like the guy at my office who said “You know what the difference is between a kilt and a skirt? The guy wearing a skirt won’t kick your ass for asking about his skirt.”

By: Sociological Images » DIAMONDS OR THE DOGHOUSE

Sociological Images » DIAMONDS OR THE DOGHOUSE — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 10:04:27 +0000

[...] K. sent us another example of androcentrism (see here, here, here, and here), one that is nicely combined with the representation of women as annoying [...]

By: Dubi

Dubi — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 03:25:35 +0000

I agree with Rachel – the second ad isn’t about masculinity vs. femininity, but about manhood vs. boyhood.

By: K

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:26:06 +0000

I instinctively read the whiskey ad in a way which was probably not intended: “This is an American product, not Scotch”.

The general style of the ad – sepia tones, glass, bar, elbows – is highly similar to many adverts for the many, many brands of Scotch whisky available in the UK. What else might you see in a Scotch whisky advert… well, a man in (to all intents and purposes) a skirt.

Not that you should ever refer to the kilt as a skirt. It won’t go down well…

(I am not suggesting that the other readings aren’t what was intended, just thought it was funny that my instinctive reading was so different!)

By: Bagelsan

Bagelsan — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:04:34 +0000

Calling a he-man product “Consort” struck me a little funny, ’cause I pretty much associate that with being the Queen’s boyfriend. …is that appealing to construction workers…?

By: trannypunk

trannypunk — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:55:39 +0000

‘check your skirts at the door’ has a double meaning, ‘skirt’ is also a derogatory term for ‘female’.
so this ad also reads ‘no ladies allowed’, or ‘he-man woman-haters club’.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:37:20 +0000

I don’t see that the Kawasaki advert is all about masculinity. I’m a female biker, and the ad definitely appeals to me. The rest I can understand though.

By: Matt K

Matt K — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 07:18:03 +0000

Wow, I’m surprised these ads are still around. A lot of them look like they are from some time ago…but then, they are products marketed mainly to “manly” men, aren’t they?

By: Lazercat

Lazercat — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 06:41:38 +0000

It’s funny that these people believe that such blatant insecurity about one’s gender identity or sexuality is the ultimate expression of masculinity itself. And I thought being a man was about being strong…*snark*
A real man, imho, is someone who isn’t afraid about appearing feminine/gay/whatever, not someone who spends every waking moment worrying about his schwanz falling off at the first bite of tofu. (this is coming from a straight woman).
Not to mention, these rigid, insecure ideals of masculinity are one of the main perpetuators of homophobia and transphobia – seeing femininity or even the mere indication of it as the worst possible crime for a man to commit. This is another way in which feminism can help men, by destroying these rigid gender ideals and thereby removing the base for a lot of homophobic and transphobic sentiments.