Another example of hair removal and standards of female beauty. Not at all subtle encouragement for women in the new ad from Schick/Wilkinson Sword razors for women. Shaving apparently makes you happy enough to sing songs with obvious innuendo.
[youtube]https://youtu.be/rfed1DT1PGA[/youtube]
Comments 25
pj — April 4, 2009
Good. Grief.
Vidya — April 4, 2009
I don't think I have ever wished so fervently for an advertisement to be banned. The sexism and the racism are equally disgusting. I rarely actually get angry at an ad, but the way in which this one degrades women, suggests that this porn-inspired practice should be normal grooming behaviour for young women, and even implies that it is a cure for depression(!) makes me see red.
Matt — April 4, 2009
Anyone else notice the asian gal and the bonsai tree connection? Also the fact that she's singing "Some gardens are mighty small." Sheesh! I guess another racial stereotype link would be the "crazy wildcat" black gal with the "extreme" hedge trimmer.
The pink coloured tools also make me think of Barbie accessories. Although, it is interesting that the shaver they flaunt isn't coloured pink at all.
@Vidya: I wouldn't necessarily say the practice is porn-inspired; plenty of people trim their head hair to keep it nice and tidy, same can be done of hair in other places. The glorification of shaved genitalia could most certainly be attributed to porn, but for the most part I'd assume it's just an obvious personal choice.
Jeannie — April 4, 2009
Amen to all of your comments. Sexist, racist, check and check.
Shaving pubic hair was popular even as far back as the Roman days, but this upsurge (and pressure) is definitely linked to the (nearly) bare ladies and gents in porn these days.
depresso — April 5, 2009
The tulips/two lips thing made my skin crawl... That, and that it's taken as read that everyone (female) shaves to some extent.
Channel 4 in the UK are running a season to do with sex ed and have a website devoted to it (http://sexperienceuk.channel4.com/) - the part devoted to genital grooming doesn't have anyone challenging the notion that you have to, in some way.
(http://sexperienceuk.channel4.com/videos/answering/what-grooming-do-you-do-have-you-done-to-your-genital-area)
Brianna — April 5, 2009
I don't see this sort of fuss when a commercial is released for a commercial for a men's razor. At least the women are dressed moderately in this commercial.
Maggie — April 5, 2009
summoning Sarah Haskins...
Elise — April 5, 2009
One of the things that strikes me as particularly interesting about this commercial (and the previous "topiary" one) is the complete absence of men -- pubic hair management is being transformed from something a woman does for a (presumably male) partner to something a woman does for herself. This is, of course, an extremely shrewd approach, since it makes it seem completely voluntary and almost empowering ("I'm doing this for myself, not for anybody else!"), and also turns it into a compulsory part of the self-maintenance ritual for EVERY woman at all times, not just women with sexual partners.
This seems to be the pattern for a variety of female "hygiene" products -- witness the transformation from the Lysol douche ads ("Your marriage will be ruined if you don't use this!") to the more modern douche ads ("Don't you hate that that not-so-fresh feeling?").
On the one hand, I suppose it's better to do something because it makes YOU feel better rather than because someone else expects it of you. On the other hand, it seems to me that the reason it makes you feel better about yourself in the first place is because you've internalized the previously external influences. I feel dirty and gross if I go a day without showering; but there are plenty of cultures (past and present) where people DON'T shower daily, and surely they don't feel dirty and gross. And it's not because their bodies are objectively less dirty or smelly or bacteria-ridden -- it's because the way that one experiences one's own body is shaped by one's culture. I wonder how many women 100 years ago would have said that their pubic hair made them feel "dirty" and "unkempt"? And yet one of the main reasons women cite now for trimming/shaving/waxing their pubic hair is that they feel "cleaner" when they do it.
I find this pattern of internalization really fascinating. Are there similar patterns in advertisements for men's hygiene products? When a product or procedure becomes part of one's daily self-maintenance routine, does it begin to take on moral qualities that it didn't have before? (I seem to recall Joan Jacobs Brumberg suggesting this in The Body Project.)
Jenna — April 5, 2009
Brianna:
There is no strong cultural connotation between male facial hair and dirtiness or uncleanliness (so long as a moderate amount of hygiene and trimming is maintained). Women, on the other hand, are expected to shave nearly every inch of the body that grows noticible hair or risk ridicule, derision, disgust, loss of cultural and sexual standing, etc.
The two aren't comparable.
If you want to comment on a men's beauty ad, one to pick would be the "Just for Men" commericals that portray men with grey hair as undatable.
Is the beauty myth beginning to impact males as well? Sure. They are an untapped market. Does it have anywhere near the level of extremity as it does with women? Hell, no.
cq — April 5, 2009
So, I went to the "mow the lawn" UK website. They have a "design your own poodle!" promotion where you get a virtual fuzzy poodle, and use the virtual Quattro razor to "trim" it down. You can enter your poodle in the gallery and have folks vote on it.
I skimmed the gallery, and the poodle with the most votes is one that has been completely shaved naked, save for its genital region - which is big and bushy. That made me chuckle...
Chris L — April 5, 2009
The banzai reference is particularly bizarre. I'm given to understand that in Japan pubic hair is more or less left alone, and is preferred that way (though anyone with a greater understanding than my admittedly limited one is welcome to correct me). All that is irrelevent, I suppose, given that this is an ad for westerners...
Bleah.
Mel — April 6, 2009
To Chris L -- yes, as far as I know, pubic hair in Japan is a sign of maturity, and it's mostly preferred that ladies have it. I saw hundreds of naked Japanese women in onsen, and I never saw a post-pubescent woman who did not have natural (or barely trimmed) pubic hair. Mind you, I was living in the sticks -- I don't know if the situation is different in big cities where they're more open to influences from outside.
It was a point of pride to one of my friends that she had more than her friends, even.
Brianna — April 6, 2009
Jenna:
Most men are expected to shave their beards for jobs and such, and alot of men are actually discriminated against if they have beards, so I think it is quite comparable.
Jenna — April 6, 2009
Brianna, men with beards get jobs just fine, even well-paying, white-collar jobs.
Can you find an example of a situation in which having a beard carries with it excessive cultural censor?
Endor — April 6, 2009
"Most men are expected to shave their beards for jobs and such, and alot of men are actually discriminated against if they have beards, so I think it is quite comparable."
It's true because she says its true. No evidence required. Just believe it and oh won't you please pay attention to the poor, poor men!
brian — April 6, 2009
It is, for some fundamental reason, extraordinarily stupid and I am embarrassed for anyone that was involved in the production of it. It really appeals to a 12 year olds mind (both male and female).
Following a loose Norbert Elias analysis; I wonder if the growing concern with such trivial cleanliness and fetish over controlling and 'civilizing' the 'private' sphere is a signal that we are reaching the apex of our psychopathology before the decline of the established order. A la big wigs in France/England in the late 18th century. This whole over-the-top shaving/waxing/manicuring thing that both men and women are trending towards is a real head-slapper to me.
Miriam — April 6, 2009
Jenna - My ex was told that he should shave his beard for a job in education (in the southern United States, if that makes a difference).
HOWEVER
Brianna - I still agree that the stigma against hair on women is FAR greater than any stigma against men with beards, especially the nice, neatly trimmed ones you see in, say, the Just for Men ads.
This ad really didn't sit right with me. I think a large part of it was the implication that shaving pubic hair is somehow the only acceptable thing to do. The racial thing (Asian woman with the bonsai tree) rubbed me the wrong way as well.
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Will — April 20, 2009
Sorry if someone posted this already, I'm a few days behind on the blog. The awesome Sarah Haskins did cover this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU1BidE1VSg
As she mentions, there is also an American version of this ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAk77Kr_OwQ
FEH.
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Lunad — January 13, 2012
Anyone else notice the weird hairless cat at the end of the ad? I thought it was quite strange to have something that looks so unnatural and helpless to promote pubic hair shaving.