Flashback Friday.
Toban B. sent in some photographs and a discussion of how energy drinks are gendered.
Energy drinks are already gendered to begin with in a couple of different ways at least: (1) they are marketed as hydration for athletes and sports is a masculine arena and (2) women aren’t usually encouraged to consume “extra” calories. But, in addition to being seen as somehow for men, Toban shows how a particularly violent and aggressive kind of masculinity is reproduced in the marketing, even across different companies.
Monster energy drinks include slashes on the packaging that look like a vicious scratch and what appears to be a crosshair and bullet holes (bad aim?):
Notice that the “flavor” in the picture above is “Sniper.” Toban notes that “Assault” and “M-80” are also flavors:
The can for the Assault-flavored drink also features a camouflage design, invoking militarism.
They call their “shooters” “Hitman”:
Both Monster and Guru link their product directly to (extreme) sports:
Full Throttle and Amp (“Overdrive”) go for a connection to aggressive driving:
Full Throttle energy drinks make it explicit with the tagline, “Let Your Man Out.”
Toban notes that it’s ironic that a lot of these products are marketed as health drinks when, in fact, internalizing an aggressive form of masculinity is associated with taking health risks (e.g., refusing to wear seat belts or hard hats, drinking hard). “In any case,” Toban concludes, “this marketing normalizes and makes light of a lot of aggression and danger that we should be opposing.” And which, I will add, isn’t good for men or women.
See also our post with hilarious fake commercials making fun of energy drinks and hypermasculinity.
Originally posted in 2009.
Lisa Wade, PhD is an Associate Professor at Tulane University. She is the author of American Hookup, a book about college sexual culture; a textbook about gender; and a forthcoming introductory text: Terrible Magnificent Sociology. You can follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Comments 35
yoko_vibe — July 24, 2009
That's interesting to see. I live in Japan, and energy/vitamin drinks are big business here. You see masses of the tiny bottles in convenience stores and even vending machines.
But here there doesn't seem to be the same 'gendering' or 'attempt to be HARDCORE' - most of the little bottles are labelled and named straightforwardly. Actually, they look more like medicine bottles - I suppose it goes with the 'health products' theme.
ben — July 24, 2009
You missed the amazing ads for POWERTHURST
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRuNxHqwazs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-3qncy5Qfk
The drink that comes in flavors of: Shocklate, Rawberry and Gun!
Tlönista — July 24, 2009
No commentary on energy drinks, masculinity, and marketing would be complete without POWERTHIRST, "the energy drink for men. MENERGY!"
Powerthirst 1, Powerthirst 2.
Jennifer — July 24, 2009
"If you like chocolate, try shock-olate!"
Angela — July 24, 2009
New flavours like MANANA, FIZZBITCH and GUN!
austin considine — July 24, 2009
Interesting analysis. I'm a big fan of Context Blogs, and find myself coming here often.
I will offer a small point of contention, however, that I have to point-up as an erstwhile punk rocker: "Amp" is almost certainly a reference to rock music, "overdrive" being a setting (a sort of heavy metal crunch) on many "amps," i.e., amplifiers.
The appeal is the same, so it certainly doesn't dilute your theory. If anything, it adds another kind of example, linking an energy drink as it does to rock stardom. We all know what that's about. (Remember the scene in Spinal Tap where the bass player sets off a metal detector with the cucumber wrapped in tin foil his has stuffed down his pants?)
Talkin’ ’bout Menergy « Masculinity in the 21st Century — July 24, 2009
[...] ’bout Menergy By Steve This article courtesy of Sociological [...]
Lisa C. — July 24, 2009
This post made me think about the energy drinks I've seen for women, called "Vixen" energy drinks:
http://www.vixenenergy.com/
Most of them are sugar-free, and have flavors like "Foxberry."
Liz — July 24, 2009
Although it's become a very mainstream product and certainly violent masculinity has a wide appeal, the first energy drink I remember hearing about was "Bawlz" and it was being marketed particularly to hardcore PC gamers to keep them awake at LAN parties, where of course they'd play games like Counterstrike and the atmosphere is one of very violent masculinity (made ironic by the fact that a lot of these people were timid nerds).
I am not sure if the direct link in appealing to that demographic's obsession with violence and masculinity is still really a factor in the way these are marketed today but it is interesting anyway.
Dee — July 24, 2009
In five short months, efusjon has become one of the fastest growing direct marketing opportunities in the United States. There are many reasons for our success but at the heart of the issue is an outstanding healthy line of energy drinks that replenish the body with antioxidants and nutrients which provide a safe and nourishing supplement to your daily intake of liquids.
napthia9 — July 24, 2009
Oh, I remember Bawlz!
Oddly, both my brother and mother thought the blue bottles were pretty, and kept the empties around for decoration. I think my brother threw out the ones littering up his room, but from where I'm sitting I can still see three bottles above the kitchen sink which used to hold flowers.
Another Monster flavor is called "Headshot."
Ellen — July 24, 2009
I wonder what fizzbitch tastes like.
Drink — July 25, 2009
Dragonjoose, FourLoco, and other alcohol-energy drinks appeal to the same aesthetic. These adult versions of energy drinks play on a rougher vision of masculinity.
Malt liquor like Micky's features MMA Fighters on the cans. Huge, powerful guys... who look nothing like the guys who actually drink Micky's.
This type of marketing taps into insecurities, issues of image and esteem for which the male consumer might be drinking in the first place.
Also, Rockstar Energy Drink is owned by Michael Savage's son, and the CFO is Michael Savage's wife. The business address for Rockstar is the same business address as for Michael Savage.
http://dontdrinkhate.wordpress.com/
depresso — July 25, 2009
If, as Austin Considine suggests, they are inspired by rock music, that doesn't make them any less masculinised. Perhaps less 'risky', but still evocative of the sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll lifestyle that Motley Crue and the likes were famed for.
Lisa Wade, PhD — July 25, 2009
Thanks Austin. Point added to the post. :)
alex — July 25, 2009
There are some pretty ridiculous dude-flavoured energy drink ad campaigns going on in New Zealand right now too, check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjWTiWMvoMg
or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPCEYymtUsw
... no limits, no laws, wtf.
John Lewis — July 25, 2009
I'd assumed Amp came from the phrase "amped up," which I assumed came from Amphetamine.
AR — July 25, 2009
What's wrong with militaristic promotion? These things are very popular in the US military, after all. I'm currently under instruction at Naval Nuclear Power Training Command and Monster is used quite heavily by students to keep up with the demands placed on them by the fast-paced curriculum, and according to one of my instructors, it is also very popular in the fleet to help cope with the demands placed on sailors by the sheer quantity of work that needs to get done on warships. Noted emphasis on the WAR in "warship."
It also seems to me that you are mixing up the gendering of the drinks with the gendering of the things that such drinks use in their promotions. Monster itself is not making any references to masculinity. It's just trying to appeal to people who appreciate violence. The fact that violence is so under-appreciated by stereotypical females is a separate phenomenon that is not nearly as evident in professionally violent organizations such as mine as it is elsewhere.
Andrew — July 25, 2009
Maybe someone can shed some light on the packaging concept here...are those "energy shooters" really supposed to look like bottles of poppers?
And also on the subject of packaging...here's a nice visual analysis of the Gatorade bottle: http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/2006/03/gatorade-conspiracy.html
I love Gatorade. No stupid hypermasculine cliches or metallic hues, just a gigantic penis. Straight to the point.
Cas — July 26, 2009
I would like to offer this rather silly satirical rip-off of the Powerthirst commercials, recorded by a few friends of mine in Cambridge, UK:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheEloquentPyro#play/all/uploads-all/0/POPrAxjKjlY
:)
tina — July 27, 2009
i'm surprised no one mentioned go girl!
http://www.gogirlenergy.com/
T B — July 27, 2009
Hey everyone,
I'm the guy who took the photos in this post.
If you're interested -
Here are other attempts to address gender issues through photos on Flickr -
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tobanblack/tags/gender/
(The energy drink photos in this Sociological Images post all are on my Flickr pages; but I've only added a "gender" tag to two of those photos -- since the gendering isn't explicit in most of the energy drink marketing. The two energy drink photos I've deemed images about "gender" were in the same store. There was a "let your man out" sticker on the outside of the store cooler, so I figure that message applied to drinks inside the same cooler.)
This Sociological Images blog is the main inspiration behind what I do with Flickr photos;
that is, I've joined the struggle to situate individual images in society at large......
in my own way.
(Of course, the tags are just a way of communicating a point of view. There are people who wouldn't agree with my tagging choices -- or with the more basic decisions involved in photographing and posting certain imagery, rather than other images.)
Adrian — July 28, 2009
speaking of amps and rock and roll: let's not forget Rockstar, which dedicates it's promotions to concerts, hard rock, [and apparently sex. "69"?], and the "party life". There's some extreme-sports vibes, but the gist of the can has always been that it'll keep you going all the way 'till morning.
I think Rockstar is a little less implicitly gendered in their marketing, though.
Also I've noticed that girls who drink energy drinks like "Monster" are very much against being seen as "girly"-girls, and occasionally will use product-placement of such "manly" drinks to show that they're as rough-and-ready as the boys can be.
newton — July 30, 2009
i am in we st africa and i like ya products soo much but i wanted to know if we can be in business so that i will be ya sole agent here in my country for ya and i tell ya it will be big hit i will be looking forward to hear from ya newton.
newton — July 30, 2009
i will wait on ya reply
Korean Sociological Image #15: Gendered Health Drinks « The Grand Narrative — August 14, 2009
[...] me also pass on this post at Sociological Images about the similar gendering of energy drinks in the US, with more of a focus on those targeted [...]
JM — September 14, 2009
Have not read all the comments but there is also one sold in lounges/clubs called "Dixon Cider." Say it out loud. Point taken, point proven. Yes, as someone who sells "energy" for a living, this stuff is marketed nearly exclusively to men--most specifically what I call "SYMs"--stupid young males. It's not derrogatory, is observational. I was one once, too...fortunately well before anyone came up with this stuff.
But that's changing. Women (American women, anyway) are being "macho'd" up in our culture and now think nothing of "slamming" beer or other drinks, and some are attracted to these macho-sounding energy drinks BECAUSE they are macho. Given these are typically not your girly-girls, but rather more often the kind DRIVING the hog, not clinging to the macho stud "biker" on it...but change is in the wind for this stuff.
The only stumbling block is this: women tend to have a more refined sense of taste (just a matter of physiology all you hyperfeminist out there!) and so they really tend not to like the taste of most energy drinks.
Reanimated Horse — September 14, 2009
i'm not exactly trying to be combative... but i am extremely curious what the definition of a hyperfeminist might be. a feminist who is more outspoken than other feminists?
Korean Sociological Image #35: Ready for some Hot 6iX? « The Grand Narrative — March 14, 2010
[...] even sex, but those at women that it will simply help them to lose weight. A phenomenon by no means confined only to Korea, you can imagine my surprise then, when I learned of those 6iX advertisements featuring men [...]
John George — June 19, 2015
And here I thought that those names and marketing programs were only marketing the intended IMPACT to be experienced by product consumption and any gender assumptions were provided solely by people who see forced gendering in everything even when it doesn't exist, since we all know that, in fact, it doesn't really exist, in the classical sense that is, because it is actually no more than a paper thin social construct. Whew! Why did the patriarchy have to make It all so complicated?
So, the product manufacturers don't want women to drink these products, but feminists--and here I am just guessing--probably want them to drink 10x more than they might otherwise have any need to drink...just to f#ck with the gender police (especially in France where they are known as the genderarme). :-)
mimimur — June 20, 2015
A broader health craze might change this. Recently a new product cropped up that is an energy drink coded female (I couldn't find an english webpage, but note the little coffee beans under the cap). The background and the bottles themselves are made up in bright colors, but interestingly enough, the focus is on the drink as a low sugar fruit juice rather than the caffeine in it. The target audience have exercise regimens that are just as punishing (tough viking runs, core workouts) as the target audience of the energy drinks above, yet the image of this drink is much softer.
http://bravoboost.nu/
Bill R — June 21, 2015
Lisa, I believe you confuse men with boys. And its not all about age.
Anonymous Coward — June 24, 2015
Or is this the work of SATAN?! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bntfUA6TmLs
PearceHandrick — June 25, 2015
case in point--Red Bull. Bulls=most potent symbol of virile masculinity.