“How Dirty Boys Get Clean” – on sexual objectification of women in advertising before and after #metoo era

Abstract

The portrayal of women in the advertising industry has been a topic of ongoing debate for over four decades. Advertisers worldwide have been consistently accused of perpetuating inappropriate and degrading stereotypes of women, including their bodies and their perceived roles in a male-dominated society. Although recent years have seen increased public awareness of such harmful practices, with #metoo movement and some prominent brands promoting the concept of women’s empowerment, significant progress towards portraying women in a manner that respects their dignity and avoids reducing them to sexual objects still remains rather elusive. The primary objective of this paper is to analyse the representation of women in selected printed advertisements from the past two decades of advertising and determine whether there has been any significant shift in recent years. Additionally, the paper seeks to examine the possible implications of sexual objectification in contemporary advertising, with a particular focus on the potential transition from sexual objectification to sexual subjectification. The primary objective of this paper is to analyse the representation of women in selected printed advertisements from the past two decades of advertising and determine whether there has been any significant shift in recent years. Additionally, the paper seeks to examine the possible implications of sexual objectification in contemporary advertising, with a particular focus on the potential transition from sexual objectification to sexual subjectification.

Keywords

• sexual objectification
• women in advertising
• stereotypical portrayal of women
• self-objectification