The media portray an extremely unrealistic representation of not only women, but men too. We could think of tons of advertisements that objectify, airbrush and portray a false reality of women. However, people forget that men are always edited and shown to be unlike the average man. Advertisements can make people feel very inadequate. The average female is size 16, 11 stone and 5’3 and the average male is 5’9 and 13 stone. These averages are very different than what is represented in the majority of advertisements.
Examples
Paco Rabanne – ‘Invictus’ by Alexandre Courtès
This advertisement is shocking in every way. The male is represented to have the ultimate powerful, to be the best and the females become the man’s objects. They are dressed in white to symbolise innocence connoting virginity and the advert implies the man is going to take control of them. The male is clearly edited and has perfect skin, an extremely muscular body and attractive face; the sort of representation which will make almost all men feel vulnerable about themselves.
Lynx – ‘Billions’ by Swan Media
Lynx play on a very similar idea to the Paco Rabanne advertisement above; their product will attract women and make you powerful. However, the man has not got a six pack but is not unattractive and has most likely still been edited. The representation is meant to represent a more ordinary man to attract the audience to be interested in the product. The females in the advertisement are extremely thin and beautiful which is enough to make any woman feel inadequate.
Exploring Creative Advertising Processes 