A Choice Snippet of My Media Blog: Labels Against Women

     This is a commercial that I saw a while ago but would like to talk about in this blog post.

     The commercial shows two successful people, one female and one male, in identical situations but labeled differently from each other. A man giving a speech is known to be persuasive, but when the woman does the same thing, she is labeled as 'pushy'. A man is a boss, but a woman is 'bossy' (which reminds me of the female arcetype 'bitchy boss'). A man who works late into the night is someone who is dedicated, but a woman who does the exact same thing is selfish. A man who takes care of his own appearance is neat, but a woman who takes care of her appearance is vain.

     It calls attention to the gender double standard that is prominent in our society, as well as social gender stereotypes. There is a big difference in how men and women are perceived in the workplace. Men's actions are often seen in a positive light, and the words associated with describing them are often positively connotative. Women's actions, on the other hand, are often viewed negatively. 

     As you watch it, you may forget that this video was an advertisement in the first place. The feminist message that Pantene sends just helps with the advertising even though it has nothing at all to do with Pantene products. As the success of the commercial itself is increased, more product is sold. 

     There's a use of reification in this commercial. Pantene is telling us that we should be strong by "shining". It doesn't refer to us living our lives the best we can and being confident about everything, along with being empowered with our beautiful inner selves--rather, it's really just referring to hair. By buying a Pantene product, our hair will shine, and in turn, it will make us beautiful and confident. A woman portrayed in the video is seen, at the end of the video, happily walking across the street, with her shiny, beautiful hair. Pantene is telling us that aesthetics are essentially the most important aspects of ourselves. It sends the message that women won't be taken seriously enough unless we buy and use Pantene and have beautiful, shiny hair.