This ad for a perfume depicts a female image and lists gender stereotypes about what a woman should act like. The list underneath of the woman's face states "Women should be: quiet, obedient,submissive..etc." What are your thoughts on this?
Also, we encourage posts that deal with the issues of culture and gender found in this ad. For example, is it questionable that an ad company automatically uses Muslim culture in an attempt to depict these characteristics?
I know the maker of this perfume is Iranian, and an expatriot. Many of the characteristics desired of women in the ad are characteristics that were and to some extent still are expected of women in Iran, especially in the beginning of the Islamic Republic. I have a feeling that this ad is meant as a sattire of the expected role of women there today. One point is that while women are required to cover up their hair and bodies, they aren't allowed to wear make-up. This ad shows the woman wearing heavy make-up, which has often been a sign of rebellion in Iran. Girls and women wearing a bit of mascara or eyeliner, showing bits of carefully arranged bangs from the edge of the head covering. To someone not from the country, this may be seen as a repressive portrait, but in reality this could be a portrait of a brave women who faces reprimands/prison, whatever for wearing this makeup, and therefore the adjectives below could be satire. Aside from this, do you think this is helpful to portray a Muslim woman this way in a western magazine ad regardless of whether it is sattire or not? How does this negatively portray Muslim women in the West? Does this ad play into Orientalism? I am just posing some questions for feedback...
Posted by: Roshni | June 15, 2005 at 05:44 PM