Gendered Images
Finding Connections in Local Advertisements from Columbus, MS Cofrom
The Commercial Dispatch(Columbus), "The Immortal." March 27, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch(Columbus), "The Immortal." March 27, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch (Columbus), "Teach Me to do Thy Will." March 15, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch(Columbus), "The Immortal." March 27, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch (Columbus), "And Every Man." September 4, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch (Columbus), "And Every Man." September 4, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch (Columbus), "Life's Romance." May 10, 1970.
The Commercial Dispatch (Columbus), "And Every Man." September 4, 1970.
GENDER IN THE ADS
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These ads have women depicted in some way in the images. Following each large ad is a close up of the text which accompanies the art work. Looking at the images collectively, we see that even though women are included in these images they are rarely in the foreground, rarely the focus of the advertisement. Additionally, they are depicted as mothers, wives, daughters, or biblical characters. Even though many women are working outside of the home and are taking paths much different from that of the traditional, there is no representation of this transition in these advertisements. Instead women are shown in traditional female roles. Men in these ads are the focus of either the imagery or the message, often both.
These ads do not include depictions of women and are directed specifically at men. A few pertain to specific men. As a group, the advertisements tend to have men placed in the foreground. They, like the women depicted in the ads at left, are portrayed in traditional roles - business men, workers, fathers. The ads place the burden of decision, religious life, and family choices on the men they speak to. Additionally, they often depict men as the main leaders in the lives of their children. One ad, "This World," refers to men as those "who literally carry our lives in their hands." Another, "Life's Romance," depicts men as the biggest influence in the lives of their children. This ad ran on Mother's Day of that year.