I’m an advertising and marketing lover. Yup. I watch TV commercials for sport – it’s the only reason I watch the Super Bowl.
Fruit of the Loom’s recent commercial is just one example of my habit.
I watch. I ponder. I analyze.
Have you seen this one?
On the surface, it seems this commercial is selling positive body image. Nothing wrong with that, right?
BUT why does the commercial “work”?
It “works” because the women featured are – well, they stand out. They aren’t what we’re accustomed to seeing. Because they are… flawed in society’s eyes? I guess? How sad.
Can you imagine the campaign pitch? “A large curvy women enters and proclaims…”
I feel the commercial subliminally perpetuates that “body flaws” exist. It acknowledges, in a way, that there is an ideal body.
The underlying message of defiance— in my mind–implies guilt. That’s not healthy.
Why not use “plus size models” and just sell underwear full stop? Why call attention to their flaws or lack thereof?
Besides…at the end of the day? Those women are flawless.
Would the commercial “work” if we saw women like this declaring their flawless factor?
I don’t think that would sell much underwear.
- Any thoughts?
I don’t even see any of those women as plus size. Their bodies are healthy. They ALL look athletic. Despite their “plus sized ness”, they’ve obviously hit the gym a lot to get those abs- and what about women who’ve had children? And honestly, I’m sure there was retouching, etc going on anyway, despite their “plus size” label (which I don’t think any of them truly are), it was like their bodies were still perfect.
Case in point: It doesn’t matter how much weight I lose or how low my BMI gets- I’m going to have that “dimple” at the top of my right leg near my butt. I’ve ran a half marathon and numerous races, I lift lower body, I work out six days a week. The dimple is there and always will be- it’s just my body. It doesn’t make me any more or less healthier, doesn’t make me run faster or slower. Women’s bodies have things like that that are just… there.
I don’t know why underwear even needs commercials anyway it’s something you have to have to begin with, it sells itself.
Exactly Amy!
Underwear doesn’t have to be marketed but BRANDs do and Fruit of the Loom –if you can imagine had probably a detailed write up about their “target” and I assume it says things like overweight, busy, realistic…and then they show models.
I agree with Amy completely. Healthy, athletic bodies that still seem “flawless” to me. No dimples, no cellulite, no stretch marks, smooth skin, etc. To me it just perpetuates the problem. If you have body image issues already and are overweight, I think this commercial would be more discouraging than encouraging. I recently lost 60 pounds, I am at a healthy weight, and it discourages me because although these women aren’t as small as I, they still have that look of perfection, and after four kids, I certainly don’t have it! But that’s the problem!! We are trying to achieve perfection and flawlessness based on our appearance or on what the scale says, which is absolutely FLAWED!
We are beautiful and we are perfect, yes, but those traits are ours regardless of our weight or so-called flawlessness. Beauty is inherent within us. It is ours. If we don’t “feel” it, it’s not because we don’t have it but because we don’t know the amazing beauty we possess. Once we realize all that is ours, it radiates from within and overflows to the outside, regardless of height, weight, etc. It has nothing to do with flawlessness and everything to do with embracing our imperfections and coming to the realization that we are imperfectly perfect and glorious and beautiful even if we have a dimple or two or three or . . .you get the point.
So if you are overweight, then lose weight, yes, but do it to be healthy. Do it because you love yourself, you love your life, you love your family, and you want to live it for as long as possible. But stop doing it to achieve some false sense of beauty and security because it’s just that FALSE. You don’t have to work to achieve something you already own.
Exactly. I am at a healthy weight or almost — but because of my past I am far from attractive. My weight has settled in off places and I am flabby and have no but and then in some places still bony. Do I still get to call myslef flawless?
Love this: But stop doing it to achieve some false sense of beauty and security because it’s just that FALSE. You don’t have to work to achieve something you already own.
Argh. One of these days, I’m going to write a very long and very opinionated blog post about the “body acceptance” movement!
While I appreciate the basic intent of campaigns like this, and while they certainly show a more realistic sampling of bodies than, say, Victoria’s Secret commercials, this ad is one of many showing a politically-correct “body diversity” array. Yes, there are some larger women compared to haute couture models or fitness models. But they’re all very toned, with perfect skin and nice proportions. You don’t see a stretch mark, vein, scar, speck of cellulite, or bit of jiggle ANYWHERE. So even if the women aren’t runway-skinny, they still pretty much look flawless in every other way!
Beauty sells and sex sells. Body acceptance campaigns appear to work very hard to walk the thin line between professing beauty or “flawlessness” at any size (read: sizes deviating by a few BMI points from the standard issue ads) and still using women the average American would find conventionally attractive and desirable. In all honesty, I doubt there will ever be a major ad campaign using TRULY “normal” bodies—too thin without being sleek and toned, larger without being sleek and toned, legitimately obese, average but with stretch marks and cellulite, oddly proportioned. Reality doesn’t really work in selling things, and reality isn’t what the body positive campaigns are really selling anyway. They’re getting PC points while still conforming to all the industry standards.
…aaaaand apparently I’m a marketing geek, too. haha.
THat was so much more eloquent than my post but ….that was what I was getting at.
What is your IQ woman? Seriously. Youre a smarty pants.
I did a paper once on a Victorias Secret commercial.
One scientific study showed young women were more likely to restrict food intake and have feelings of guilt after seeing the slim VS models.
Oh the world in which we live. The media tells us want we want and we oblige. How can we fix it? Lead by example I guess and make the change be us. Challenging. Especially in this arena.
At the height of my anorexia the models were so much more than I was they would have squashed me and it made me so scared of what I had become.
I don’t think media images cause anorexia but they do inspire a whole lot of negative feelings.
I use to be “so obsessed” with positive body image. Remember my old blogs? I would post a lot of ‘positive role models’ and blah blah blah….
HONESTLY? I think its just another distraction/obsession that ED’s fuel to distract yourself for life and what really matters. That’s what it was for me.
I mean, who the Fu** cares what other bodies look like? Beautiful bodies come in different shapes and sizes. PERIOD. I mean, you can stare at magazines all you want and feel bad about yourself but in the end its just a bunch of bullshit. Everyone knows that people dont look like that in “real life”. Every man or women Ive ever talked to about attractiveness has NEVER once said, “a body must look like A,B,C”. Yes, some people have “preferences”. I know men who LOVE redheads, while I saw another guy who LOVED brunettes (I had blonde hair at the time and found it discouraging lol)
The thing is, we cant be what EVERYONE finds attractive because everyone finds something different attractive. I also think the obsession with society’s “ideal” body is totally ED fueled. I mean, most NORMAL women I know do not ,in anyway sit at home thinking about this kind of crap. Yes, of course a lot of women struggle with their weight and want to feel good about themselves but its not an obsession. They arent seeking perfection and they know that bodies are different.
Basically, I think the whole focus on “size 0 runway models vs plus size models” is just another way for us to distract ourselves from life. I mean IT DOESNT REALLY MATTER THAT MUCH. Not as much as people with ED’s make it matter. Yeah, its kinda f-ed up that there isnt more body diversity but it shouldnt affect anyone THAT MUCH.
I feel like I was all over the place with this comment..I hope it makes a tiny bit of sense to someone lol
xx
I agree. I never really got the whole thing….my ED, in all honesty has very very little to do with body image in comparison to others.
I think the phrase “body acceptance” is inherently flawed, because it implies that there is something to accept, which means that you are unsatisfied but will deal with it. It isn’t a positive way to say it at all.
Never thought about that though, before reading this post. Yer so smaht.
Eggsakly.
See these flaws? They’re flawless.
I think that there are PLENTY of health-bodied plus size models who could sell underwear. However, the photo you showed is not of a healthy woman, and should not be represented as healthy. You CAN be healthy and plus size. Case(s) in point:
~ http://l.yimg.com/l/im_siggNQXxBn3VDZENMq8G7qU.dg—x626/tv/us/img/site/86/21/0000048621_20080514232903.jpg
~ http://oxygen.com/janice/images/photoGallery/modelpics/ivory/1.jpg
~ http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uWe19rA6h94/TLcNiYaLRmI/AAAAAAAAARs/gUtitl6VwDo/s1600/crystal-renn-runway.jpg
~ http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Business/images-3/kailee-osullivan-plus-sized-model.jpg
There are many more…but plus size does not always equal unhealthy. Obese usually does. Also, being in denial about your weight and health (whether too heavy or too skinny) is never healthy.
Those women are beautiful….dare I say, flawless?
They most definetely DO NOT look like your average American. They’re still models.
You make a good point — where is the commercial that shows the happy medium. A woman with cellulite and boobs that hang low but who actually is fit and healthy? Or like someone like me? My body is crazy looking…
This really gave me something to think about.
In a way society has already made us biast to the fact that bigger women need to re-define their worth and beauty. They need to work on accepting their bodies the way they are, while the rest of the world does it automatically.
I agree that there should be no difference between the “normal” models and plus sized, Tv and marketing campaings should show an equal number of both, because that’s what we see in real life.
Not sure if this made any real sense, but those were my thoughts on the matter
Ah..bigger women need to re-define their worth and beauty. They need to work on accepting their bodies the way they are, while the rest of the world does it automatically. Now THAT is what I was getting at.
I’m so glad you talked about this, Missy. It bothers me so much that even the “plus size” girls who society calls flawless in commercials like these are still much smaller than what typical America looks like. The fact that these women would even be considered as plus sized is annoying. These women are healthy, they are toned, they are clearly taking care of themselves. They have no reason not to feel beautiful accept for the fact that society has told them they are not slim enough.
Exactly.
They’re models for goodness sakes!
I know what you mean. Just sell the underwear, why do we have to bring such attention to it?
it really IS like they are saying “my flaws are flawless”
I honestly don’t think there’ll ever be body acceptance for all. I mean now there’s plenty of plus size models, but what about the petite and short women? What about people who have physical disabilities? Or with skin conditions? I doubt anyone in the media would say any of these people are ‘flawless’ because of our culture’s obsession with a certain ideal. Not necessarily a thin one, but physical beauty is definitely part of it. It’s completely unfair to those who fall out of this cultural norm.
That comment was by me, by the way. Just a different account
regulating these kinds of advertisements would be so lovely, but certainly not effective. and i’m all about sales. i worked in sales for eight years, and i was damn good at it. if marketing “plus-sized” verbiage will help sales, then go for it, fruit-of-the-loom. i am certain that their marketing department is robust enough to have tested the waters to know that this marketing will be effective.
as you know, i come from 11 years of gobbling cornucopias of food in one sitting, vomiting each calorie until blood and intestinal juices surged from my mouth, safe-proofing with laxative abuse, and starving myself until the next binge and purge episode commenced. and i just wanted to be pretty. so, why wouldn’t i see value in protecting women by not labeling these girls as “plus-sized?”
someone will always be stronger. someone will always be smarter. someone will always be prettier. (someone will always be fatter and plus-sized). but who is stronger? the arm-balancing yoga girl or her 75-year old grandfather who welds on a barge for eight hours daily? who is smarter? the jeopardy champion or the man who develops the cure for hatred? who is prettier? barbie or your mom?
if these sorts of commercials are restricted with intentions to promote healthy minds, we might as well say, ”i’m sorry, alex trebek, but we have passed new policy to discourage the asking of extremely difficult questions on your game show. extremely difficult questions may feed viewers with high levels of insecurity about their brains, and this could cause low self esteem.”
someone will always be skinnier, fatter, etcetera. and the world will always label. speculation about changing this is a waste of time because changing opinion about desirable aesthetics will not change.
because there will always be an extreme example of every category in life, we need to do a better job with educating our children at school. i repeat, educate our children at school.
my mother made a profound statement a few weeks ago. ”at freshman orientation, your college warned, ‘don’t be surprised if your kid returns home at thanksgiving to announce that he or she is homosexual.’ they counseled us on how to deal with homosexuality when it seems more appropriate to have warned us about eating disorders that thrive on campuses.”
my mother’s comment triggered my memory of the student version of that orientation. we learnt to put condoms onto bananas. and then, i immediately shuffled back to my room, didn’t have sex, and ate / vomited several bananas, because they looked really good at orientation. if, rather, i was taught, “don’t binge and purge because your teeth will fall out, and you’ll suffer miserably from loneliness for the rest of your life,” then i may have turned out differently.
i love barbie. i love british vogue. i think that models are beautiful! and although i think that plus-sized models are ugly, i respect them. and i also understand the body. i know that manipulation of the body to achieve particular results is not good.
http://www.nicoleandgwendolyn.com
Wow. It takes a lot of courage to say that you think plus size models are ugly.
I applaud you. That is something probably many of us feel at least in a small way — I mean, given a choice which one would we CHOOSE? Yet, I think most of us would not admit it.
thank you. we all deserve applause for our courage in talking about these sorts of things. plus size models are, indeed, ugly aesthetically to me. hopefully they are beautiful on the inside, but that’s a case by case thing. my issues with aesthetics, amongst other mental side effects of bulimia, are the things that i’m working through in this life after bulimia. i don’t binge and purge anymore, but my head is truly screwed up, but not nearly as much as it formerly was. and that’s the point of my blog ~ to warn people about bulimia and to show them that there’s a way to exist after it. although the existence gets healthier each day, it is still clouded with negative thoughts. xo and have a good day!
together, we are a complete human, I swear—by which I mean, I’m yanging to your ying. I refuse to watch TV except on DVD because I feel like commercials brainwash me… and you seek them out. Fab.
I don’t like it. That’s all. Bad message masquerading as a good message. Good call, Missy.
The problem is that we are all so programmed from a young age to believe that a flawless body is a thin body with perfect proportions. I fear that my 6-year-old believes that as well and since she already knows what a calorie is I don’t know how I’m going to deal with the future.
Great post…it really got me thinking…