Hidden Signals of Modern Advertisement - Essay Example

Running Head: CONSUMPTION IN MODERN SOCIETY Consumption in Modern Society of the of the Consumption in Modern Society Industrialization has carried more to modern society than prosperity of consumer goods. With the advent of industrialization came the beliefs of consumerism - the principle that the self cannot be absolute exclusive of a wealth of consumer goods. The part that our present society grasps up to its member is the part of the consumer, and the members of our society are arbitrator by their ability and readiness to play that part. The difference among our existing society and its immediate precursor is not as essential as ditching one role and pick up a further. In neither of its point could modern societies do exclusive of its members create things to be obsessive, and members of both societies do, obviously, consume. The consumer of a modern society is a significantly different from the consumer of any other society thus far. The diversity is one of precedence, a shift of accent that makes a massive difference to almost every aspect of society, culture, and person life. The divergence are so profound and that they validate words of our society as a society of detach and different kind - a consumer society. To increase their capacity for consumption, consumers are never left to rest. They are constantly exposed to new temptations to keep them in the state of suspicion and steady dissatisfaction. Advertising commanding them to shift attention needs to confirm the suspicion while offering a way of satisfaction. It is often said that the consumer market seduces its customers. But in order to do so, it needs customers who want to be seduced. In a properly working consumer society, consumers seek actively to be seduced. They live from attraction to attraction, from temptation to temptation--each attraction and each temptation being somewhat different and perhaps stronger than the previous. When we call todays society a consumer society, we have in mind something more than the trivial meaning that all members of that society are consumers. What we have in mind is that ours is a "consumer society" in the similarly fundamental sense in which the society of our predecessors used to be a "producer society." (Murphy , 2000, 636) That older type of modern society once engaged its members primarily as producers and soldiers; society shaped its members by dictating the need to play those two roles, and the norm that society held up to its members was the ability and the willingness to play them. In todays society there is little need for numerous industrial labourers or conscripted armies, but rather, as a whole we are seen as consumers. With this change in dichotomy the identity of the people in todays society has been blurred. While we are all considered consumers there is no longer a large distinction between the roles of males and females in society. Females are no longer considered solely as homemakers, and males are no longer considered the sole "breadwinners" of todays households. This change in dichotomy has altered the way both sexes are targeted by advertisers. Advertising has had to change dramatically since the end of the era of industrialization; to keep up with the radical changes in public opinion; public opinion has shifted from stereotyped to liberated roles for women, from blue-collar to innumerable roles for men. The language used by advertisers’ shows that they think of people as targets on which they wish to make an impact, rather than as human beings. In advertisements, they use a language which is subtle and cajoling. To each other though, advertising is a battle, advertisements being the weapons and consumers being the target. In the latter half of the twentieth century, advertising executives discovered the road to fortune - this road is sex. Especially in present-day society, it is abundantly clear that sex is what sells. We find it on television, in magazines, billboards and even the radio. It seems that everywhere we look; sex is right in front of us. There is a struggle among advertisers, or at least there should be, on whether to use the sure way to sell the maximum number of products or to be true to a sense of morality. More often than not, greed takes over and morality goes out the window. To sell products advertisers target an audience and try to appeal to their senses and feelings (SASSATELLI, 2007, 23). The problem is that sexual appeal seems to be showing up more often with a broader range of products and audiences. Females have traditionally been more likely than males to be presented in seductive fashions or appear nude but males are now being portrayed as sex symbols more and more. Despite uncertainty over advertisement effectiveness, the use of sex appeal is still considered an effective method of selling products because of its ability to attract consumer attention to an ad. Advertising presents the images, ideas, and belief systems that a society holds. They have worked their way into what we read, what we care about, the way we raise our children and our ideas of right and wrong. Advertising is a social practice so the expression of sexuality continues to be an issue of social concern (Miller, 1998, Press). Sex has spread throughout our entire society and has shown that there are very few limits. It is widely accepted that the use of sex is most effective for those products that are consumed primarily by younger men. Advertisements aimed at young male consumers have become more explicit over the years. Advertisers and agency executives say that they have to use graphic, sexually charged images to capture the attention of the consumer and to attract buyers who are bombarded by hundreds of product promotions every day. Like most consumers, males see numerous ads every day in all forms of media and it is generally accepted that explicit sexual images will get mens attention. The use of sex provides an effective way of getting mens attention, especially in todays world of endless television. Advertisers have used strong sexual images to not only get the attention of males, but also to keep it. Males are different than females, they are known for channel surfing; if you dont get their attention within the first few seconds - you have lost your chance. The bombardment of sexual images towards males over the last decade has lessened their effectiveness. While sex is still used to attract male consumers it is no longer the only tool. The mass media create an excess of opportunities for negative self-evaluation. More specifically, advertisements serve the purpose of instilling needs that leads consumers to develop material identities. Advertisements central function is to create desires - to bring into being wants that previously did not exist. A common technique for achieving this goal is to concentrate on the failings of the consumer (Featherstone, 1991, 16). This strategy creates a market of vulnerable consumers, ripe for the suggestion that products can correct enhances, or even creates their personalities. The level of effectiveness of advertising is debatable, but it is unarguable that there is some effect. Until recently the advertising tools used were very predictable; there was no question that when you saw an ad you would see someone half-naked, sometimes a male, but more often it is a female. Recently though, advertisers have switched more to using humour, and most often at the expense of men. This is due to the sensitivity of womens groups. Advertisers are no longer able to show women in any role that portrays as vulnerable; hence, there are numerous ads that portray women dominating over men. While society is doing a better job in protecting young females they are ignoring young males. A double standard is being created in todays society in respect to how males and females are allowed to be depicted. There has been rampant discussion over recent years about the contradictory messages being sent to young females and the expectations being put on them by the media. It is often said the media is putting unfair expectations on females to achieve an unachievable look. What people seem to forget is that males are facing just as much contradictory, negative messages, and that these messages are having negative effects on young males as well. There are numerous messages promoting violence being sent to younger males, these include such messages as attitude is everything, no fear, the cave man mentality, and the ideal muscular man. Men are expected to aggressive, but at the same time gentle. The goal of advertisers is not to change society, but to sell their product based on assumptions made about an audience in society. These assumptions come from both the subconscious and the conscious minds of men and women. When an ad is engineered, much psychology, thinking, and hypothesizing is put forth. Nothing placed in these advertisements is coincidental. The differences between men and women in similar ads have purpose, whether conscious or subconscious (Bryman, 1988, 6). The differences themselves are not particularly meant to be noticed, and often the details that differ are not meant to be noticed either. They are often aspects that are left out because if included, they would damage the image of the product. Other times, they are details added to better appeal to the audience. In any case, the aspects that differ, as well as the rest of the ad, are not coincidences. They are carefully planned to assist in the sale of a product. Advertisers are not to blame if their advertisements may send negatives messages to consumers; they are doing what everyone else in a capitalist society does, trying to make a profit. References Bryman ,A(1988)quantity and quality in social research, Routledge ,London, pp. 6-8 Featherstone, M (1991) Consumer Culture and Postmodernism; London, Sage, pp. 13-19 Miller, D. (Ed.) (1998b) Material cultures: why some things matter, University of Chicago Press : UCL Press, Chicago ; London. Murphy, Paricia L. (2000). "The Commodified Self in Consumer Culture: A Cross-Cultural Perspective," Journal of Social Psychology 140, no. 5. pp. 636. SASSATELLI, R (2007) consumer culture history, theory and politics, Sage Publication, London, pp. 23 Read More