Literature Review
1. Female Images in Ads
Erving Goffman, an American sociologist, tries to decipher the gender relations embedded in the ads by analyzing the gesture, pose and facial expression of female models (Goffman, 1979). Goffman’s research indicates that the female image in the ads brings certain effects to the interactions between genders. Women are often
child-like women. Goffman also finds that femininity is bound with the whole idea of family; however, women’s position and importance are far lower than men’s.
“Decorative roles” are often bestowed on women, as men’s sexual objects or
possessions. “Being saved from seriousness,” those child-like and vulnerable female characters in ads are frequently put in the self-indulgent and unreal world (Goffman, 1979).
Later on, Nancy Signorielli, Douglas McLeod and Elaine Healy’s research on the female image in music video confirmed Goffman’s findings (Signorielli & et al, 1994). The female characters are designed to be the desired object of male gaze.
Moreover, gender stereotypes are duplicated continuously in different categories of the commercial ads; “decorative roles” are still popular (Browne, 1998). “Beautiful”
and “sexy” are the essential qualities of the female image portrayed in recent ads of the women’s magazines and even the Internet ads (Plakoyiannaki et al., 2008;
Plakoyiannaki & Zotos, 2009). When the target consumers are women, most of the commercial products are hedonic ones, such as cosmetics, fashion and jewelry. The advertisements of this sort emphasize on how women can be more beautiful by using the products, so that one can find the female characters often play the traditional and decorative roles in the ads (Plakoyiannaki & Zotos, 2009).
Feminist studies point out the re-presentation of the female image in ads is indeed a mean of the social control of patriarchy (Buker, 1996; Page, 2005). The gender discrimination ideology embedded in the ads should be deciphered and “the female” as a sign should also be reconstructed so as to reconsider the female role in the public field; until then, one can resist the control of patriarchy (Burker, 1996).
Page (2005) indicates that “the female,” as a sign, is an object to be consumed. It calls for women audience’s recognition of and identification with the female roles in
characters, and their positions in family and society, the commercial ads are able to compose an ideal-self for the female audience. The function of the commercials is to stimulate audience’s memory, imagination, and desire, in order to lead them to a consuming discourse where the female image plays the most important part.
Cross-cultural studies, concerning how “the girlishness” is constructed, show that the ads in American magazines tend to stress the individualism of young girls while those in Japanese magazines incline to display the juvenescence and innocence of girls (Maynard & Taylor, 1999). Taking Hong Kong as a perfect example of multi-cultural location, researchers apply the method of social investigation to examine the connection between media and the stereotype of gender images. It is found that despite the strong influence of Western culture, the traditional Chinese gender stereotype is still a status quo in Hong Kong (Fung & Ma 2000).
Also in a comparative cultural study, female models are found gradually sexier and younger in American and Chinese versions of Cosmopolitan and Esquire since the recent millennium (Ji, 2005). Furthermore, Frith, Shaw & Cheng (2005) asserts that “being sexy” is a key to “the beauty ideal” especially for the white females, after their study of American, Singaporean, and Taiwanese women’s magazines. As for Asian urban women, “the beauty ideal” becomes more and more related with individualistic, materialistic, and westernized (Karan & Frith, 2007). Focusing on how Chinese media present women issues, Li & Lei (2010) point out that the issues concerning women rights are often neglected in public discussion. Most of news reports are about young and urban women; elder and suburban women are seldom mentioned in news. Women leaders and managers are few in working women profiles. Up to 51.6% of the female characters in ads are housewives; it is
apparently against the social reality. They reckon that the commercialization of media
discourse (Li & Lei, 2010).
From previous studies of the female image in advertisements, one may conclude that the gender representation in ads is not exactly the reflection of social reality.
Rather, it may be the result of commercial manipulation. Capitalism and
globalization bring strong effects onto the representation of the female image on the women’s magazines in Asia, including Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The westernized women’s magazines thus deeply influence Asian women’s consumption pattern and self-image. That is to say, magazines finally become a significant field of displaying the female image. This female image constructed by media is actually in the sense of being popular and mainstream, and it will certainly affect the
interaction between social members (Morris, 2006).
Accordingly, the media may play as “the reflector,” “the enforcer,” and “the promoter,” while representing the reality, and these three roles are not exclusive of each other (McRobbie, 2000). Women’s magazines are simultaneously social and commercial texts that help scholars to decipher the embedded patriarchy and marketing strategies.
From the historical perspective, the development of women’s magazines is paralleled with the progressing female growth, in terms of self-identification and education. How women reconstruct themselves and look for either practical or spiritual helps from the magazines needs to be further analyzed. Applying “use and gratification theory,” Winship proves that reading women’s magazines help women to gain both knowledge and leisure entertainment (Winship, 1987). Besides
commercial products, the contents and pictures of the women’s magazines often become the base of constructing “the ideal female image” for women readers.
In other words, women’s magazines offer “the utopian hope” that is politically
connection between themselves and the female characters in the ads. This is, indeed, a unique “feminine culture” (Enstad, 1999). Therefore, women’s magazines are a considerable field for female identity and life style; both “the implanted politics and blindness of gender issues in women’s magazines should be taken into consideration”
(Chang, 1998: 315). Chang also points out that women’s magazines usually emphasize on female emotions and family life that would reinforce the gender stereotype of women who tend to be “naturally” emotional and “socially” belong to family (Chang, 1998).
2. Studies of Women’s Magazines in Taiwan and The Women
Both quantitative and qualitative research methods have been applied to the content analysis of women’s magazines in Taiwan (Tao, 1991; Lai, 1993; Huang, 2002; Chi, 2004). Tao discusses the representation of gender differences in the ads, and Lai, on the other hand, focuses on the comparison between the representation and the social reality. Through the in-depth interview with female editors of women’s magazines and, Chang (2004) applies “gatekeeper theory” to her study and indicates that these female editors regard make-up and dress-up are important for women to construct self-confidence. In Chi, Huang, and Chang’s researches, one may find that recent women’s magazines in Taiwan are all under the influence of capitalism and globalization. Most of them are translation versions of either European or American, or Japanese women’s magazines. The editing style and contents are all designed for commercial reasons. The concept of beauty and body ideal are often mentioned instead of serious women issues.
As for the local women’s magazines in Taiwan, The Women is treated as an important record of Taiwanese women status during the rapid economic developing period after WWII. How women coped with the pressure from both the family and
modern female roles are carefully observed Wang (2009).