blog




  • Essay / Love and beauty in Jean Kiilbourne: the effects of the advertisements

    The advertisement has a white background and images of two feet which explain the effect of the product in the center of it. One of the two feet looks smoother and cleaner than the other and it is shown before and after below the pictures. This shows the audience that their skin can be changed if they use the product. Although it may take some time, perhaps a few days, a few weeks or a few months, advertising only shows the public the positive end effect of the product. Therefore, people who see this ad would think that their skin would transfer instantly, just like the feet on the adverts. Kilbourne explains that “[a]dvertizing constantly promotes the fundamental belief of American culture: that we can recreate ourselves, transform ourselves, transcend our circumstances, but with a twist” (122). Although transformation usually takes time and effort, in most advertisements, transformations happen simply and instantly. Therefore, people believe that they can change their body, features or life so easily. Furthermore, Kilbourne argues that “[t]he center of transformation shifted from the soul to the body” (122). Now people don't care about the interior but the physical appearance. People want to transform their bodies but not their souls because physical appearance has become an important value in modern society. Another image from the ads depicts a woman's legs and a hand holding the product from the ads. They look lean and smooth, and they are beautiful and perfect. However, they don't put anything on them and somehow they look