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Sexualization In Advertising

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No longer is the land of advertisement showing only beautiful women in the media, but now handsome men are also dominating the scene. Yet as Glind says, “despite the apparent similarities, there are in fact profound differences in the ways in which men’s and women’s bodies are represented sexually, (160). Although both groups are now being sexualised in the media there are differences in the way they are coached to perform and the overall impression leads to a acute presentation of masculinity and femininity. In this essay I would like to explore the sexualization on men in the media and how it regards certain races and characteristics as attractive and how it influences the ideals of an attractive body.
Knowing that the ideal male in the …show more content…

“Dark haired, olive skinned Latin-looking men dominatine the advertising copus of eroticized images of the male body,” (Glind 164). It may be because it is easier to sexualize an exotic body and place them on what seems to be a higher pedestal, but with the consequences of being just as eroticized as a female would be. No matter the type of media, the strong jaw, large lips and eyes, and soft looking, clear skin will dominate in the features department, but we start to associate different races with a different connotation based on what type of media, in this case advertisements, and the stereotypes affiliated with the type of product they are promoting. For example, Glind says, “Black, African American and African Caribbean bodies are also regularly represented in a highly eroticzied manner, but these bodies are usually reserved for products associated with sport, drawing on cultural myths about black male sexuality and physical prowess” (161) and that “...it is notable how rarely Asian male bodies are constructed as sexy,” (164). In sports advertisement, we usually see a black male because we associate them with being athletic and more often than not, superior in certain sports. In being athletic, a person tends to be a healthy, muscular, and young, which fits very well with the normal ideal young man, but they also are …show more content…

Garlick says, “Hegemonic masculinity within the pornographic imagination defines a pattern of gender relations in which men are both in control of women and of themselves,” (608). This is because the need to show that they are the dominating force, but it also indicates that hegemonic masculinity pressures men into thinking they have to be composed at all times, even in intimate times where two people are connecting. “The male body in pornography is almost always figured as a machine that functions with an almost emotionless, technical efficiency” (Garlick 608). This shows that one of the main points in masculinity during fornication is the lack of an emotional connection while being competent in what they are doing. “Male bodies, for example, are almost never penetrated within heterosexual porn or shown to be out of control in any significant way,” (Garlick 610). The lack of control subverts hegemonic masculinity and penetration in any way would seem like a weakness that should not be explored. Homosexual males are seen in a few different lights for this. While one is in control and is in fact more masculine because he is dominating another male, the other one is then delegated a “female role” as the one that is penetrated. It shows the acceptance of a man not having control and allowing them to take the role of a female where they are allowed to be expressive and the opposite of what is

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