This (women being exploited in the media) is something I’m very passionate about, but I never found the right words to describe my feelings. It’s obviously really difficult to talk about, so if my thoughts on this seem random, unprovoked, and/or disorganized, please know that I am still trying to make sense of this myself. I should also warn that the pictures & links in this post show graphic nudity.
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I’m going to be quite frank: I cannot stand going to American Apparel’s website. What starts out as simple browsing, turns into a blatant titty-fest. I try to ignore it; I try to see the “art” behind their bold displays of skin, but it’s very difficult because I see it as unnecessary & borderline offensive. Especially when I see advertisements like this. I get really perturbed. (& I truly pray that I’m not the only one.)
When I showed those links to Lover, I asked him what he thought of them. He said that the zipper ad, specifically, was “understandable” because it is only “showing how the zipper works.” He considered it an accurate portrayal of advertisement. I do not see it this way.
I responded, “Show how the zipper works, my ass! She doesn’t have to be nude underneath. She could easily wear a bra if they wanted so desperately to show how the zipper works. Her being nude has nothing to do with how the zipper works.” Lover immediately saw my irritation & hinted that I might be overreacting. I told him that I didn’t care if I was overreacting; I don’t like it, & I won’t stand for it.
Let me say this: I have nothing against nudity. I think the human body is beautiful & we should all embrace it, in every size, every color, & every shape. But I also think that nudity to sell a product is completely unnecessary, regardless if it’s “tastefully done” or not. & the declaration of “my body is beautiful!” becomes contradictory when ads like these are shown without shame:
By showing these provocative pictures, are we embracing the female body, or are we exploiting it?
The first thing I saw when I looked at these advertisements was the suggestive poses these models were in. Their “come hither” looks; their wide open legs; their tongues, fingers, bodies calling your attention; their sexual expressions & the obvious showing of skin. For me, it was only a mere coincidence that they were wearing American Apparel garments. & because I didn’t notice the assumed advertisement of the product straight away, my next thought was, What exactly is being sold?
I wear American Apparel garments religiously. Most of my closet is comprised of their pieces: t-shirts, scarves, panties, bras, etc. (& all of these garments were purchase WAY BEFORE I knew of these racy ads.) They’re beautifully made & fit my body perfectly. It could be said that because they are made so well, I feel attractive in them; I feel sexy & confident. But does it make me want to lick my husband’s crotch? No, not in the context of me purchasing their underwear or socks. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that what is being boldly displayed in these advertisements has nothing to do with the product. Or… perhaps that’s the catch?
It can easily be argued that this is Art; that it doesn’t need “a reason.” But I think that if someone is going to publicly reveal their body to strangers, there had better be a damn good reason for it. Especially when these ads can be easily seen by children. What kind of messages does it send them? Unrealistic & irrelevant promiscuity. What kind of messages does it send to men? That women might enjoy being taken advantage of; that women dress in such a way to attract that kind of dangerous attention. Even more than that, these advertisements announce rather loudly that objectifying women is okay. No longer does a woman’s body become something sacred & beautiful; it becomes picked apart to “tits” “ass” “legs” & “face.”
& the more you talk about this touchy subject, the more popular these companies get. We’re damned if we do, & damned if we don’t, it seems.
There is such a grey area to this, but I feel it should only be black & white. Because people are constantly confusing “looseness & obscenity” with “Art.” It’s disgusting, it’s wrong, & frankly, it’s soft-core porn. Why do we allow this? Why do we make excuses for this?
(When you read that the founder & CEO of American Apparel, Don Charney, has been sued for sexual harassment several times, the ads become that much more disturbing. In this interview, Charney says that the word “slut” could be used as an “endearing term” for women; one that “you call your lover.” How absolutely degrading.)
I think we all have gotten far too comfortable with sex in the media. It’s constantly crossing the line, but it no longer outrages us. It provokes no real emotions in us because it’s the norm. Sexual subliminal messages are being pounded into our heads daily. (& American Apparel isn’t the only one courageous enough to proudly promote sex; Tom Ford did a series of advertisements & they are just as bad worse.)
These messages are in music, in television shows & commercials, in movies, & in magazines. We think nothing of it anymore because it’s so common. We are immune to it. But it should leave us outraged. It should provoke raw emotions of agitation & disgust, especially when the context of these “messages” are overly & irrelevantly suggestive, with no good reason.
I think we all need to start questioning the underlying meaning of these advertisements. I think we need to re-filter our brains to see what is really being portrayed, rather than accept these images as “the norm.”
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Q: what did you think upon seeing those advertisements? What emotions did those photographs provoke in you? Tell me…