Masculinities in (re)Construction: Gender, Body and Advertising
by Soraya Barreto Januário
This book analyzes the representations of men and masculinity, depicted through the medium of magazine. In contemporary times, characterized by the fluidity of social values (Bauman, 2004) and by the growing influence of the media, the man’s image has been changing. New social and aesthetic models are established, categorizing individuals according to certain socially accepted standards. The cultural and gender studies, by analyzing what is conveyed in the media, seek to understand how changes which pervade society today are depicted for individuals. This study’s aim was to identify aspects of a Visual Culture that characterize the man’s exposure in advertising. We have analyzed the visual content in commercials disseminated in the year of 2011 in men's lifestyle magazines, including Men's Health, GQ and Max Men. In the search for evidence and rupture of a visual culture that emerges from the representations of masculinities in Portuguese advertising, we are faced with some men’s standards, represented by seven categories. In that sense, it was possible to understand that the association between the masculinities and advertising perpetuate the hegemonic ideals, with some occasional rupture.
This book analyzes the representations of men and masculinity, depicted through the medium of magazine. In contemporary times, characterized by the fluidity of social values (Bauman, 2004) and by the growing influence of the media, the man’s image has been changing. New social and aesthetic models are established, categorizing individuals according to certain socially accepted standards. The cultural and gender studies, by analyzing what is conveyed in the media, seek to understand how changes which pervade society today are depicted for individuals. This study’s aim was to identify aspects of a Visual Culture that characterize the man’s exposure in advertising. We have analyzed the visual content in commercials disseminated in the year of 2011 in men's lifestyle magazines, including Men's Health, GQ and Max Men. In the search for evidence and rupture of a visual culture that emerges from the representations of masculinities in Portuguese advertising, we are faced with some men’s standards, represented by seven categories. In that sense, it was possible to understand that the association between the masculinities and advertising perpetuate the hegemonic ideals, with some occasional rupture.
