To successfully complete this project, you will want to plan ahead! Pick a venue where you will be visible to others - they can be strangers, friends, or family. When you violate a social norm, people will notice - and they will likely react with surprise, confusion, or become upset! The norm violation project is designed to help you see just how narrow the box of "acceptable behavior is" and how it feels to swim against the stream. Now it's time to get back into the field and DO some sociology! Do remember your detached observation blog from a few weeks ago? This time you are going get the chance to interact with your observed environment.įor this week's blog post, you are going to get a feel for social deviance by performing your own norm violations.Ī norm violation is acting out in a way that is different than what you are socially expected to do. Two comments on peers' posts due on Monday, October 25th at 11:59pm In all, the commercial provides a culturally calibrated script of just provocative enough to be attention grabbing without violating the mainstream American standards for nudity or sexuality.Ĥ00 words and one image. I considered how the ad would have implied different expectations if both men and women were observing the nude woman with apparent arousal.
There are also social standards normalizing heterosexuality by limiting the approving/astonished reactions to male characters. I can imagine that the reactions would be very different if the nude figure were male, elderly, or of a non-standard body type. The arrival of a young, white, and apparently nude supermodel to the scene elicits reactions of approval and arousal by the viewers. This ad reinforces expectations about what a desirable woman's body looks like by dimensions of body type, race, and age. The voice-over focuses on the boldness of “going all natural” while shoppers (exclusively men) react with astonishment to the presence of the nude supermodel strolling through the marketplace. The advertisement uses creative camera framing to nearly reveal an apparently nude woman defiantly walking through a public market. In this advertisement for a national hamburger chain, originally aired during the Super Bowl, the sexuality of a woman’s body is used to draw attention to the marketing of an “all natural” hamburger. disabled, dark-skinned, transgender, etc.)
If you are using an image (like a magazine ad) post a copy of the ad so we can all see it. It can be an image or a commercial - but it should focus on the use of bodies (not just have people in the advertisement).
Kilbourne's work, a full version of her longer film is available here, but I am not sure if it will remain available (not required!):Īfter you watch the film I want YOU to find one advertisement that contains the use of bodies to sell the product. If you are interested in watching more of Dr. Watch a selection from her lecture and the advertisements she focuses on to see if you agree or disagree.
Kilbourne uses content analysis to collect advertisements (originally in magazines, but now from TV as well) to find the patterns that emerge in American advertising. Sociologist Jean Kilbourne argues that mass media and advertising doesn't have to be remembered to make an impact - the images we are exposed to gradually shift our perceptions of our own bodies, our satisfaction with our partners, and how we see each other through accumulated impact on our subconscious.ĭon't believe me? Ladies of the class, how much money have you spent in your lifetime on cosmetics? Gentlemen, have you ever joined a gym and "lifted" or stopped into your local GNC to load up on supplements? And to everyone, when you stand in front of the mirror and consider your reflection - are you happy.
Most Americans are exposed to thousands of advertisements every day - they are so common that we typically "tune them out" and never remember them. Two comments on peers' work by Monday, December 6th