First Draft: Assignment #1

First Draft: Assignment #1

            All around us we are faced with advertisements, created to reach the deepest parts of our psyche to encourage us to buy a variety of goods and services, but no one takes the time to analyze what messages the advertisement cleverly feeds to its viewers. Giorgio Armani's new Aqua Di Gio fragrance advertisement brings new light to the growing topic of whether or not there is now more than one acceptable form of masculinity in our society today by bringing to life a form of masculinity of their own making; a cool, refreshing, sophisticated scent for the young business man who carries himself calmly and collected, but with the untamable nature of the powerful ocean. The model in the ad brings to question different labels from a reading by Susan Bordo that implies that advertisers use different types of looks to portray different kinds of masculinity. The ad is double-sided showing where the advertiser is using multiple strategies in order to reach the viewer and draw them in. The product being advertised also raises many questions about whether there are double standards in advertising for similar products marketed differently for men and women. Regardless of all the different points that can be thought of it all goes back to the model in the ad, cause obviously he is the individual your meant to put a great deal of your attention on.

            In a chapter called “beauty (re)discovers the male body” of a book by Susan Bordo (pgs 168-225), she discusses advertisers using three separate looks to display masculinity in advertisement such as “the rock” (pg186), “leaner” (pg186), and “Gilmore face-off” (pg188). The model in the Armani ad in my opinion portrays the more traditional "the rock" masculine portrayal while giving small hints of "leaner" and the Gilmore face-off, supporting the concept that Armani is creating a new design of masculinity for there brand. The photo is black and white giving the model this strong and stone-like demeanor. Even though the ad focuses more on his face showing very little of his body you can tell he is in physical good standing emphasizing the traditional “the rock” portrayal. He is not standing but leaning and pulling his hair back with one of his hands which would more so fall into the more feminine model pose of “leaner”. Regardless of both of those he still manages to pull off the Gilmore-face off using his facial expression alone to create a powerful intensity to the viewer. By combining the three portrayals into one model I think Armani has created masculinity that supports our traditional views but gives us a sample of new ideas about the portrayals of men therefore, successfully creating a masculinity the Aqua Di Gio fragrance can be based on. Armani was also clever by making there ad double-sided so if the model didn’t you pull you in maybe the second page alone, or the combination of the two got you.

            The Giorgio Armani fragrance ad featured is double-sided; one page featuring a black and white photo of a model, the other showing the roaring rushing waves of the ocean. In my opinion that extreme intensity the model uses in his facial expression is to draw you in, the viewer feels confident in themselves because of the stone-like nature of the photo as if he cant move and you can come in as close as you want. Then once onto the second page he’s captured you like the waves of the roaring sea, showing you who his true nature, power, and masculinity. Very comparable to the nature of the product being sold, from a distance you cant smell a men you can just see him like a painting, but once you come close enough his aroma fills your nose and in some ways that painting has now sprung to life. Or maybe to downplay that last thought the image of the ocean is just to find a similarity to the fragrance and the type of masculinity meant to be displayed by the person wearing the scent; this cool, refreshing, powerful scent worn by a calm and collected man. Now if a scent is adding all this to man what man would not want to wear it and have all the characteristics supplied by the ad then placed onto his portrayal to women. All this talk of fragrance and masculinity is confusing when fragrances are something to described as feminine in nature and purpose, but Armani has seemed to make fragrances ok for both sexes with there different sex fragrance ads that are both similar and difference. 

            The fragrance ad I have chosen also has a female counterpart advertisement. It is not in the GQ magazine because it’s a men’s magazine but both ads are advertised on the Giorgio Armani Website. They both sell a fragrance and its expected for them to be entirely different but they do share similarities supporting the concept that Armani is creating a masculinity of its own that can even be similar to feminine ads in ways. Each advertisements focuses on the models face and their facial expression but their facial expressions are different, hers inviting and alluring, his strong and slightly intimidating. Overall the ads share basic similarities but carry little differences depending on the intended sex of the products consumer.  In Bordo’s reading she discusses that men’s advertisements both sell similar products but mans ads are made up in a way to recreate feminine characteristics in a masculine way. For example the ocean is calm, there is floral scenery, and coloration throughout the female ad while, the male ad has the roaring ocean wave, coloration only regarding the ocean, and no floral scenery. Even though today men and women are now using similar products the ad shows that they are still going to be some differences to make sure that the products portrayal is masculine and not feminine, even if a few basic feminine characteristics found in female ads are used in its format to create something new and unique for men’s masculinity.

WILL ADD CONCLUSION SHORTLY!