In today’s world, advertising is everywhere. It appears on every billboard, television channel, and is in the pockets of most members of society with every scroll, click or search they make on their phones. It is nearly impossible to go a day without being exposed to a mass of advertisements, making their influence difficult to escape in our daily lives. These attention grabbing methods of consumerism not only shape our shopping habits, but also exert influence on the ways in which we define and reinforce societal gender norms and ideas of masculinity and femininity.

It isn’t a secret that advertising is embedded with images, narratives, and messages that are meant to influence consumers, however what may be less obvious is the ways in which advertising subtly defines and reinforces certain definitions of what it means to be masculine or feminine in society. Looking at advertising over time can provide insight into ideas on gender and gender norms within specific time periods, and it can also show us how these ideas surrounding gender have evolved in the face of shifting and more progressive views regarding gender.

Defining Gender Norms Through 20th Century Advertisements

Displays of gender norms have always been at the forefront of marketing and advertising as one way to connect with consumers. For instance, in the mid 20th century until about the 1950s to 1960s, advertisements constantly emphasized more “traditional” gender roles with men as breadwinners or providers and women as caretakers and homemakers. Women were also usually either dressed in long skirts or dresses with their hair and makeup done, or perceived as sex objects by the men around them. In contrast, men were dressed in suits or button downs, ready for a day at the office, emphasizing and reinforcing what femininity and masculinity looked like along with how to play these roles. The types of ads targeted towards men and women also suggested what gender norms one should follow, such as ads geared towards women advertising kitchen, laundry and cleaning equipment, while men were usually puffing on cigars and pictured bringing in money to provide for his family. While these advertisements were endorsing company products, they were also a non explicit manual on how to “be” a man or woman

A Cultural Shift in Gender Norms

The stereotypical image of masculinity in advertising revolved around a tough, competitive, unemotional, and dominant archetype. Ads geared towards men which included everything from cars to cologne were made to seem to support the “macho man” showing how masculinity can be shown through stoicism and toughness. However, over time there has been a slight shift in advertising which follows changes in societal expectations of gender norms. With men, around the 1970s they were no longer so strongly confined to the image of the “macho man” lacking an emotional side, and more able to be seen as compassionate or a caretaker for his family rather than solely the breadwinner. Further along the line, more androgynous fashion was incorporated into advertising, challenging binary gender norms. Starting back in the 1970s during the time of Women’s Liberation Movements, women challenged societal expectations of a woman’s role, offering a more progressive vision of femininity. During this time women fought for equality in the workplace, reproductive rights, and equal pay to name some of the goals of these movements. With this movement, advertisements quickly followed in promoting the liberation of women, displaying the many different ways a woman can outwardly express herself, along with allowing less makeup and less restrictive clothing. Brands which did not follow suit faced some degree of backlash. 

Virginia Slims was one of the earlier companies to promote this idea of women’s liberation through the selling of their skinny cigarettes marketed towards women. Despite this progression, it wasn’t until later on that women were used for general advertising more often, especially as a figure other than a housewife. A Duke University article uses a statistic from the National Advertising Review Board, which states that as of this time, “Despite the fact that over 40% of women worked, according to a Journal of Marketing Research study, only 7% of women were shown in working roles in advertisements compared to 45% of men. None were professional or high level executives” (NARB, 1975 p9). 

One of the most frequently voiced complaints about advertising is that it portrays women too often just as housewives and mothers – shoppers, cleaners, and family cooks – minimizing their roles in the business and professional world and in community affairs.

UN Commission on the Status of Women, 1974

One of the more revolutionary ads of its time was the Enjoli perfume advertisement from 1980, which pictured the new “Superwoman” stereotype for women. The main character of the advertisement was a woman who used this perfume to balance the responsibilities of being a wife while also pursuing a career. This idea of a “Superwoman” or “24-hour woman” who cared for her family and also worked to bring home money increased in popularity and gained loads of attention, continuing to be used throughout the 1980s. Through advertisements for different brands, the evolving ideas surrounding gender norms and what they looked like shifted to better display societies’ increasingly diversified views of gender.

Enjoli 1980 Perfume Ad

Femininity in Advertising: Submission to Empowerment

Historically, women were often portrayed as submissive figures who were dependent on men. Many advertisements appealed to the ideas of women as damsels in need of a tough man, a husband to provide for them, or an attention grabbing figure suited to the male gaze. Many brands created advertisements with endorsed products geared towards women to make them more beautiful, delicate, or submissive which only further reinforced the idea that this was how the ideal woman should look and act. Now in 2023 ideas regarding the “ideal woman” have shifted and are more diverse or expressive, less categorical. Today advertisements can be seen celebrating strong, independent and empowered women with different looks or from more marginalized communities who are able to follow their own paths in life independent of a man’s journey and desires or other people telling them they can’t do it simply because of their gender. Brands now endorse messages which support self-reliance and ambition, acknowledging that the traditional, one-dimensional view of femininity does not encapsulate the modern day woman and her experiences. One of the brands that has attempted a major rebrand to be more inclusive of all types of women but continues to face backlash is Victoria’s secret.

Victoria’s Secret “Think You Know Us?” Ad Campaign

Advertising During Gender Revolution

While many advertisements still show typical men in masculine roles and women following a certain beauty standard to exhibit femininity, as ideas regarding gender shift socially and culturally, advertising is forced to reflect and redisplay how they portray gender norms. The new “manuals” on “how to gender” which are displayed in advertisements are less traditional and becoming slightly more empowering and inclusive. Campaigns such as the #MeToo movement, those which support LGBTQ+ rights, and other progressive movements push for gender equality and fuel the demand for this more inclusive advertising. Brands which don’t fulfill these demands or fail to adapt to these changes of inclusivity, body positivity, and freedom of expression face backlash, and risk being out of touch with a diverse and increasingly progressive consumer base. 

Advertisers continue to navigate new waters as they grapple with evolving dynamics of gender, crafting campaigns that challenge traditional stereotypes and celebrate a spectrum of gender identities. The impact of advertising on societal perceptions of masculinity and femininity remain pivotal, with potential to shape future ideas surrounding the concept of sex and gender identification. As consumerism meets and adapts alongside culture, advertising is used as both a mirror which reflects an evolving understanding of gender as well as a stimulant able to bring us one small step closer to a more inclusive and equitable future where people feel it is more socially acceptable to express themselves in a way which falls outside of the traditional stereotypes for what is considered masculine or feminine.

Outside sources:

A Brief History of Women’s Liberation Movements in America

From Housewife to Superwoman