The Importance Of Men In Fashion

Decent Essays
As of 2014, global menswear sales have increased by seventy percent since 1998. Sixteen percent of menswear sales have augmented in the United States alone since that year. Despite this trend, it is still quite unusual for men to be so invested in fashion today. So, why does a man being interested in fashion cause so much controversy? It is typical for women to be concerned with fashion and how they look, but why is there a double standard when men begin to be interested in the same things as women? Susan Bordo is a philosopher that examines men in advertising and how their bodies are seen as objects for visual enjoyment in her piece “Beauty (Re)discovers the Male Body.” Bordo describes her first encounter with an exposed male body as a shocking one because it “caused [her] to knock over my coffee cup” (189) and she also “made a screen-saver out of him” (189). A man being revealed so much in an advertisement during that decade was very unprecedented; however, that is not the case in the present. Undoubtedly, contemporary society has become more accepting of a range of things and men’s fashion is an aspect that falls within that range. In 2016, men definitely have more freedom and flexibility when it comes to how they want to dress. …show more content…
This advertisement shows two men, one is holding a peacock and wearing a long brown coat that has some colored lines on the front, long pants with a square pattern, and large, square sunglasses. The other model in the photo is dressed in more lively colors, wearing a red jacket with a flowery design and matching red pants with the same design on them, paired with a light, powder blue button up shirt underneath the jacket. The models here portray a whole new look for men because the clothes they are wearing are not archetypical for any man to wear. They not only defy the conventional suit, but are unique for any

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Nowadays, advertising is an over $200 billion a year industry. Each day individuals are exposed to over 3000 ads; despite this, many people still tend to believe that advertising does not influence their daily lives, decisions, or opinions. The ads are much more successful at selling than real products because they sell ideas and concepts like love, success, popularity, and normalcy. Jean Kilbourne, author and professional speaker, examines specific images in advertising with specific insight that is somewhat cynical. Kilbourne helps the audience realize that while the ads may seem harmless and humorous, they are collectively a form of cultural conditioning that is greatly affecting the way society and the young generations view body image.…

    • 796 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It is evident that the focal point of this ad is the male shirtless body. After considering the fact that the ad is for body wash it makes sense that the male figure is shirtless. In modern society this man represents what a “perfect male” would look like and has a dramatic affect on both male and female audience. The male figure’s physical presence shows masculinity, with features such as defined abs and muscles, broad shoulders, and a burly, bearded face. Such manly characteristics show “A Real Man” in the minds of both males and females.…

    • 851 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    You are exceptional enough to make the rules, not follow them. If there is anyone’s fashion trends you need not follow, it would be those set by your imitators. Real men don’t find those trends attractive. Actually, it confuses us! Trying to figure out real from fake, man from woman.…

    • 837 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On 1940 Advertising

    • 471 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Advertisements 1940’s through today Advertising has been an important factor for selling products for many years. The advertising strategy depends on what audience the product is trying to target. In advertisements for both men and women, women are used and depicted in almost the same way. Though advertisements from the 1940’ and advertisements now look somewhat identical, the way women have been depicted in advertisements has changed.…

    • 471 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Selling a product ? No problem! Use a woman and have her use minimal to no clothes at all. Now in the present day, advertisement companies are using woman’s body of all ethnicities, as sexual objects to sell and promote their product. In this essay I choose an advertisement by Axe that shows and identifies about gender roles and sexuality.…

    • 1801 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Masculinity In Tv Adverts

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Rebecca Feasey examines the representations of masculinity within television adverts. Feasey explores the representations of masculinity in relation to the hegemonic order and social context. Society have a very narrow perception of masculinity were often many traits of the everyday man is disregarded which Feasey explores within her article. Unileaver’s Lynx range was Feasey’s choice for her case due to the brand heavily promoting themselves as a very masculine product. Lynx’s adverts have challenged some of the different models of masculinity but are still promoting a false, narrow minded view of masculinity.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    A wide variety of advertisements have been creating plentiful images of men and women for years now regarding gender roles and sex diversity. Ford (2008) explains the advertising industry in particular has formed the impression that “sex sells,” now using women’s bodies as sex objects. In addition to this, previous research has also shown men are being outstripped when it comes to women being sexualized (Ford, 2008). More importantly, the advertising industry has shown what the “accurate” gender roles for men and women are to be. Men are to be dominant, tough, strong, independent, and detached.…

    • 1164 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    How often do you get drawn to an advertisement because the first thing that you see is a pretty and hot women? Magazines have been around for several decades but even though only a few people reads them, they still influence old and modern day society. The article, “Sex, Lies, & Advertising” by Gloria Steinam tries to offer a better understanding into the magazine industry and how they operate. Steinam talks about how all magazine companies uses feminism to sale their product. She explains that within each advertisement, companies use women to draw in attention.…

    • 869 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In Susan Bordo’s essay, “Beauty (Re)Discovers the Male Body,” she discusses the appearance of men in advertisements while simultaneously juxtaposing them to female advertisements. Through the piece, she includes many sample advertisements to develop her point. The photos are placed next to the corresponding sections which help make her argument clearer. She also relates her point to John Berger, as she tries to demystify these advertisements in a similar way he tried to do so about artwork in his essay titled “Ways of Seeing.” Berger demystifies art by suggesting the use of image boards to restore meaning to the paintings, while Bordo works to demystify advertisements by trying to discuss why these male advertisements had started.…

    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Stereotypes In Advertising

    • 1460 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Today, it is the societal and cultural norm to think that, “men have positive attitudes toward casual and recreational sex, whereas women value the emotional intimacy and commitment around a sexual relationship” (Dahl). This makes both men and women feel as if they must fall into these norms. Because of the idea that men are more likely to want a sexual relationship, women’s bodies are often exploited in advertisements to attract male customers. Many advertisements directed towards men include images of beautiful women wearing little to no clothing. This is common in advertisements for beer, men’s hygiene products, cologne, and clothing (O’barr).…

    • 1460 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    High School Dress Codes

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Pages

    In addition In our society today, It seems like no one respects woman because of who they are, or what they are wearing, In the Article “What high school dress codes teach our daughters” it states this quotes Your boobs look huge, No way you’re not going into the world dressed like that. These are just a typical statement that people would say when a woman is wearing a sexy outfit or a dress, Woman should be free for what they want to wear, and no one should judge them, for what they wear, because this is how they want to dress, they have their own style of showing how beautiful they are,they have their own reasons for what they are wearing, But of course there’s also negative side, of which it can lead to a sexual assault of woman, for dressing…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Women In Advertising

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages

    From the start of the 20th century to the 1960s, the advertising world has evolved from polite textual information to suggestive pictorials full of sexual innuendos. Women scantily clad are projected from large screens in public spaces to help advertise products ranging from cars to lingerie. Women’s body was objectified and used as a tool to sell related or unrelated products. Sex sells and while it may only appear to define our appearance and clothing choice, its impact goes deeper into our culture, extending into our language, our words. One such example would be the advertising methods around stockings.…

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gucci’s 2011 advertisement for their Guilty cologne will have viewers never looking at Captain America the same way again. The ad features Chris Evans and Evan Rachel Wood. The two are naked and standing together against a black background. A picture of the bottle of cologne is in the bottom right corner, along with a caption reading “The new fragrance for men.” The title is across the top of the image in big bold letters and reads, “Gucci Guilty: Pour Homme.”…

    • 963 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In today 's society most advertisements focuses on women and their bodies. Women’s bodies are often dismembered in ads and shown in scarce clothing which represents most advertisements. Very often advertisements uses woman 's body in sexualization and objectification way. Sexualization is a common tactic advertisements and commercial uses which to create a frame of what their opinion of “ideal beauty” is. Jean kilbourne argues that ” the pressure on women to be young,thin and beautiful is more intense than before.…

    • 1091 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    J., & Covell, K, 1997, p.3). The presence of male dominance in advertisements allows female objectification and acceptance of rape myths (MacKay, N. J., & Covell, K, 1997, p.3). Advertisements have the power of self-reflection in the minds of their audience, and portraying the wrong message could have potentially disastrous effects (Diedrichs, P. C., & Lee, C, 2010, p.2). Moreover, advertisements have a significant effect on the viewer’s image of their own body. The models in the Calvin Klein advertisement are on two different ends of a muscular spectrum.…

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays

Related Topics