English 101

The Assignment: For this assignment you will need to find three or four print (from magazines or newspapers) or online ads you feel are aimed at you in some way or ads that feature representations of a group with which you identify. These ads might be directed at or feature people of your gender, sexual orientation, age group, race, religion, your particular interests in music, sports, style, etc. All the ads you pick should have the same group in common — if you decide, for example, to look at ads which represent or are directed at your racial group, then ALL of your ads must represent or be directed at your racial group.

Once you find your ads, you will need to do two things: 1) Read the ads as Douglas and Bordo do; critique them by finding and exposing the assumptions behind them. Look at what the ads suggest about the group in question — how they present the group to itself and to outsiders. Think about what your ads are REALLY saying, about what lurks below the surface. Think about what the ads are telling people to do, to want, to be, and about how to be seen. What sort of anxiety or desires are the ads addressing, exploiting, or promoting, whether subtly or overtly? (The trick here is to understand how Douglas and Bordo’s’ arguments work, where they start and where they end, how they frame their critique). And 2) Consider how what the ads suggest about the groups they are aimed at or represent relate to the way you see yourself as a member of that group. In other words, how do the ads pertain to your identity? Consider the following questions (you don’t have to answer every one): Are the ads accurate in what they say (whether subtly or overtly) about your group? Is their characterization fair? Do they contradict or confirm the way you see yourself or the way you wish to be seen? Consider also whether ads like this have had some sort of role in shaping your identity. Are representations like the ones in your ads somehow responsible for how you see yourself? Are such representations common?

In your essay, you will need to synthesize 1 and 2: you will read the ads and talk about how they confirm or contradict the way you see yourself or the way you want others to see you. I suggest beginning your essay by speaking generally about your ads, your identity and how the ads confirm or contradict it, then go from there, moving toward saying something general about contemporary representations of the group with which you identify. You might also wish to take a tone similar to Douglas’ in making your argument. Make sure that your thesis is clear and well developed and that the rest of your essay is devoted to proving it.
If you are at all confused about this assignment, please talk to me about it — I want to make sure that you understand what I’m asking you to do.

Useful terms for your critical vocabulary

• depict (v.) to represent visibly, to show

• suggest (v.) to offer an interpretation or meaning, overtly or subtly (also, consider “imply”)

• read (v.) to interpret (as well as “a reading”: (n.) an interpretation)

• copy (n.) the text in an ad (sometimes “ad copy”)

• image (n.) a reproduced sight, like a photograph — remember Berger? Ads feature images of this and that — e.g. “an image of Kate Moss.”

• campaign (n.) (or ad campaign) a series of ads for the same product using a similar theme and imagery. Ex. the Budweiser frog campaign, the Virginia Slims, “You’ve come a long way, baby” and “It’s a woman thing” campaigns.