I'm undecided as to what to make of this ad currently showing on British TV. There's certainly been some consternation amongst YouTube viewers, with comments including 'If this were about a woman it would have been instantly banned ' and "a typical male bashing commercial. The safe and acceptable target.... men ".
I hear these concerns, and as an advocate of gender equality, I don't see how this kind of advert helps anyone. The (male) makers of the ad actually defended it on YouTube as 'tongue in cheek', in light of the fact it's still women who shoulder the majority of the burden of housework. I asked my partner if he found the ad offensive, and he replied that he couldn't care less. I asked a man at work (having described the ad to him) and he actually said 'anything that makes housework simpler for men has got to be a good thing - saves us from getting bollocked by our wives when we get something wrong!'. He then went on to relay an instance of him spraying a polished wood table with oven cleaner under the mistaken impression it was wood polish 'because the cans had identical-coloured lids' - the table was of course ruined. I had to chuckle at that one.
Perhaps guys can feel more secure that piss-taking adverts aren't going to harm them or anyone's perception of them (although after my colleague's tale, I'm wondering if there is some gender division regarding ability to read labels on cleaning products...!). It just genuinely didn't seem to occur to either guys I asked to regard the ads as anything but trivial. However a lot of guys on YouTube are getting up in arms and calling for ASA to pull the ad - I'm just wondering if, in the interest of fairness, I should be doing the same? Your thoughts please...
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I think with your co-worker, anyone could have made that mistake. If his wife had taken out the same can and did the same thing, I'm pretty sure he would be angry about it as well. So I really don't think that there is a gender divsion. Look at the whole label and not just the lid.
This ad isults me (I am male). Your co-worker was wrong when he thought that this advertisement would help make housework simpler for men... He didn't see the ad. The point is that it targets women. It is women who will buy the product advertised. This ad is not able to encourage men do their part of homework.
As beer ads degrade women this one degrades men. Using gender stereotypes, of course.
This ad is just one more in dozens of ads and movies and television shows that imply that men are buffoons who are not capable of doing housework/cooking/taking care of the children which is why women shouldn't expect them to!
That is the truly insidious nature of ads like this. Subversive would be an ad for- I don't know- a COMPUTER PROGRAM- or A CAR PART- or something inherently male-oriented- marketed toward women in a nonoffensive manner.
This ad strikes me as offensive to everyone involved. The man is an idiot and the woman stands around all the time scowling at him.
Is this ad sexist? Hell yeah. It's also hilarious. But then, I'd think that an ad for... I dunno... some auto maintenance product, making fun of a woman in an identical fashion, would also be pretty damn funny. My point is... if you would find a similar ad making fun of women to be offensive, it's pretty hypocritical to say that this ad is just fine. But I don't think you necessarily have an obligation to feel offended by this. When a stereotype is obviously being recognized as a stereotype, and not as gospel truth, it can be humorous.
Am I reading too much into the fact that the rubber gloves they have him wearing while he's cleaning are a bright girly pink?
The ad is based on a false premise anyway: guys who don't do housework don't fail to do so because its too "difficult", they don't do it because they don't care, they don't think they should have to, or they know that if they don't do it someone else will.
But anyway, back to the main point: yes the ad is sexist against men, and women. Your friends may not feel threatened by it because they haven't been raised to see male incompetence at "women's work" as a bad thing. I think there's a cultural attitude that being bad at things only women are supposed to be good at actually reinforces your masculinity.
I feel that this ad is offensive, and doesn't do much justice for either gender involved. It reinforces stereotypes on both ends. The man is a clutz, and an idiot who doesn't know the first thing about cleaning, and the woman is a bitchy drill sargent like character who forces him to clean. While some might say that the commercial is just a commercial, and meant to be humorous, it is this type of humor, when added up, contributes to the on-going stereotyping of both men and women.
Furthermore, it doesn't help women in implying that men simply don't know how to clean, so she should just continue doing it in order to get it right. Come on, how many men out there have tried to get away with not cleaning by using the old excuse, "but you're just so much better at it than I am, I would know the first thing. . ."
Commercials like this really get under my skin.
there are plenty of instances of women who are completely ok with advertisements that degrade women, this is the exact same thing in reverse. however, i don't feel that the ad should be pulled, that's censorship.
rhowan said:
"I think there's a cultural attitude that being bad at things only women are supposed to be good at actually reinforces your masculinity."
i couldn't agree more.
hmmm... I think it is sexist bc it assumes women are inherently better at cleaning
I also think you were rude and condescending to principes and completely shut her down.I never claimed that anecdotal evidence is better than statistical data. However, I do think that there is a place for listening to individual women's voices when you're talking about feminism. If you can open your mind a little, anecdotal evidence and statistical evidence both have their bedroom furniture place. Anecdotal evidence needs to stay out of scientific journals, but on a feminist community blog it should be part of the discussion.