Melissa P.......
College Writing I (24-101)
Dr. D...... D......
11-2-01

Everything You Always Wanted From A Stylist

         In my opinion, Advertisements today focus more on selling an image than a product.  Sometimes it is even hard to tell what is being sold in the advertisement.  Some companies feel that showing images of beautiful women will better sell their product than showing the actual product itself.  Not only do advertisements like these sell their product by showing pretty pictures, but they also try to lure us in by giving the idea of a better life, or a stronger, happier, more confident personality if we should buy their product.  When looked at closely enough, we may see that advertisements can sometimes contradict themselves.  The reason for this is probably so that they can reach a more wide spread audience.  If the advertisement shows two different angles, then it will attract two different groups of people.
         Imagine a picture of a young woman with short blonde hair cut into a modern style and gelled to give it that extra shine.  She is independent, sexy and confident.  She has a pale face, so she wears glossy red lipstick and black eyeliner to bring out her facial features.  She stands with her arms folded accentuating her muscular biceps.  Her right arm is raised to her neck so that her thumb is resting on her bottom lip, and her fingers are just below her chin.  She is dressed in a sleeveless white shirt with gold sequins, and she looks like she is on her way to a party.  This is an advertisement for L.A.Looks Pro Styling hair gel.
        Off to the left of the advertisement, there is a small picture of the L.A.Looks Pro Styling gel product.  The reason it is smaller in proportion with the woman is probably because the woman is more important in selling the product.  When one looks at an advertisement, they are more inclined to be drawn to a pretty face than a bottle of styling gel.
             The image of the woman being portrayed in this advertisement is a sign of our culture and it’s values because of the idea being portrayed of a strong, independent, sassy woman.  She is also a sign of our culture because she is the image of what most American women strive to be: beautiful and athletically fit.  She is not wearing any jewelry, which could indicate that she does not have a boyfriend or a husband supporting her.  Often when we see jewelry, we assume that it was a gift from someone, usually a man, because people do not usually buy jewelry for themselves.  The woman in the advertisement is also not wearing any nail polish, which could indicate that she does not even have enough time to bother with painting her nails.  She has well defined muscles in her arms, which also could be a sign of hard work and success, based on Stuart Ewen’s essay “Hard Bodies”.
            In the essay, Ewen explains how our bodies themselves can be signs of cultural desire. Ewen says, “The hard shell is now a sign of achievement, visible proof of success in the ‘rat race.’ ” He goes on to say that hard, muscular bodies symbolize industrial products because they can be “built” by going to the gym every day (Ewen 82).  Relating to the L.A.Looks Pro Styling advertisement, the woman’s muscles indicate that she is a successful woman.
            Another thing that is worth mentioning is the length of her hair.  It is not the typical long hair you see in most hair product advertisements.  It is short, which can also be an indicator of a working woman.  Most of the time, we associate working professionals with shorter hair.  Having long hair is too much of a hassle for people “on the go”.  The words displayed in the advertisement coincide with the picture, and are also important when analyzing the ad.
             In the center of the picture the words “Everything you always wanted from a stylist.  Except the high price, the gossip and the appointment,” are displayed in a white font with a red background.  This indicates that women can achieve the same look they receive from an appointment with their stylist, simply by using this product.  Surely this saves time and money, which is very important for hard working, successful women who lack the time it takes to go to a hair stylist.
            Red is one of the two main colors used in the advertisement.  It is a ferocious, daring color, which coincides with the look on the woman’s face.  Red is also a color associated with sex appeal, which is one of the most common methods used in advertising.  Gold, the other of the two main colors, obviously is a color of success and wealth.  However, if you look at it from a different angle, the woman’s skin almost looks like it is gold.  The texture of gold is not very strong at all, so the fact that the girl almost looks like she is made out of gold could symbolize that she is not as strong as she appears to be. In fact, the woman in the advertisement might symbolically be the jewel, which could be the reason that she is not wearing jewelry.  At this angle, the advertisement might appeal more to timid, passive women who like to be supported by men and put on a pedestal.
            Red and gold are bold, bright colors, so they could easily grab one’s attention.  Also, the gold blends really well with her shiny, blonde hair.  There are a lot of shadows in the advertisement, most of which are on the girl’s body.  This helps to accentuate her head, which is very bright and unhidden by shadows, and draw attention to her beautiful hair.
            At the bottom of the advertisement, there is a slight description of the product claiming that no matter what type of hair you have, their product is what you are looking for.  They do not want to single anyone out because they want everyone to buy their product, no matter what type of hair they have.  At the end of the description they have included the slogan: “It takes strength to look this good.”  This is a direct relation to the muscular arms of the woman mentioned earlier.
The advertisement, in my opinion, is a successful one because it grabs the attention of the viewer, which lures them in to look closer.  When they look closer, the image of the woman appeals to them causing them to want to look like, or even to be her.  Obviously the only way for them to become like this woman is to use L.A.Looks Pro Styling hair gel – and the product is sold.
 
 

Works Cited

Ewen, Stuart. “Hard Bodies.” Signs of Life in the USA. Third Edition. Boston: Bedford / St.
          Martin’s, 2000. 80-85.

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