THE EFFECTS OF GENDER REPRESENTATION IN ADVERTISING ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL NORMS: A SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

 Social roles influence advertisements from yester years to modern times. The effect highlighted social stereotypes and stereotypes more in the early days, while the winds of change have begun to blow in today's advertising examples. Social role change is dependent on different factors, such as progress in society, equality, and awareness. While the removal of some of the changing roles or their removal from society may give birth to new or more emphasized roles, one should also not forget that social roles continue to change and develop in accordance with the changing needs of societies. At this point, changing social structure causes changes in the social roles in advertising. The new ad examples we come across today clearly demonstrate the perception of working, urban, modern women and changing roles of women in society. The role of the self-sacrificing woman, serving just other family members in the kitchen or at the dinner table at the point of the place attached to the advertisement, gradually starts getting evolution into a modernizing, successful and exemplary woman who can stand on her feet in business life. Some old ads had signs and subtexts featuring just the physical features of women and their presence under the yoke of men. These stereotypes gradually started to be replaced by self-assured female roles which do not need stereotypes to be strong, beautiful, or to feel beautiful. This understanding of advertising changed today, though it is still unsatisfactory; promising examples pop up every day. In this regard, recently broadcasted Easy Fish Oil advertisement was examined with the semiotic analysis methodology. The outcomes were interpreted and analyzed in the light of Greimas' Acting Model and Peirce's Visual Indicator Analysis.