Final Draft

December 9, 2012

Dear 13-year-old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and understand the objective of media and advertising. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture-the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seductive or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage.

In my experience in high school, the teenage years were all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have harmful effects on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”aacap As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. aacap This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.  

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls on a popular girls website about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model. Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” discovery girls

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits but this would hinder the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens and younger girls who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on TV and print can diminish self image unknowingly.

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and short metal skirts. One of the gladiators sees the king drink a Pepsi through the cage she is being held in. A sudden realization of inequality overcomes her when the king starts to drink the Pepsi.  As the gladiators come out to the arena, they throw their weapons down and use their talents of singing to entertain the crowd. The king feels powerless because the women are not doing what he wants them to do which is fight. This demonstrates the switch of power from the man to the women which is not often the case in cultural context. It shows that women can be powerful by being sexy and still maintain a positive image. It is very liberating to use seductive power but young women are getting the wrong idea because they will try to emulate the looks and acts of their idols at times when they are not appropriate. It is not effective or desirable to censor sexual power in women but when is it appropriate to draw the line? This is a very murky question because we don't want to condemn women's sexuality. In advertisements and pop culture there are many instances of misogyny but we can only censor when violence is clearly being used in the images. Public protest will have to dissuade advertisers against using misogynistic images.

Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give subtle and not so subtle messages of how girls are supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt" shows a woman getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which portrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young woman advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish # 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the scent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of being submissive against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive. Since censoring advertisements is not a realistic option, educating young people of the hazards of advertisements seems like the only defense. 

The hardest part of not succumbing to medias ideal looks and behaviors is the ability to understand the motives behind marketing. From an excerpt from Common Culture: Reading and Writing about American Popular Culture, “an advertisement communicates by making use of a specially selected image (of a Supine female, say, or a curly-haired child, or a celebrity) which is designed to stimulate ‘subrational impulses and desires.’" cyberpat Marketing uses subliminal messages to capture the consumers attention even if the consumer doesn’t think he or she is being influenced.  Supposedly, people are not supposed to act like or look like what they see in advertisements. They are supposed to keep their thoughts to themselves and not act out their subconscious. Marketing uses this type of appeal because it is very effective for their sales. Unfortunately, people don’t understand the true intentions of marketing which hurts society as a whole.

In conclusion, the constant exposure of media undoubtedly plays a huge role in shaping the lives of maturing teenagers. The pressure that media exerts is a difficult force to fight against. It is so pervasive in our lives.  Advertisers for tobacco aren’t allowed to target teens, unfortunately,   perfume marketers and other advertisers who depict women in ways that contribute to health problems like anorexia and violence will not be legislated against in the same way. It is more about recognizing that media and popular culture can be dangerous to oneself just like smoking can be dangerous. There are many music videos were women use their sexuality outrageously and powerfully like Lady Gaga and Beyonce. They are trying to sell their music creativity using their sexuality unlike the perfume marketers mentioned above who represent women as powerless. It must be understood that popular culture and the media are trying to sell their product, service, or entertainment to consumers. Teenagers need to imbibe popular culture at their own risk.

Sincerely,

Jacob Imsland

Bibliography

Fowles, Jib. "Advertising's Fifteen Basic Appeals." Jfowles.html. N.p.,  1998. Web. 18 Nov.  2012. <http://www.cyberpat.com/shirlsite/education/essay2/jfowles.html>.

 This article by Jib Fowles will be useful for my research paper because it has a detailed list of the top 15 appeals used in advertising. Jib wrote about how the marketers appeal to peoples "subrational impulses and desires" which I can use to support my claim. This article would target people interested in knowing what advertisers do to attract consumers. It does a good job explaining the different types of appeals used in advertising and explains that too many appeals might harm the effect of advertising. This article will be good to use in my paper to cover general information about advertising. 

Kilbourne, Jean. "'Two Ways a Women Can Get Hurt'"; Advertising and Violence"Rereading America. 8th ed.  Boston: Bedford/St.           Martin's, 2010. 575-601. Print.

"Teenagers With Eating Disorders." American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. N.p., May 2008. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. < http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with +Eating+Disorders§ion=Facts+for+Families>.

rough draft

Dear 13 year old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and interpret what the media is selling. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture; the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seductive or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage.

From personal experience, the teenage years are all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will automatically unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have a harmful effect on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with+Eating+Disorders&section=Facts+for+Families

As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/the_teen_brain_behavior_problem_solving_and_decision_making This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.  

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model and Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” http://discoverygirls.com/speak-out/discussions/do-you-think-britney-spears-good-role-model

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits but this would hinder the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on tv and print can diminish self image unknowingly.

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and short metal skirts. One of the gladiators sees the king drink the Pepsi through the cage she is being held in. A sudden realization of inequality overcomes her when the king starts to drink the Pepsi.  As the gladiators come out to the arena, they throw their weapons down and use their talents of singing to entertain the crowd. The king feels powerless because the women are not doing what he wants them to do which is fight. This demonstrates the switch of power from the man to the women which is not often the case in cultural context. It shows that women can be powerful by being sexy and still maintain a positive image. It is very liberating to use seductive power but young women are getting the wrong idea because they will try to emulate the looks and acts of their idols when the times are not appropriate.  It doesn't do any good to judge or censor sexual power but when is it appropriate to draw the line?

In addition to the powerful effect media has on young teens self image, advertising also plays a crucial role on women's behaviors. Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give subtle and not so subtle messages of how girls or supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt," a woman is getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which betrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young women advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish # 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the sent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of being submissive against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if the women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive.

The hardest part of not succumbing to medias ideal looks and behaviors is the ability to understand the motives behind marketing. From an excerpt from Common Culture: Reading and Writing about American Popular Culture, “an advertisement communicates by making use of a specially selected image (of a Supine female, say, or a curly-haired child, or a celebrity) which is designed to stimulate ‘subrational impulses and desires.’" http://www.cyberpat.com/shirlsite/education/essay2/jfowles.html

Marketing uses subliminal messages to capture the consumers attention even if the consumer doesn’t think he or she is being influenced.  Supposedly, people are not supposed to act like or look like what they see in advertisements. They are supposed to keep their thoughts to themselves and not act out their subconscious. Marketing uses this type of appeal because it is very effective for their sales. Unfortunately, people don’t understand the true intentions of marketing which hurts society as a whole.

In conclusion, the constant exposure of media undoubtedly plays a huge role in shaping the lives of maturing teenagers. The pressure that media exerts is a difficult force to fight against. It is so pervasive in our lives.  Advertisers for tobacco aren’t allowed to target teens, unfortunately,   perfume marketers and other advertisers who depict women in ways that contribute to health problems like anorexia and violence will not be legislated against in the same way. It is more about recognizing that media and popular culture can be dangerous to oneself just like smoking can be dangerous. There are many music videos were women use their sexuality outrageously and in powerful ways like Lady Gaga and Beyonce. They are trying to sell their music creativity using their sexuality unlike the perfume marketers mentioned above who represent women as powerless. It must be understood that popular culture and the media are trying to sell their product, service, or entertainment to consumers, so teenagers need to imbibe popular culture at their own risk.

Sincerely,

Jacob Imsland

Rough Draft

Dear 13 year old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and interpret what the media is selling. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture; the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seducti

Dear 13 year old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and interpret what the media is selling. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture; the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seductive or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage. 

From personal experience, the teenage years are all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will automatically unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have a harmful effect on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with+Eating+Disorders&section=Facts+for+Families

As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/the_teen_brain_behavior_problem_solving_and_decision_making This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.   

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model and Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” http://discoverygirls.com/speak-out/discussions/do-you-think-britney-spears-good-role-model

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits which hinders the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on tv and print can diminish self image unknowingly. 

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and short metal skirts. One of the gladiators see's the king drink the Pepsi through the cage she is being held in. A sudden realization of inequality overcomes her when the king starts to drink the Pepsi.  As the gladiators come out to the arena, they throw their weapons down and use their talents of singing to entertain the crowd. The king feels powerless because the women are not doing what he wants them to do which is fight. This demonstrates the switch of power from the man to the women which is not often the case in cultural context. It shows that women can be powerful by being sexy and still maintain a positive image. It is very liberating to use seductive power but young women are getting the wrong idea because they will try to emulate the looks and acts of their idols when the times are not appropriate.  It doesn't do any good to censor sexual power but when is it appropriate to draw the line?

In addition to the powerful effect media has on young teens self image, advertising also plays a crucial role on women’s behaviors. 

Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give suddle and not so suddle messages of how girls or supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt," a woman is getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which betrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young women advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish number$ 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the sent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of submission against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if the women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive. ve or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage. 

From personal experience, the teenage years are all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will automatically unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have a harmful effect on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with+Eating+Disorders&section=Facts+for+Families

As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/the_teen_brain_behavior_problem_solving_and_decision_making This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.   

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model and Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” http://discoverygirls.com/speak-out/discussions/do-you-think-britney-spears-good-role-model

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits which hinders the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on tv and print can diminish self image unknowingly. 

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and short metal skirts. One of the gladiators see's the king drink the Pepsi through the cage she is being held in. A sudden realization of inequality overcomes her when the king starts to drink the Pepsi.  As the gladiators come out to the arena, they throw their weapons down and use their talents of singing to entertain the crowd. The king feels powerless because the women are not doing what he wants them to do which is fight. This demonstrates the switch of power from the man to the women which is not often the case in cultural context. It shows that women can be powerful by being sexy and still maintain a positive image. It is very liberating to use seductive power but young women are getting the wrong idea because they will try to emulate the looks and acts of their idols when the times are not appropriate.  It doesn't do any good to judge or censor sexual power but when is it appropriate to draw the line?

In addition to the powerful effect media has on young teens self image, advertising also plays a crucial role on women’s behaviors. 

Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give suddle and not so suddle messages of how girls or supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt," a woman is getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which betrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young women advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish number$ 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the sent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of submission against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if the women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive. 

The hardest part of not succumbing to medias ideal looks and behaviors is the ability to understand the motives behind the marketing. From an excerpt from Common Culture: Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture, "marketers 

rough draft

Dear 13 year old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and interpret what the media is selling. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture; the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seductive or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage. 

From personal experience, the teenage years are all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will automatically unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have a harmful effect on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with+Eating+Disorders&section=Facts+for+Families

As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/the_teen_brain_behavior_problem_solving_and_decision_making This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.   

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model and Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” http://discoverygirls.com/speak-out/discussions/do-you-think-britney-spears-good-role-model

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits which hinders the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on tv and print can diminish self image unknowingly. 

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and short metal skirts. One of the gladiators see's the king drink the Pepsi through the cage she is being held in. A sudden realization of inequality overcomes her when the king starts to drink the Pepsi.  As the gladiators come out to the arena, they throw their weapons down and use their talents of singing to entertain the crowd. The king feels powerless because the women are not doing what he wants them to do which is fight. This demonstrates the switch of power from the man to the women which is not often the case in cultural context. It shows that women can be powerful by being sexy and still maintain a positive image. It is very liberating to use seductive power but young women are getting the wrong idea because they will try to emulate the looks and acts of their idols when the times are not appropriate.  It doesn't do any good to judge or censor sexual power but when is it appropriate to draw the line?

In addition to the powerful effect media has on young teens self image, advertising also plays a crucial role on women’s behaviors. 

Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give suddle and not so suddle messages of how girls or supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt," a woman is getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which betrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young women advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish number$ 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the sent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of submission against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if the women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive. 

Rough draft

Dear 13 year old girl,

Popular culture is out to get you. The messages from advertisements and pop music have a direct and indirect effect on the choices girls make. Girls are being bombarded with images of skinny, computer edited, so called sexy models that are impossible to look like. In order to survive the assault of the media, one must learn how to see through and interpret what the media is selling. If girls can distinguish between the positive and negative aspects of popular culture; the desire to be skinny, provocative, and seductive or the desire to be creative, powerful, and ambitious, girls can use their female traits to their advantage. 

From personal experience, the teenage years are all about fitting in. Any chance available to try something new (like wearing hip new clothes or listening to the new singer sensation) will automatically unite kids together by the common interests they share. Once teenagers find where they fit in, they often stay with the same group of kids through out high school. It is in these years where teen girls are most vulnerable to media and popular culture because the propensity to emulate trends is so strong.

In these teenage years, media can have a harmful effect on girls outlook of self image. Mainly because they see their movie idols, music ideals and almost all women in advertising having a specific body type. As stated in the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In the United States, as many as 10 in 100 young women suffer from an eating disorder.”http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Teenagers+with+Eating+Disorders&section=Facts+for+Families

As a result, the pressures from media lead young girls to make body altering changes to look more like the what they see as acceptable. The ability to scrutinize and be skeptical of what popular culture is emitting in the form of selfhood is a hard idea to grasp. However, research shows that the brains of teens are continuing to mature and that decision making and reasoning are not fully developed. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/the_teen_brain_behavior_problem_solving_and_decision_making This demonstrates that some teenagers lack the ability to restrain their fantasies of looking like their heros. This leads to the question of whether their role models are to blame for their self consciousness.   

For example, Britney Spears was a popular singer when I was a young teenager who was infamous for wearing small shirts and short skirts. A question was asked to a group of young girls about if they thought Britney Spears was a good role model and Nicole, age 10, said “Yes and no. She's a good singer and a good dancer, and I'm pretty sure she's a good person, too. On the other hand, she should realize that there are a lot of young girls who want to copy her by wearing what she wears. I have even seen five- and six-year-olds wearing short skirts and clothes that are really tight with their bellies hanging out. I also think you shouldn't be judged on what you wear, but the reality is that people do judge you on that. So maybe Britney shouldn't dress in such sexy outfits.” http://discoverygirls.com/speak-out/discussions/do-you-think-britney-spears-good-role-model

Nicole understands that girls want to be like their idols even if that means crossing inappropriate  barriers. Nicole also said that Britney Spears shouldn’t dress in sexy outfits which hinders the whole act Britney plays for. It is the parents of teens who should guide their children and give them skills of good decision making. For many girls who fall victim of buying into the fads of popular culture, their outcome of self identity is often distorted.   The truth of the matter is that your sense of self  is your greatest asset. The constant barrage of images on tv and print can diminish self image unknowingly. 

In hindsight, there is a positive aspect of the way women use their sexual appeal. In a Pepsi commercial, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Pink use their sexuality to show their powerfulness and strength. They are depicted as gladiators at the Roman Colosseum, wearing metal bras and   

In addition to the powerful effect media has on young teens self image, advertising also plays a crucial role on women’s behaviors. 

Not only do women and girls have to guard against negative imagery, many of the advertisements give suddle and not so suddle messages of how girls or supposed to act. A photo in an essay by kilbourne called "Two ways a women can get hurt," a woman is getting caressed by a man with one big word on top of the photo, "No"(579). It is hard to tell if the woman is laughing or screaming which betrays the woman as powerless and passive(Kilbourne). Another advertisement in Kilbourne's essay is one of a young women advertising perfume. The bottom of the ad states, "Fetish number$ 16: Apply generously to your neck so he can smell the sent as you shake your head 'no'"(581). Both girls and women are receiving messages from advertisements that justify the act of submission against male dominance. The ad makes it okay for men to take advantage of women even if the women are saying "no". Women are being taught to act a certain way that inhibits their ability to stand up for themselves against unacceptable behavior. Specifically, young women who are still maturing and figuring their lives out are being taught through advertising that it is acceptable to be passive and seductive. 

rough draft #2

Dear seductive women,

Women have the opportunity to make a living however they choose. The ability to make a living selling their sexuality to music videos or advertisements or the ability to make a living working as a politician, doctor, or lawyer is a personal decision. The industry is competitive about choosing potential employees because it is them who represent their companies. In the eyes of men, women who show too much skin or wear provocative clothing don’t belong in the professional work place because they can’t be taken seriously. If women change their behaviors away from promoting their sexuality, men can focus on the talents women have to offer instead of their sexual appeal.

In some cases, men look at women and determine just by their looks if they are making money by selling themselves or by working a job that doesn’t matter the sex. If a woman is attractive, she will come off as a woman who would sell her appeal to advertisers and if a woman is not attractive, she will come off as a woman who works hard for a living. Models for example just have to look good and display their clothing in a sexual way. Women in music videos just have to wear swim suits and dance around the rapper and look sexy. Men have this mindset that women who are smart are not attractive and women who are attractive are dumb.  Men think women who make money from their looks get off easy because they aren’t working hard for their money. This translates to the work force where as a woman applying for a high position job will most likely not get hired because of her sexual identity. Women who sell their sexuality have made an image for all women that implies a bad work ethic and a bad working environment.

Men are biologically driven by sexual appeal of women and when men see women who are attractive, all they can think of is sex. Men don’t take attractive women seriously in the work force because of their sexual desires. Kilbourne states that men think of “sex as more important than anything else” (578).  This turns away job opportunities for women because having a women who is attractive can get in the way of the professional aspect of working together and in some cases can hinder work ethic.

Men like feeling powerful in the work force and in their personal lives. Men are masculine and dominate in nature and don’t share their femininity because it makes them look weak. In an advertisement in an essay by Kilbourne, a man is forcibly hovering over a woman who is laughing and there is a big “No” on top of the advertisement (579). This demonstrates that women secretly want to be forced around or if they don’t want to be forced around, they don’t have a voice to say “no” to the man. Men are demanding to get their way and women have no power to say otherwise. Men forget that women are human too and fail to treat them with any respect.

Women on the other hand want to be heard and listened to but fail to stand up to their male counterpart.  Women are shown in advertisements obeying orders given by the male. The way an advertisement portrays a young women in an elevator with words saying “push my buttons” (582), implies that she wants to be pushed around and taken advantage of. With this sort of submissive behavior, women are letting men run all over them without even a fight. This sort of behavior translates into the workforce where women are bossed around and told what to do. Women need to not show their submissive behavior when taken advantage of from other men and retaliate. If women want to be taken seriously, they need to stand up and let their voice be heard and if they don’t, men will continue to degrade and dehumanize them.

Women have the ability to stand up against male dominance but it is up to them to do it. Men can’t tell women to stand up for themselves, women have to take the initiative to say no and let their oppressor know their true feelings. Women are by nature submissive, carrying and kind but that doesn’t entail that they can be forced upon and bossed around. Women need to set boundaries for men so when men go too far with their powerful and dominating behavior, they know and stop. Otherwise, if no boundaries are set, women become powerless and therefore can get hurt and abused.   

The women who are assertive and ambitious will prove to men that they do have a position in the job force and the political world. It is those women who fight and stand up for equality that will bring a new era of woman power to our world. In an essay by Reihan Salam called The Death of Macho, men are to blame for the economic downturn our county faced starting in 2008. The economic collapse proved costly for both men and women. However, not only is there less work for men because many jobs are being outsourced, fewer men are qualified with a college degree by one third (630). This gives women a chance to change the playing field and try something new for our country. Society cannot take another financial crisis that mostly men caused based on risky loan selling and buying. Salam sums up that “as more people realize that the aggressive, risk-seeking behavior that has enabled men to entrench their power-the cult of macho- has now proven destructive and unsustainable in a globalized world”(630-1). This evidence of how men used their natured and nurtured behaviors to make unsafe financial decisions will persuade the people of America to accept that there needs to be an equal number of men and women working together to find safe and balanced decisions for our society.

A woman saved an economy from a financial collapse. Iceland experienced a financial collapse which was caused by its transformation from “an economy fueled by fishermen to a center for wealthy financiers.”  Men drove this country into the ground by their risky loan selling and horrible financial decisions. The government threw out all the male elite and brought in a new woman as their prime minister (Salam 630). The interests of the male elite were not of the people of Iceland but of themselves and their rich business partners. Now that a woman is in power, Iceland can trust that the future financial decisions will be made thoughtfully and wisely. From this example, women can be trusted to make big financial decisions because they naturally want to do good for others. Different than men, they see that risky behavior is dangerous and that it should be avoided at all costs. They are not driven to be powerful and controlling, but are driven to do best for a society.

Women have shown that they have what it takes to run a society and make intelligent decisions. Do they have the responsibility and reliance that is needed to maintain control of a society? Will they be strong enough to make critical decisions and follow through when the time is most crucial? In the smaller picture, do women have the courage to stand up against men and tell them no and set their boundaries? If women show that they can stand up and be strong, humans must realize that they are capable of working in high powered positions and that they are able to do a job just as good as or better than men.

www.washingtonpost.com

Annotated Bibliography

Fowles, Jib. "Advertising's Fifteen Basic Appeals." Jfowles.html. N.p., 1998. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. <http://www.cyberpat.com/shirlsite/education/essay2/jfowles.html>.

This article by Jib Fowles will be useful for my research paper because it has a detailed list of the top 15 appeals used in advertising. Jib wrote about how the marketers appeal to peoples "subrational impulses and desires" which I can use to support my claim. This article would target people interested in knowing what advertisers do to attract consumers. It does a good job explaining the different types of appeals used in advertising and explains that too many appeals might harm the effect of advertising. This article will be good to use in my paper to cover general information about advertising. 

Salam, Reihan. "The Death of Macho." Rereading America. 8th ed. 

Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2010. 629-36. Print.

This article by Reihan Salam was about how male macho behavior is destroying societies financially because of risky behavior men take. I will use this article to suggest that women do have value in high, powerful positions because they can be level headed and make good decisions. I can say if women stop advertising their bodies they can be beneficial to society and have a more respectful role. This article does a good job on using real life situations of how men have destroyed societies and how women have saved them. This article is targeted towards men and women who are curious about how macho behavior influences the success of societies. This essay will help me show how valuable women can be in society if they stop their sexual behavior.