I appreciate good marketing. As a major in this fine field of study, I can attest that there is truly an art to persuasion. In the ever present struggle for market share, commodity products such as Coke and McDonald's spend millions upon millions in advertising to increase brand appeal and loyalty.
Soft drinks, fast food restaurants, and beer companies all try to find ways to attract us to them. They want to be relatable, endearing, and above all memorable. One of the most tried and true methods to attain these desirable traits is humor. We've seen some of the most memorable ad campaigns from the beer companies with Budweiser's frogs, the 'WAZZZZZ UPPPPPP' commercials, or It's Miller Time.
Recently, I have been perplexed by a rash of commercials that have come out promoting Corona. I must preface this criticism by establishing that previous to these commercials I held no ill will towards what I believe to be a very decent adult beverage. Even their past commercials I have enjoyed. They are simple, creative, and promote a feeling of "chill".
However, the recent commercials have had one profound yet unintended effect on yours truly. They all start similarly: shot zooms out from a beautiful white-sand beach to show a couple sitting in chairs taking in the gorgeous view. Then there are three different scenarios that I have witnessed:
1) A very pretty girl in a bikini walks by and the man in the chair blatantly checks her out. As punishment for the ocular infidelity, the man's apparent girlfriend/spouse squirts a lime wedge into his face.
2) A very well built dude walks by and the woman in the chair blatantly checks him out. As punishment for her lustful stare, the man shakes up the beer closest to her, seemingly so that it will spray out once she opens it. She then, simply reaches over and grabs the other beer close to her apparent boyfriend/husband, opens it with a bottle-opener then hands the opener to her man for him to open the only beer left- the one he shook up.
3) Three very pretty girls in bikinis playful push, shove, and splash their way across the screen together. Again, the man watches just a little too closely for his lady's liking. She gives him the evil eye, and as an act of contrition, he sprays himself in the face with a lime wedge.
I do not like these commercials for several reasons. Primarily, I think it unfairly absolves women from gawking at men while condemning men for doing the same thing to women. Don't get me wrong, I'm well aware the men of this world have a reputation that precedes them. For far too long we have been comfortable with the "hunter/conqueror" personification of man. I've been privy to this in my own lifetime: men who decidedly and purposeful look for female conquests any chance they get.
Because of this stigma, it makes sense in the commercial for the woman to punish her man when he gets the googly-eyes for another woman. It is even funny when the man punishes himself for looking at the three girls. However, I have to ask why it is funny when the man's retaliation backfires on him? In analyzing my own feelings towards this commercial I've taken in consideration that I'm over analyzing the intent. This may be true, but I believe my reasoning behind it still points to a societal issue that needs to be addressed.
I ask you this, if the roles where reversed, and the woman's retaliation backfired on her while the man avoids his disciplinary action, would it still be as funny of a commercial? Or would it be seen as objectionable by many people because the man was in the wrong and deserved punishment the same as the woman?
My point is, friends, we should be cognizant of implications (whether intended or unintended) behind many of these commercials we find humorous. In college, I did an entire speech on Schadenfreude, which means to taking pleasure in an other person's pain. Our culture seems to be immersed with this in what we consider humor. From the Looney Tunes' Wiley E. Coyote to pretty much any Ben Stiller movie, popular humor is characterized by someone getting hurt, embarrassed, or both.
In my speech I plead with people to make conscience efforts to rid themselves of participating in schadenfreude-type humor. Granted, I know in certain occasions it can be difficult NOT to laugh at a situation, but if we can train ourselves to be more aware of what exactly we are laughing at, we can avoid hurting others or unwittingly promoting negative messages towards others.
I believe this same concept can be applied to the Corona commercials. I chose not to laugh at them because of what I consider negative implications, albeit unintended. It is not okay by me for either the man or the woman to check out someone else, and if your commercial sets up that there is a penalty for such behavior, both parties should be held to the same standards.
Overall, I believe my mind really latched on to this idea because of a segment I recently saw on The Colbert Report. Stephen interviewed a woman who recently wrote an article entitled THE DEATH OF MAN, and if I'm being honest, she made some very intriguing points.
As I pondered this article, I came up with a trend that has seemingly become a truth. The women of the past several generations, including my own, have made wonderful strides to rid our culture of stereotyping jobs, careers, hobbies, or interests as purely male endeavors. It wasn't that long ago when people thought doctor, lawyer, architect, CEO, or numerous other positions as purely "misters". While those sentiments may still linger in some people's minds, I feel like for the most part, our society is no longer surprised to see women hold these positions.
Meanwhile, the skills and roles women typically have played in the past have not been infiltrated by those of the opposite sex. To me it seems obvious. Men usually see such roles as raising children, teaching, nursing, cooking or other positions as "lesser" roles. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and because of men being unwilling to broaden their horizons, I believe the woman on The Colbert Report had a very solid point. Women are now doing everything that used to be the exclusive province of men while still retaining their abilities in traditionally women-dominated roles.
I believe it is imperative for men to break down the stereotypes in their own minds and be willing to not only participate in areas they usually consider feminine but to attempt to excel in such areas. If the idea is for us to finally reach a legitimate equality for all people, then lets make efforts on both sides of the coin to see that happen. Maybe, just maybe, if that equality truly can be reached, we will start holding EVERYONE to the same standards. How would that Corona commercial come across then, I wonder?
What I'm into:
Song- The Bravery "Believe". I first heard this song on one of my sports video games. Recently, our band at church played it during worship. Giving it a spiritual context has given new life into this song for me. The chorus goes like this: "So give me something to believe/Cause I am living just to breathe/And I need something more/To keep on breathing for/So give me something to believe". If that is not a call for God, I don't know what is.
Movie- I recently re-watched one from my ridiculously overgrown collection with my mother and brother while they stayed with me a night in Charlotte. We watched CATCH ME IF YOU CAN. Stephen Spielberg is my favorite director. There's nothing flashy or outlandish about the way the movie was shot, but it is put together very well. There's not a overly dramatic climax, and the movie as a whole is delightfully understated. American filmmakers nowadays seem compelled to shove conflict and dynamic story/character changes in our face. Almost as if they have to "speak down" to us or we wouldn't get it. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN avoids all that while calling on masterful acting and enjoyable costuming to make you feel like you are really in the '60s.
Bible Verse- 1 Peter 4:8 "Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins." NLT
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