https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNljI6OsJp4 :Totino's
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLvKycKnNjY :Athenos hummus
The first youtube link is a Totino's pizza roll commercial. This commercial portrays stereotypical gender roles. The kids are coming home from a long school day and mom is there waiting in the kitchen to feed them. The narrator of the commercial is the mother who tells the audience that Totino's are perfect for your kids when they come home from school. The target audience is stay at home moms who need to find a great snack for when their kids get home. The commercial is effective in reaching that audience, however, this commercial would not reach all the stay at home parents. There are many stay at home dads. Although they are not the norm, they too have to feed their kids when they get home. This Totino's commercial may not reach those dads.
The second youtube link is an Athenos hummus commercial. The commercial breaks stereotypical gender norms by showing a stay at home dad who is feeding his kids the hummus. This commercial is different from the Totino's one in that Athenos recognizes and pokes fun at the fact that the stay at home dad in their commercial is not stereotypical. The mother of the family in the commercial walks into the kitchen with a suit on while an old fashioned Greek lady asks the dad why he does not have a job. This commercial's target market is a little broader than the first. It targets all adults with families rather than just stay at home moms.
I do think Athenos was effective in reaching its target market. Athenos target market was broader than Totino's. This means that their commercial reached more people and I would guess had a greater affect on Athenos' business than the Totino's commercial did. These kinds of stereotypes are found all over television. Perhaps, the Athenos commercial will show companies they do not have to strictly focus on social norms to make sales. And I am sure stay at home dads loved that commercial. They might have bought some hummus to try, too.
I agree with the selection of commercials you chose and how to relate them both. I have noticed that in many commercials advertising food for home it usual has a women or mother preparing food for the family rather than a male. In todays society it is more normal now to see stay at home dads taking care of families. Stereotypes are common in many commercials and are usual easy to miss when watching. Its clear that certain commercials target certain audiences and companies do this to create a profit.
ReplyDeleteI think the two commercials are great examples of how we assume gender roles. The first commercial with the Totinos is the stereotypical family with the mom having a snack for the kids as they come home from school. That is what most people consider the norm. However, I am really impressed with the hummus commercial as they have a stay at home dad feed the kids. It just shows how we shouldn't always think of the stereotypes and that every family is different.
ReplyDeleteThe second commercial you picked to show defying gender roles was a great selection for this assignment. Typically people assume that the women stay home and watch the kids while dad works, however it was the opposite in this video. It surprised me that the commercial put a negative view on the stay at home parent. It made them seem like they were incapable of working, or lacking the skills to contribute in the world. However this is not usually the case. Instead, some parents prefer to be home to watch their own kids instead of sending them to daycare or having a babysitter.
ReplyDeleteHi Zach,
ReplyDeleteI really liked the clips you chose. The first of which definitely fit the gender stereotype like you said, while the second defied it. The second clip also took the step of having someone from an older generation looking down upon the decision for the husband to stay at home while the wife works. My favorite part of the Athenos commercial was when Yia Yia said to the man, "you are mother." Right then I was sold, the commercial not only defies gender roles, but is quite entertaining too!