sexualized images

When I perceive sexualized images, I first would think about why are they using these kinds of images. Most of them are trying to get people attention, because people kind of like those sexualized images which should not be. It seems like there is a trend that more and more luxury designer brands like to use sexualized images, maybe they want to give a massage which is owning luxury products makes you sexy and popular. Once people remember those images, they relate them with the products. When I look at sexualized images of women, I would focus on her perfect body and what is she wearing. However, for the images of men, I would just stare at his body, and I don’t care which brand he is presenting. In my opinion, people would interest in sexualized images of both women and men, but whether they concert about the products is not important.

Sexualized Images

Most of these images use sex in order to manipulate a person into wanting something based on how the person view themselves and how they think the person should view others. Most of these ideas are in our mainstream media and advertisements. Through my personal experience I try not to pay too much attention to  these sexualized advertisements. I would rather be buying the product based on more knowledge than it can should make me look sexy. Such as what is in the product and how it can work for me personally, rather than solely relying on the idea that I will look like the foxy lady in the advertisement if I use it.

I do believe that these images have an impact. The constant subliminal notions that the only way to be successful and happy is to be just like the photoshopped person in the magazine or billboard can be very harmful to society. 

Sexualization

I think that in the society we have grown up in, we've become desensitized to the overt hyper-sexualization of advertising and media in general. Men are typically hypersexualized in advertisements geared towards women, such as clothing and perfume. Women, on the other hand, are sexualized in almost every ad from cheeseburgers to air conditioning. I think that these representations can have negative consequences as men and women strive to attain this ideal and, more importantly, as they learn to expect this representation of the opposite sex in real life. Women come to compare themselves to these images and can often base their self esteem off of this ideal while men may perceive these images as realistic and therefore judge women in real life more harshly. This sexualization also contributes to a social climate where women are seen as sexual objects rather than people, which can make them feel trivialized. 

Sex Images

Whenever I see a sexualized image of a man or woman I know that the image has been created for me to desire that person and desire whatever that brand is trying to sell.  To me photographers are not trying to get the message across that this person is sexy, instead they are selling sex, and that the idea of sex is sexy and erotic.  However, the people used in these photographs are used for a reason, because the majority of the population would see them as sexy; this has raised the bar tremendously for what society accepts as sexy and it is unfair.  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Sexualized Images

I agree with the other posts on this blog that sexualized images are primarily used for advertising. I'm thankful that being in college and taking classes like Sociology, Marketing and W&G Studies have helped me to see the messages behind these images and look deeper into them, who's behind them and what the agenda is. I typically perceive them in almost a sympathetic way, because the bodies we see in these images are being objectified and used for a purpose to sell something. That being said, I think it's harmful for younger girls & boys because they typically don't see them this way and are more perceptible to the influence of these images.

I think it can change our perceptions of men and women because it raises societal expectations of what the "ideal body" should be. Every time I get on Tumblr I see posts by girls and guys alike that might be a re-blog of an image from a fashion magazine, or a health and beauty magazine or blog, and they are typically accompanied by messages of, "I wish I looked like this." It's nice to see that women are fighting back against this hyper-sexualized marketing strategy by demanding more realistic and less objectified bodies, but there is still a majority of people, typically younger audiences that don't realize how unrealistic and unattainable they are

Sex

               I perceive sexualized images of men and women no different than anyone else. I believe we all have no conscious recollection of them, but they do affect us subliminally. They are so mainstream and seen so often that we pay no real attention to them anymore.

               I believe they have a huge impact on us as a society! They’ve corrupted our minds of what beauty really is, and now men and women go to extremes to fit the social expectations.  I can admit that I go out of my way to do things now that I’ve seen in the media just to impress the opposite sex.

Sexualized Images

Being the age that I am and having been a part of a generation that internet was so accessible, I have been exposed to sexualized images of men and woman for as long as I can remember. It’s not very often that I see an image during a commercial or in a magazine and put much thought into what the image is really implying because it has become so common in our society. We, as a culture, are so accustomed to our surroundings that we rarely stop to examine or challenge it unless something is out of the norm.

With that being said, when I am challenged to perceive these sexualized images of men and women I realize the affect they can have. I wasn’t truly aware of the effects the media had on me until I was much older. Young girls mimic their sexuality and identity off of these sexualized images of their role models they see in the media. It gives these girls the idea of what they need to do in order to be sexy. In turn, I believe this can give men unrealistic expectations for beauty (and vise-versa). Beautiful women appear on the cover of magazines half naked with excessive retouching, giving standards for young people’s perception of beauty. They are constantly comparing themselves and the other sex to these images. This has a major effect on self-esteem considering how much we value beauty and sexuality.

Sexualized images

To me I do not believe that these images directly affect me.  I believe that these images are used for specific purposes that can affect other people.  For instance you see sexualized images of men and women in advertisements.  A company could use a fit half naked celebrity to advertise a weight loss supplement claiming that if you take this product you will have the same results.  These images can be misleading in they don’t mention the other possible factors like diet and exercise.  For others I believe these images can affect how they are perceived.  For instance the perception of what woman should look like can be affected in a young girl who grows up playing with Barbie dolls.  The doll might make the girl think to be pretty you should be skinny and blond like Barbie and that can affect the child.  Then the child can move from playing with dolls to watching Miley Cyrus on Disney channel.  By watching her on TV and having her be a popular star with younger girls it can affect how a makes her own image. To now where Miley Cyrus is shown in sexualized images it does have an effect on how young girls dress and act which I do believe to be a negative effect of sexualized imagery.

Sexualized images are often seen in magazines, billboards, and tv advertisements.  They can be designed to encourage men and wome n to buy a product with the promise that they will look as good as the models in these images do.  They can also be designed to convince men and women that they will attract others who look like the models in these advertisements.  These images can definitely impact how other men and women are perceived as many of us will constantly compare ourselves to and try to achieve the appearance of the models in these advertisements.  The fact that many of these images are photoshopped to achieve an even more unrealistic ideal of beauty does do much to remove the pressure to look like these models.

Sexualizing Images

When I see ads or anything that is sexualizing men or women it doesn't phase me. I think that it is so common in society today that we just overlook it. Sexualization is what sells now, it grabs your attention and makes you notice what is being advertised. If it is an attractive women, men will notice and maybe buy that perfume in hopes it will make their wives or girlfriends more attractive like the women in the ad. When men are half naked advertising underwear women want to buy them for their significant others dreaming they'll look like David Beckham! To me it is no longer out of the ordinary it is just how the world works it grabs your attention but you are over looking the fact that being sexual is how things sell now. This way of thinking creates completely unrealistic expectations of men and women. Even though it seems natural for advertising it is causing the idea of what we should look like in order to be "beautiful" unattainable.

sexualized images

The way I perceive sexualized images of men and women is different depending on the context of the image. I say this because, if a sexualized image is used for an advertisement I do not think twice about it because I know that “sex” sells. Yet, when I see a sexualized image in art I try and think of it more in an intellectual way. Maybe this is because I am a history major and I have had to study old paintings, but when I see a sexualized image in art I try and figure out the message the author was trying to portray. On the other hand, sexualized images in advertisements also make me think that the people who agreed to be in the advertisements do not mind having their bodies portrayed in that certain way. The men and women who choose to be in these advertisements are supporting the sexualized images they are portraying. For example, women you pose in a swim suit magazine add are supporting the distorted photo shopped image that young girls are striving to look like. In essence, I feel that sexualized images in art are a whole different ballpark than sexualized images that are in the media. 

Response - Sexualized Images

As a seventeen-year-old girl who is half Japanese, I typically find sexualized images to be problematic. Firstly, the people who create these images and advertisements often misrepresent my race––Japanese women are nearly always portrayed as passive geisha, whereas Japanese men are shown as exotic samurai. They also depict teenage girls in a manner that is oversimplified and hypocritical. For example, many advertisements encourage girls to use makeup and wear revealing clothes, but to still appear and act naive. And finally, these people tend to sexualize women more often than men, popularizing the idea that women should be valued more for their sex appeal than for who they are as people.

Despite the fact that I dislike these images, I will admit that they are powerful in the sense that they impact the way that other men and women are perceived. Because sexualization is ubiquitous in our modern culture, it establishes a “norm” in terms of behavior and appearance: men and women are made to believe that they must fit the standards set by these images. All of this is incredibly harmful––as I previously explained, these expectations are unrealistic and inaccurate.

Sexual Images

I perceive sexualized images of men and women to mostly be used for advertising. The term "sex sells" comes to mind. I think that using sex as a tool to sell a product may influence how other men and women are perceived. Usually the men and women in the advertisements are fit and are the image of "perfection". This may influence those who view the images to aspire to look like them, or perhaps find a partner that resembles them. The image may also convince the viewer that someone who doesn't own or wear the product being advertised is unattractive. Ultimately, this can cause the viewer to perceive other men and women as objects as opposed to people, looking only for flaws in appearance.

Sexual images

There are many different companies who use sexualized images of men and women in their ads to sell their products. Personally, I don't look at those kinds of images past the marketing stand point but I also understand how using sexualized images of men and women could negatively affect our society. Obviously our society has incredibly high standards for men and women based on how they should look so when people see these nearly perfect images of models it is making them think that the only way to be accepted by society is to look like what they see in these ads. I think that using sexualized images in ads, such as Victoria's Secret and many brands of perfume, is mainly for the companies to sell what they're advertising but the underlying message that "this is how you should look" is what's actually affecting how men and women perceive themselves and one another.

Sexual Images

Just like everyone else that has posted I feel as if I don't perceive sexual images in a certain kind of way. These images are out their to try to sell something, mostly in ads or commercials. Companies use these images to help sell their products and make people feel a certain way about things. I believe people will look at those ads and they will think that is how they are suppose to look. Obviously Victoria Secret is a big one that will have commercials and ads promoting their products and they have gorgeous woman wearing their attire. You will see a lot of work out ads and commercials showing men and woman and this makes you feel as if you will be this way if you do this work out or you take this certain diet product. I think with the use of ads and others that woman and men are perceived to look and feel this way if you decide to use it. This is why we have so many issues with us trying to look perfect and doing outrageous things to be perfect.

Sexual images

The way I perceive these pictures is that these men and women are putting themselves out there to let photographer’s painters and ads make money off of how they look. These people make their images of men and women look a certain way to try to sell their product. For example Nike has very fit, attractive men and women wearing their shoes and clothing, showing off their muscular bodies. Victoria Secret has these really skinny, perfect looking women selling their underwear and clothing. These women working for victoria secret pose in away that make them look sexy and more appealing. Looking at those kinds of pictures make people think that if they are wearing that certain product that they will look like that. Every piece of clothing looks different on everyone. I do think these images impact how other men and women are perceived. When people see men and women looking flawless in these images that’s how other people think they should look. They are supposed to have perfect skin, body and hair. And frankly that is impossible no one is perfect, everyone is beautiful in his or her own way, but that is hard for people to understand when they see these images.