Mariana Gurevich

Professor Wollman

IDC 1001H EMWCH

November 2013

Where True Beauty Lies

            Imagine a world where models are not stick thin; instead, clothing and products are advertised using people of all different ages, skin colors and sizes. The Dove “Campaign for Real Beauty,” launched nine years ago, focuses on this idea of broadening the typical definition of beauty. Through different short films, surveys and images, the company has been challenging the stereotypical norms of desirability, stirring up much conversation and controversy on the subject. While many of today’s ad campaigns depict a version of allure and glamour that is very limiting, Dove has been working on pushing these boundaries. The movement began when the company held a study and discovered that only 2% of women around the world would describe themselves as beautiful. Thus, since 2004, Dove has been using several vehicles of communication to challenge the typical ideas of splendor and appeal. Through the use of television and social media, this campaign has brought more attention to the standards of attractiveness in society today, and has made an unprecedented effort to turn everyone’s beauty into a widespread source of confidence.

This Dove campaign began its efforts in 2004 with a picture featuring women of all different ages and sizes. The ultimate goal for this reinvented venture was to help increase sales of the company’s beauty products. A supplementary mission for these advertisements was to make women feel gorgeous every day by challenging the typical notions of beauty.  In essence, Dove hoped to inspire women to take great care of themselves, which, in turn, would hopefully lead to a growth in sales. Overall, this campaign was a move, not simply to alter women’s views of their bodies, but also to change the beauty market. In an industry dominated by size two supermodels, Dove was distinguishing itself from others, one of their biggest objectives. Unlike other companies who were utilizing the standard bombshells in their campaigns, this new movement featured real women and abandoned the conventional, cynical idea of “perfect” women being role models.

Throughout the years, Dove has created many pictures and videos to go along with this idea of promoting universal beauty, but, just recently, the company presented one particularly striking advertisement. This past April, the corporation released a video, entitled “Dove Real Beauty Sketches,” in which several women describe themselves to a forensic sketch artist who cannot see his subjects. The women then mingled with other participants in the study. Later, they were asked to describe each other to the forensic artist. Finally, Dove compiled two sketches of each woman, and put them side by side. Each time, the stranger’s descriptions led to a more flattering and accurate depiction of the ladies’ appearances. In this manner, the video was extremely poignant and inspiring because it depicted the skewed perceptions that women have of themselves. Overall, the video truly highlights Dove’s desire to showcase that everyone is special and remarkable.

The Dove “Campaign for Real Beauty” is a gem for our society, in which so many girls are consumed by body issues. The portrayal of the ideal, skinny body type in western media has been a consistent factor in promulgating eating disorders. In addition, the spread of social media has facilitated an increase in exposure to the expectations of society, which in turn has led to the growth of eating problems. For instance, in recent years, the prevalence of anorexia in children and teens has been on the rise. For these reasons, Dove’s project is a great concept, since it presents a more universal sample of what women look like, thus exposing adolescents to more realistic role models.

It is ironic and dreadful that a campaign aimed at depicting more beauty in the world has brought out such ugly behavior in thousands. Many people have taken to social media to express their negative opinions of these new advertisements. Although there is certainly a wide range of supporters for this campaign, who praise its efforts at tackling unrealistic media images, there are many others who are not buying into the company’s initiative. For instance, an article by Erin Keane, entitled, Stop Posting That Dove Ad: “Real Beauty” campaign is not feminist, completely bashes the latest video featuring the forensic sketch artist. Keane declares, “Here’s another experiment. Find a four year old and ask her to draw a picture of you…You might be surprised to learn that through a child’s innocent eyes, you’re actually a potato with a shock of purple hair, sticks for limbs and a triangular nose.” In her piece, Keane seems to pick apart the video featuring the forensic artist, while, in reality, she appears to miss the overarching goal of the campaign: there is beauty in everyone. Dove’ central objective is to alter the skewed perception of attractiveness that has been adopted in our society, not to highlight the drawing ability of youngsters or professional artists.

Clearly, people have been buying into the Dove campaign, since, only two months after the movement was initiated, sales increased by 600 percent. It is obvious that the intentions of these new advertisements are positive, and are great for society to adopt. Meanwhile, if Dove wants more people to understand their perspective and purchase their products, they must stop being hypocritical. Unilever, which owns the Dove brand, also owns Axe, a company which, quite controversially, fully adopts the stereotypical notions of beauty. For instance, advertisements for Axe products are usually overtly sexual and often feature scantily clad women. These ads are degrading for women, and go against everything that Dove is trying to promulgate. Thus, if Dove wants more people to understand their cause, they must make sure that companies they are closely tied with, such as Axe, also adopt these ideas of showcasing real people in their advertisements. It is not enough to simply make a statement through this novel campaign; if Dove wants to spread its beliefs on a greater scale and make its objective more believable, the company must, as the famous saying goes, practice what it preaches.

 

Works Cited

Belcamino, Kristi. “My Anorexic 9-year-old.” Saloncom RSS. N.p., 5 Aug. 2013. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. <http://www.salon.com/2013/08/06/my_anorexic_9_year_old/>.

“Dove’s ‘Real Beauty’ Campaign: Hypocritical? – The Week.” The Week. N.p., 30 June 2010. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. <http://theweek.com/article/index/204565/doves-real-beauty-campaign-hypocritical>.

Keane, Erin. “Salon.” Saloncom RSS. N.p., 18 Apr. 2013. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. <http://www.salon.com/2013/04/18/stop_posting_that_dove_ad_real_beauty_campaign_is_not_feminist/>.

Kurtzleben, Danielle. “Do Dove and Axe Sell the Same Message?” US News. U.S.News & World Report, 18 Apr. 2013. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. <http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/04/18/unilever-faces-criticism-for-real-beauty-ad-campaign?page=2>.

“Real Beauty Sketches – Dove.” Real Beauty Sketches – Dove. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2013. <http://realbeautysketches.dove.us/>.

Stampler, Laura. “Why People Hate Dove’s ‘Real Beauty Sketches’ Video.” Business Insider. N.p., 22 Apr. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2013. <http://www.businessinsider.com/why-people-hate-doves-real-beauty-ad-2013-4>.

 

“The Dove® Campaign for Real Beauty.” The Dove® Campaign for Real Beauty. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2013. <http://www.dove.us/social-mission/campaign-for-real-beauty.aspx>.