Sexist, racist, vag-hating video tells you to "mow the lawn"
Sarahec at the Community blog already posted this mess of an ad, but I just had to write about it as well. The video is obviously gross and hackneyed (how many cat/pussy references does one really need?), but the not-so-subtle racism of who has a "big" bush and who has a "small" bush just put me over the edge.
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Wow... I would have been interested in buying the product, as a built-in trimmer is much better suited to my needs than a razor, but thanks to the ads, I'm boycotting this product.
I'm shocked that this was actually an [i]advertisement[/i]. Really? This crap is endorsed by someone trying to convince me to buy their product?
See, I had no problem with their first advertisement, but this...? WTF?!?!
Yes. I wasn't too offended by the first one, but I didn't bother to post and comment about it because I could see how it fit into the bigger picture.
This one though? Holy cow!
Arugh! And of course the Asian woman has bonsai trees as her "bush".
No... Just... No. The whole thing feels like a Barbie commercial gone rancid.
right, lydia, and did you see the continued stereotype with her little shy giggle - hand over mouth. omg.
In the middle I was hoping this would be a parody of that razor commercial I saw a week or two ago... but it's just another ad T_T
I didn't think it was racist til I saw the Asian (presumably Japanese) woman was trimming a bonsai. I didn't catch the African American with the Afro until I saw the Asian, too. As though Black women are big, hairy and beastly, and Asian women (who are obviously all the same no matter what country) are petite, small, and compact.
Makes me wish even more that I could go outside and expose my hairy bikini line without fear of criticism.
As though Black women are big, hairy and beastly, and Asian women (who are obviously all the same no matter what country) are petite, small, and compact.
Thats exactly what I was going to say. Thanks for putting it so well : )
From what I've heard, it's the other way around. Not that it matters one damned iota.
Er, not all black women are African American. Sorry I don't mean to be the picky-police but I get a bit frustrated by how America-centric this site is.
I never said all black women were African-American. Was this not an American commercial? did I not say 'black' in reference to 'African-descendant'?
Sorry for the confusion. But I meant the woman in the commercial as "African American" because I thought this was an American commercial. I mean, the white lady at the end had an American accent. But if the commercial wasn't American-made, I apologize.
But I DO know that not all black people are African-American.
Right, I don't know, but the website at the end is a UK site. Yeah sorry of course you know not all black women are African American that was a bit facetious of me.
"It feels great to trim the hedges"? Yeah, nothing in the world is more fun than applying sharp things to nether-regions.
Yeah, shaving is so fun! That's the only reason anyone does it, of course!
I just love how letting your hair grow naturally is equated to a yard full of weeds.
If we're getting metaphorical, I would say mine is a well-loved old-growth forest. Lush and majestic!
Love it!
Who doesn't mow their lawn with pink lawn mowers, high heels, and skirts?
That last shot of all the women outside on their 'beautifully' manicured lawns reminded me of the houses from Edward Scissorhands... then of um... Edward Scissorhands and how he could potentially relate to this...
holy.shit. fuck you, quattro.
Whoa. How utterly disgusting.
And giant gardening shears do not make me want to do anything with my genitals. They just make me want to run away screaming.
Are you fucking kidding me?
Damn it. I was going to try to come up with a constructive criticism/comment, but I'm too pissed off. This is just awful.
I'm going back to thinking about Iowa now.
Just what exactly are those two tulips supposed to repre... oh... um yeah knock me over the head with the subtlety.
Wow, just wow...
I'm speechless.
Get the SPCA on them for dragging those cats into it.
I thought the ad that was posted here a couple weeks ago was cute, but this one is pretty painful to watch.
That's a REAL commercial?
I'm serious. That's actually going to be shown during...I dunno...Grey's Anatomy...to get people to buy shit?
Something tells me that even women who hear "feminist" and think "fat man-hating lesbian" will be repulsed by that commercial...it's not just offensive, it's DUMB. It's noxiously treacly and DUMB.
*Paging Sarah Haskins...
You know this would work great as an SNL skit about the idiocy of female beauty standards and advertising geared towards women. As an honest to God real ad, I don't have words....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgtMskfX8iw&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.co.uk%2Fvideosearch%3Fq%3Dwilkinson%2520sword%2520bikini%2520uk%2520ad%26oe%3Dutf-8%26rls%3Dcom.ubuntu%3Aen-&feature=player_embedded
The commercial above (for some reason it's supposedly the UK version) is what I actually saw on TV (with an American-sounding accent doing the voice over and more upbeat music). I think that one (showing women WALKING past newly "trimmed" hedges while wearing short shorts, bikinis, etc.) is something I wrinkled my nose at too the first time I saw it, but it was preferable to the farce above.
I'm not kidding. I will be surprised if that ad runs on TV in its entirety (including the transformation of the blond--first dressed in dark, semi-funeral garb, singing how "blue" she is to her furry cat, to the end of the ad, where she's shown in bright colors, a mini skirt, hairless cat, her tresses down--saying how "great it is to mow the lawn.)
I just can't believe Schick would put that out...I guess they were trying to be cutesy. If you're talking about vaginas and how gross body hair is on women, a spoonful of sugar (more like a truckload) helps the medicine go down, right?
The end product is just mindless condescending bullshit.
I don't know about the UK or not but that ad was posted at feministing a few weeks ago and some people were offended but some people said they were fine with it. Personally I think the one with the lawnmowers is worse.
It'll definitely get people talking.
That's pretty disgusting. Will anyone actually buy into that? I can't imagine the advertising team pitching that to Quattro. How ridiculous.
I'm boycotting.
I wish I could shape my pubes like a heart... but that would require waxing with a heart shaped piece of paper, or excellent umm.. 'trimming' skillz.
I don't know why but for some reason this ad doesn't seam as sexist/racist to me as most. Maybe because its so over the top that I can see the irony in it. It seams like a weak attempt at an SNL skit.
See, but this isn't an SNL skit. Though the ad is meant to be funny, it's not meant to be ironic and it's seriously telling women what to do with their pubes. They're selling a product, so they want you to feel bad about yourself so you'll buy it.
I don't know about anyone else, but when I'm blue and my life is a mess I organize my HOUSE not my body hair.
They want it to be "funny" but they're trying to make you "feel bad"? Well that's a novel trick. And I'll bet they'll pull a rabbit out the hat for their next trick. I think they were just going for "funny", and you brought "bad" to the issue.
Well, they are trying to imply that there's something wrong with you if you don't shave your pubic hair.
Could this ad have been any less subtle?
A woman holding a meticulously trimmed bush from which protrude two pink tulips in between her legs.
Gee, I wonder what that could be referencing?
Yeah and how did you like the giant pink penis watering can?
That was a leaf blower actually.
Jeez, what a train wreck
I particularly love that at the very end, in the bottom right hand corner, it says "free your skin". Yea there is nothing like the freedom of ingrown hairs and irritation bumps!
I don't know why but for some reason this ad doesn't seam as sexist/racist to me as most. Maybe because its so over the top that I can see the irony in it. It seams like a weak attempt at an SNL skit."
That's what I'm thinking...
If it's actually something Schick wants to show on the networks (as in, it's a real ad...I'm honest-to-God having trouble believing this will run on TV...it's too long, for one thing) then the attempt has failed miserably.
Anyone remember that Australian ad about women "taking care of their beavers," showing a women running errands with her cute little pet? I guess to some that was insulting, but it took a term usually meant to be vulgar or derogatory and made it cute and tongue-in-cheek. I laughed at that ad.
This might have been going for the same thing but it's just so stupid. They may have shot for irony and missed...either way it IS a mess. It's just so mind-numbingly DUMB. Dumb enough to make me change the channel--and why would networks want that?
Until I see this actually run on TV I just can't believe the company put time and money into something like that...it's like a dirty joke that just ends up being mortifying and gross.
One of the problems is the product is, in itself, sexist. Women are required to do much more grooming than men, especially when it comes to shaving. For most women, shaving the bikini is ridiculously unpleasant--so selling it as a good, empowering thing is insulting and disengenuous.
It's just telling women that they have to do one more thing to keep themselves socially acceptable.
And then there are the stereotypes--the white woman is a typical wasp, the black woman has the afro, the Asian woman is trimming a tree bonzai style.
But I think you're here to concern troll anyway, because I've seen quite a few, "I don't see sexism, clearly you're all looking for it where it doesn't exist and just need someone to explain how it's totally feminist anyway." Nobody is falling for it, you just look ignorant.
It's unnecessary to call middlechild ignorant. They weren't doing anything but stating their own interpretation of it.
They aren't the only ones on this comment board who think that (even though I disagree with her and personally find the ad offensive).
But I think you're here to concern troll anyway, because I've seen quite a few, "I don't see sexism, clearly you're all looking for it where it doesn't exist and just need someone to explain how it's totally feminist anyway." Nobody is falling for it, you just look ignorant.
What the hell is your problem? Where did I ever actually say, "You're all making too big a deal about this, it's just a ordinary commercial"?
I was just responding to someone else who said the commercial is SO trashy it must be a joke or a miserable attempt, and I was agreeing with that possibility. The commercial is something the company should be embarrassed about. The "beaver" ad showed a furry little beaver and the ad was for tampons, not shaving.
So what justifies your knee-jerk hostility? I was quoting the previous poster and copied/pasted a paragraph from her. Guess you just read that first line and fired away a response, eh?
I agree with everything you said about the commercial; the beauty expectations that minimize or dismiss the unpleasantness of shaving, waxing, etc. ARE sexist. I expect ads for hair removal products to be condescending or to play on women's insecurities about men--if companies know what's good for them, they won't break that last straw like this. You don't have to be a consumer that appreciates sexist beauty myths in order to be dumbfounded by this ad.
In THREE separate posts I agreed with the tone of what you said; my point is that this ad was SO bad, so insulting and invasive and DISGUSTING in it's views of feminine hygiene that I can't actually believe a network would have the gall to show it, not until I actually see it. I don't disagree that it's misogynistic (or at least, REALLY stupid and unfunny) in tone...that was my point. The company and any network who shows this should be embarrassed. (I could believe a network buying it, but I'll be shocked, because at best it flops in terms of comedy, and at worst, it's a misogynstic, unbelievable POS with racist undertones.)
That's all I was saying before. "Concern troll" indeed. If I'm a troll then you're illiterate.
I agree with Alessa. I think it's a problem when posters can't debate sexism and/or the lack of sexism in culture on a feminist website. We're not all going to agree on everything and healthy debate is the whole point. Calling middlechild ignorant and a troll when she (?) said nothing overtly offensive or troll-like was rude, unnecessary and counterproductive.
For the record, as I stated earlier, I think this ad is atrocious, But I've seen examples of other ads that feministing posters took offense to, that I had no problem with, and I think that's the whole point to this site-it's a safe place for people to dicuss and debate their feminist beliefs, including when they differ from other people's beliefs.
That's great. But I never actually said this ad ISN'T misogynistic--I was quoting someone else. It's either too stupid and tasteless or else to blatantly misogynstic to actually show on TV.
I have to agree. I know there's a lot of woman-hating advertising out there, but this seemed cheeky and silly.
I understand that it makes some people very angry, but I just wanted to offer my opinion as a woman of color who didn't find the ad sexist, racist, or vag-hating at all. Just silly.
What's bothersome is the assumption that women in their natural states are "rough around the edges" and can't feel quite right about themselves unless they purchase this product and change themselves in this way. It's the same as the "not so fresh feeling" campaign.
"tulips on a mound". That's an admittedly hilarious play on words, but in the context of shaming women with "big bushes" and condescendingly enforcing sexist "beauty" standards, this gets s big "fuck you" from me...
Besides the very obvious Asian stereotype, I'm surprised no one has mentioned yet the black woman looking angry and violent as she's hacking away at her "bush." You know, because all black women are angry, all the time.
What a fucking joke.
And seriously? There's nothing fun about trimming and shaving your crotchal region.
"So all that's left for me to see are tulips on the mound."
Oops, didn't see Mollie's comment.
I liked the last ad, but this one does suck. The other one didn't imply that you should do anything, this one does. Pubic hair is 'untidy'? No thanks.
This ad has terrible elements, although I found bits of it promising. Yes, it's stupid, but I think the fact that this woman can sing "tulips on a mound" while referencing something between her legs on television is...kinda cool. That's the most blatant reference to a vagina I've seen in a commercial (besides that awesome beaver one) and it's not something gross or repelling, it's something that's supposed to be beautiful. Yes, it's sugar-coated and silly and stupid, but it's supposed to be a gimmick, not an anatomy lesson.
THAT BEING SAID, this really falls flat. I resent the implication that hair is weeds and that shaving is not only fun but necessary if you want to be like these happy suburban women. And as Pineapplesauce mentioned above, that last shot is very Edward Scissorhands-esque, which was supposed to be a twisted parody of suburbia. I almost thought it was a joke upon seeing all those lawns, because usually that sort of blatant uniformity is negative. Is the pendulum swinging back, or what?
And the bit with the bonsai tree and the "big bush". Ugh. Shoot me in the face. It's such a fucking shame that (what I feel) is a pretty cool reference to the vag is absolutely swamped with racist, sexist stereotypes.
"Yes, it's stupid, but I think the fact that this woman can sing "tulips on a mound" while referencing something between her legs on television is...kinda cool."
I can see what you're saying, but I actually find it quite troubling that the most open references to the female anatomy on television (i.e., this commercial and the beaver commercial) are, well, commercials. It may be saying that vaginas are beautiful, but only in the service of telling us that they're not *that* beautiful and need to be shaved. We can't talk about the ones that are not and will not be shaved, waxed, or otherwise modified. And that's both because they're 'gross' and because they don't bring in revenue for companies. Basically, it's very sad to me that the only references to women's anatomy come in consumerist packages. That's not acceptance, that's run-of-the-mill sexist advertising, with a pseudo-empowering mind-fuck to draw in more customers.
That said, I also agree that this commercial fell flat on it's face and I don't see many people running out to buy the product.
I think shaving is absurd. I don't do it, I don't think others should have to do it. I think pubic hair is a plus. it traps hormones. yumm, hormones.
That being said, this ad is completely hilarious.
I consider myself to be constantly alert for sexism and gender violence, but I just don't see it here.
The sole argument I can find in the post and the comments is that the commercial makes an analogy between pubic hair and weeds.
That's not vag-hating. That's not even pube-hating.
I've seen commercials that have compared hair on ones head to weeds.
I've seen stubble compared to weeds.
I've seen children and dirt and mold and other stuff compared to weeds.
I love pubic hair. But it might be kind of like weeds.
loving your body doesn't mean you can't want to modify parts of it sometimes.
I think pubic hair is a plus. it traps hormones. yumm, hormones.
I think you mean pheromones.
It's a shame that a woman would ever agree to be a part of a commercial like this. It is an utter shame.
Jessica,
I hate to be the bearer of bad news,
but there is an anti-feminist blog that is mocking you and your fiance's committment to feminism.
They even make fun of your photo. They also say that you keeping your maiden name is really just keeping your father's name, so you are still promoting the patriarchy.
But the worst thing is that they have a poll on whether your fiance is a weaker man or some other man is.
I say we go over there and teach this anti-feminist blogger (who calls himself an 'alpha male' a lesson.
Ignore the troll, everyone. This guy just signed up for the purpose of directing traffic to his website.
I am absolutely NOT a troll, nor am I the author of that Roissy website!
I condemn that site, and am appalled by it. Jessica has the right to know what is being said about her and her soon-to-be husband.
She has a right to know.
I was curious and read the post about Jessica. The blogger's a jerk and honestly, I don't think anything anyone could say would get through to him.
That I agree with. But sometimes, one has to defend a cause, and the best defense is an offense.
That blogger stands for everything we fight against. There are a lot like him, but he is actually making fun of Jessica and her fiance in a very tasteless way, and even has a poll up there about it.
I think that crosses the line.
Commenters on that page discussed signing up here, pretending to be sympathetic, just to post the link and try to make Jessica mad. I assumed you were that person and if you weren't then I apologize.
Maybe next time, you could just email it to her and let her decide what to do with it from there.
Thanks for the heads up but I don't really care what people say about me or my impending wedding; I'd rather not give assholes traffic. (And in the future, please don't link to said assholes here. Thanks.)
It is good that you don't let them bug you.
But given how much that blogger is delving into your and your fiance's personal life and put up a defamatory poll (that appears to be getting hundred of votes, sadly), I think you should at least send a 'cease and desist' to him.
Look, I think it's good that you told her about the sexist blog attacking her, but can't we please just trust Jessica to deal with the problem as she sees fit? If she doesn't want to give the idiots the hits and take their bait, she has every right to ignore them. Trying to persuade her to enter into a futile argument with them is not helpful or appropriate.
If you're really concerned, you can always send her a private e-mail in lieu of posting on this page repeatedly.
Besides, she said she doesn't care. So there you have it. You can't engage every loser nay-sayer online. It's a waste of time. It's opinion, not slander - so it's not a legal issue.
omg... this is so unbelievably offensive I thought it was a satire from the Onion... Can you imagine making a commercial like this about hair-straightening products??
It was so bad, it reminded me of Steve Carrell's character in The Office (cause that's something he would come up with)
oh for heavens sake - come ON people - LIGHTEN UP - 12 people were just killed in a rampage in an immigration service center in New York. Sheeeesh!
And yet here you are, trying to troll a feminist website.
Looks like somebody else needs to lighten up and get their priorities in order. We might just be talking about feminism, but you're not talking about anything!
Yeah, you're right gwyllion. I'm going to honor those 12 people by interrupting conversations about feminism. Everyone: stop thinking and start putting people down!!! It's the only correct thing to do!!!
That's strange...I thought I remembered a post here about that very issue!
Or should we just dedicate the whole blog to that now? From a psychiatric point of view, I think it's best if all media continually talk about a tragedy until we all pass out from grief. We should never break from it, we should make mass murders TV stars, we should never continue with regular life. That's healthy, right?!
Oh yeah, "mowing the lawn" is excellent fun. Especially with the ingrown hairs and the other uncomfortable aspects of shaving.
I used to buy their razors, too. I know that I won't be anymore, though.
I'm as much a feminist as anybody, but I don't get what is so offensive about this ridiculous, silly ad. Black women have big hairy vaginas, asian women have tiny ones. That is just a plain fact. Chill out people
I guess that makes me a black woman. Won't everyone I know be so surprised! And here I had them fooled all along that I was actually white! /snark
(Sorry, couldn't resist.)
Unless there is supposed to be something satirical about your comment that I'm not getting (and sadly, I don't think there is) you should really find another place to comment.
OK. I wasn't going to say anything, but this shit has pissed me off.
People from the Sub-Saharan region typically have less body hair, certainly a lot less than your average European. For example (to keep it clean), it's much less common for black African men to be able to grow long beards; few black Africans have hairy backs or chests loaded with hair. And I have never seen armpit hair sticking out on a black man. Can't say the same with straight-hair pits.
Black women typically don't have a lot of hair either. Please. If a black woman has a huge bush it's more likely that it's due to European heritage.
Not that there is anything wrong with a big bush. But I'm tired of our culture at large disrespecting black hair. And it took a lot of ignorance and stereotyping to make these inferences about women of color in this commercial.
As someone who's seen plenty of naked Japanese women I have to say ... wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong.
Japanese women have IMMENSELY HAIRY vulvas. And non-Japanese dudes who come here never shut up about it. So your facts are not really ... facts.
Thank goodness we have someone on staff who has seen all Asian and Black women naked so she can report her findings back to us about universal truths!
To me the racism in the video is far more obvious than the sexism. The whole "wild black woman" and "demure asian woman" stereotypes are uncalled for.
That said, from the sexism angle, it doesn't seem quite as shaming as what it possibly could be; the commercial simply implies that it feels good and it might make you happy. It doesn't seem to suggest that you're "dirty" if you don't shave, or that you're falling short of some already impossible beauty standard.
Really, from the point of view of the advertisers, I don't see how they could have done this more tastefully (aside from the racism). To advertise a product, you have to make the audience want it -- to think they need it. For example, if you were advertising deodorant or mouthwash, you would probably show someone with smelly armpits or rancid breath. Let's say you tried to market deodorant with the following pitch: "You don't smell bad by default, but with this product, you can smell -better-!" Who in their right mind would buy a product advertised like that?
How would you craft this commercial to advertise this product in a more positive light, on the condition that you induce the same number, if not more, of sales?
I realize that women are generally held to more numerous and more oppressive beauty standards than men (I haven't yet seen razors for shaving my balls), and that commercials like these both feed into and partially create these same standards. I wouldn't even say this is "vag-hating" specifically, but more indicative of the general idea that body hair = manly and unacceptable -anywhere- on a woman. But I have a hard time getting angry at either the product developers or advertisers because these commercials are ultimately based on existing societal views and market demands, and ultimately they will strive to maximize their revenue. I think any product geared towards personal use will depend to some degree on making the consumer feel needy -- in the same way that food advertising would make you hungry, or that advertising for debt relief makes you feel irresponsible.
Also, as somewhat rational adults (which I believe most of us are, and the women in the commercial seem to be adults), I'd like to think that we have some capacity for evaluating advertising targeted to us, and making a decision of value as to whether or not to buy a product. I would be upset if this commercial were aimed to young girls or teenagers, as they generally do not have the capacity to evaluate media targeted at them and would take this to mean that unshaved women are less feminine or inferior in some way.
Okay, I appreciate your input, but I have a number of problems with your argument so I'm just going to go down the list.
To advertise a product, you have to make the audience want it -- to think they need it.
Well, duh, but does that make the advertisers right? No.
How would you craft this commercial to advertise this product in a more positive light, on the condition that you induce the same number, if not more, of sales?
There are dozens of other ways they could have done this without making women feel bad about their bodies. And aside from that, it doesn't make the commercial right! I'm still offended. Why are you so sympathetic for the advertisers? So they can continue to make money on a disposable product that is both partially unnecessary and detrimental to the environment? It is our responsibility as consumers to call them out on this.
I wouldn't even say this is "vag-hating" specifically, but more indicative of the general idea that body hair = manly and unacceptable -anywhere- on a woman.
Did I miss something? How is that not vag-hating? Yes, the idea that pubic hair on women is unacceptable may be part of a larger problem that shames body hair on women in general, but that doesn't mean that saying "pubic hair is untidy" is not vag-hating. I have a vagina, and I can say right now that even I have felt somewhat shamed for not "keeping it up" down there.
But I have a hard time getting angry at either the product developers or advertisers because these commercials are ultimately based on existing societal views and market demands, and ultimately they will strive to maximize their revenue.
Advertising influences society, and society influences advertising. It's not a one way street. Advertising may be "based on existing societal views" but in many cases, it only amplifies and encourages ideas that are in place. This product specifically uses sexism (and racism, haha, get it? The black woman has a big bush!!?) to sell its product. We don't have to give in and say "You're right, the advertisers just want money, it's okay to make women feel like shit, as long as they are doing it well and increasing revenue."
Also, as somewhat rational adults (which I believe most of us are, and the women in the commercial seem to be adults), I'd like to think that we have some capacity for evaluating advertising targeted to us, and making a decision of value as to whether or not to buy a product.
You give consumers far too much credit. The purpose of advertising is to be manipulative and generate sales of the product. Advertisers don't care if the product is bad for the consumer or the environment. To say that people are rational and can decipher ridiculous advertising from what they actually need is utterly wrong. Hello, cigarettes? Gaz-guzzling SUVs?
I can see why what I wrote would be objectionable -- you could read it to mean "advertisers can do whatever they want to do as long as they make good profit from it, ethics be damned".
But to me, the opposite extreme is just as unconscionable: "advertisers have to take care never ever to hurt someone's precious feelings, even at the expense of their own pocketbooks". As I stated before, and as you agreed with, advertising depends on making consumers thinking that they need a product.
You asked me, "Why are you so sympathetic for the advertisers?" On the other hand, your answer seems to imply that advertising itself is unethical, because artificially inducing a need in people is unethical (which I would disagree with). In which case, how could you begin to have a good attitude towards advertising at all?
To me, this isn't any different from a commercial for a breathmint, for example:
1. The character is presented with some sort of "problem" (hairy | smelly breath)
2. The product is used to solve the problem (razor | mint)
3. The character is in a happier state because of the product (smooth | good breath)
Do breathmint commercials shame people into thinking they have consistently rancid breath? Would that be unethical?
Look, you don't get to tell us what we find offensive. And talking about it and calling the advertisers on their bullshit is never a bad thing. This is discussion, support and activism and all your comment seems to be doing is dismissing that or shutting it down.
Psst, your privilege is showing!
That seems a little harsh given that the points are very valid. Advertisers are there to sell a product, and the 3-point formula listed is how they go about it.
I don't like the racism and overall I find it a little too "obvious", so I have problems with the ad. But I don't blame the advertisers for what they are trying to do, i.e., sell a product. That's their job. So they have ever right to advertise this product and try to sell it. I just want them to go about it in a better way.
Okay, I'm confused, you don't like the ad, but you don't blame the advertisers for trying to sell a product because it's their job? Who would you blame?
I just want them to go about it in a better way.
Okay... I said the same thing. So you don't like the ad, and you would rather them do something else, but no one is to blame?
You can't manipulate the market into something it doesn't want. Creating demand out of thin air is the most difficult advertising trick of all. Try working in advertising for a day & you'll realize that companies desperately avoid markets where they have to completely educate the marketplace. So its unfair to call it manipulative when its just encouraging an underlying sentiment.
As for SUVs...Liberal orthodoxy aside, lots of people want SUVs. They're the modern-day equivalent of the '70s station wagon & '80s mini-van. And even at $4/gallon gasoline they still outsold Prius 20 to 1.
Advertising manipulated American women into shaving in the first place, I think advertising agencies are perfectly capable of doing it again.
I think the chorus should go, "shave your cunt so the boys can see your vulva."
Honesty.
At least that wouldn't be beating around the bush.
Heh heh
Did this actually run on TV? It's too long and completely ridiculous. I was wondering if this was like the LG camera phone stalker ad: a pitched advertisement that the company rejected.
I actually have one of the advertised razors. It works quite nicely.
Amanda Palmer (of the Dresden Dolls) has a song that is an appropriate counter to this utterly offensive nonsense.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpycUVP5OEE
It might help to know that "map of tasmania" is a euphemism for lady parts.
lyrics:
they don’t play the song on the radio
they don’t show the tits in the video
they don’t know that we are the media
they don’t know that we start the mania
i don’t want to see but i’m making you
ass is off it’s seat and i’m shaking you
walking down the street i’m the lady - ja
showing off my map of tasmania
soft and sweet and shape like a triangle!
some girls want no shape and they shave it all
i think sad it hurts with the stubble
walk in named look like an eight year old!
i say grow that shit like a jungle
give ‘em something strong to hold onto
let it fly in the open wind
if it get too bushy you can trim
they don’t play the song on the radio
they don’t show the tits in the video
they don’t know that we are the media
they don’t know that we start the mania
i don’t want to see but i’m making you
ass is off it’s seat and i’m shaking you
walking down the street i’m the lady - ja
showing off my map of tasmania!!!
I showed this video to my cousin and what she had to say about it speaks for both of us. The only thing she had to say to this video was "Wow. This is why people hate themselves"
I don't think it feels great to trim my hedges. I think it itches like hell.
This ad reminds me of the satirical faux-ads that pepper Paul Verhoeven films.
I don't understand how any woman is ever "smooth". My state of hairiness after removing hair goes straight from agonising red and lumpy to stubble and ingrown hairs. It makes me feel absolutely terrible about myself : (
Ugh, the whole thing was just so...ugh! And I was thinking about buying one of those, mostly because it seems useful in trimming down there but not necessarily shaving. Talk about being counterproductive in advertising something!
Egad.
Ironically I just shaved my legs recently from almost the same product but I so glad I got it for free from some random radio station promo thing.
It was a really nice shave at least but my god, I really need to hunt for a sexist/racist-free razor now that actually works. This sucks.
Fuck that shit. I know that's not the most verbose or helpful thing I could possibly write but damn it, it's all it deserves.
Is it just me or is there something pedophiliac about so many people preferring the shaven look to a natural bush?
So NOT just you. I remember my boyfriend telling me he didn't like it when women shave their whole vulva, because "it looks like..." and I had to finish the sentence with "a little girl?" He was like EW SICK YEAH.
I tend to think there is...Or perhaps its more suavely European...Its odd how this has become the thing to do in just 10 or 15 yrs. I was really grossed out the first several years, now I'm just resigned.
yeah, I'm with you. My partner and I trim, but won't shave... we don't like how it feels or how it looks. I want to be with a WOMAN, not a girl.
I'm on the fence with this commercial. On the one hand I can definitely see how it's offensive with it's blatant stereotypes, and how it implies we will be sad unless we have crotches akin to a suburbanites lawn. Still part of me found this cute, like they were being silly and taking advantage of the fact that they can say things they otherwise wouldn't be able to get away with without using crazy symbolism. I have a feeling the makers of this ad know perfectly well that these are stupid stereotypes and are just having fun with them. Still, it would be nice if a commercial would just be blunt once in a while. "this is used for trimming your pubic hair, if you choose to do so. Please try it."
That bluntness is what I loved about that pregnancy test ad that claimed to be the "most innovative piece of technology you will ever pee on." No cheesy shots of women sitting worried on the bed, just a description of how well the test is supposed to work.
OK, I'm the 89th comment here. Aren't we ALL taking this a little too seriously? What percentage of the world has the energy and leisure to sit around worrying about an ad -- a trivial enough topic -- for trimming your pubic hair -- which makes it doubly trivial?
And damn if that song hasn't been running around my head all afternoon while I did garden clean-up. Literally, not figuratively!
Death by a thousand cuts, my friend. Nothing is trivial.
I signed up to comment just to say this (I know, I'm sorry, I'm shallow, I'll work on it):
Buy the MEN's version!
Not if you've got good alternate methods, or are blessed with nethers that don't feel like a hairshirt if you don't trim, but for the ladies who were thinking one of these sounded like a good idea until they saw the commercial... I'm pretty sure more than one company has put out a beard trimmer for men that works on exactly the same design. It comes with an adjustable guard (for your desired "beard" length) that makes it really easy to trim safely. I mainly use it for the occasional buzzcut, the razor is nice too if you're willing to go broke on 4-blade replacement heads. Knowing the score with men's vs women's razors, it's probably *handier*, since they tend to be sharper, better built, and not pastel. If you need one, and I love mine, don't waste your money on the insulting girly version.
And just so you can't claim I didn't have anything relevant to the main discussion: the "beard" trimmer I bought a year ago advertised by showing an overgrown and poluted landscape that the razor magically tamed through the special effect of running over the photograph (i.e. the trimmer tamed the weeds, the razor cleared the dark sky). It was lame, but it at least had a sense of dignity.
"So all I can see are tulips." ?! SERIOUSLY?! Good lord....
If you look at the clothes and other elements of the video, it seems like the target demographic they're marketing to is VERY young women (teenagers). It's this [ ] close to being a Barbie doll commercial.
"Free your skin"??? Funny, when I go anywhere near my minge with a razor, my skin gets treated to a whole load of razor bumps, not to mention cuts on my labia. Mmm now that's liberating. Thank you quattro for freeing me.
ACK. RACIST.
i personally will not shave my vag. but thats just me. for people who do prefer that, thats cool. but i really wish that all of us didnt have to be subjected to this crap either way.
Vag hating! Racist! I was extremely alarmed when I saw the headline. Expected to see KKK men burning panties or something. Now I'm bowled over. Hilarious!
Really sometimes we take ourselves to seriously. I'm glad not everyone does. Have to strongly disagree that any of this was racist, much less vag hating (they all seemed to be smiling to me!)
By that logic a commercial with black people in it that made cracks about say... fried chicken, watermelon, lower IQs and larger penises would be okay so long as all the actors were paid to smile on cue. If you're not deliberately trolling I hope you can see how ridiculous that is.
Wow, what ad did you folks watch? I need to watch that one since I really don't understand the lynch mob here.
This ad is sexist only if you think pube shaving is sexist. Its racist only if you think black people don't wear afros & Asian people don't enjoy bonzai trees. Under racist stereotypes I've yet to see Afros and bonzai emerge. But maybe my head is stuck in the sand (of rationality). Its vag hating only if these women are smiling about shaving off their vag. Oh, wait, they're smiling about shaving their vag, not shaving it off. There goes the entire theory. WTF-evah. PC untethered from reality...or history. To call this racist or sexist trivializes both. God forbid we should ever see a Jewish man in a commercial for bagels, or deli's, I can already imagine the cries of anti-semitism.
I guess I should have been more specific. I was responding to this statement: "Have to strongly disagree that any of this was racist, much less vag hating (they all seemed to be smiling to me!)"
Regardless of the merit (or lack thereof) of claims of racism/misogyny in the ad, it doesn't make any sense to say that those claims are invalid because the paid actors are smiling. If you intended that as a flippant throwaway comment I understand.
The whole delightful 'tulips on the mound' (and they're pink! Geddit?!) bit seems to be clearly saying that women should shave all their pubes off, not just 'trim the hedges'. Not only that but it seems to be giving the message that even when you've shaved, this area should be neat (no 'weeds') and there should only be 'two lips'... what about inner labia? There's already a rise in cosmetic surgery to remove them, especially in teenage girls, and I fear ads like these could make things worse.
I don't think we're taking ourselves too seriously as feminists to criticise this ad. Millions, if not billions of people will watch this message, and not everyone is strong enough to say "sorry, my pubes are none of your business!" and ignore it. It's one of a mounting pile of messages that say clearly to young women, 'your genitals are unacceptable unless they look pre-pubescent'. Quite serious, I think.
As for 'it feels good to trim the hedges', it certainly does not! When I shaved my bikini line (never taken all my pubes off) I was rewarded with red, lumpy razor burn which itched like mad. So instead of being embarrassed about hair poking out from my pants, I ended up being MORE embarrassed about the fact I was compelled to scratch myself every five minutes. 'Free your skin', my ass.
Wow.
I feel dirty and wounded after watching that.
I don't know if I have more to add to how sexist and racist this is - because it is, plain and simple.
There's nothing wrong with a hairy vulva, ladies. I trim the ends to make it neat looking, but I've never once considered shaving it all off. I get irritated enough shaving my underarms (which I've decided to stop doing as well) - I can't imagine getting ingrown hairs...THERE. Is it really sexy to be swollen and in pain? Not to mention the fact that pubic hair exists for a REASON. It keeps out infection, while keeping good bacteria in to encourage proper hormone levels. It also prevents getting irritated during sex and helps protect against getting STIs (though, not completely, so use protection!!). Think of it as the sweater knit with love, meant to keep you warm & safe! :D
Plus, I think it's creepy to look like a prepubescent child.
WTF!!! What kind of crap... i'm just speechless.
I can see where the criticism comes from but I'm going to try to give them a pass because it was goofy and I don't think harm was meant... I know I can be a shoot first ask questions later person on these things and I'm trying to pick my fights a little better. Good to see it addressed here though.
I think it's also a little ridiculous that any comments pointing out the racism/sexism in the ad keep getting deleted off of youtube.
Ridiculous and kind of surprising considering what that slide over there.
I didn't like the ad, since it made me uncomfortable, but I wasn't appalled either, and I can see where the advertisers are coming from. If you're trying to market a razor for shaving pubic hair, you can either use some subtle euphemism (like "the gentlest shave, for all your sensitive spots") or you can try to make people laugh by being completely ridiculous and over-the-top. If you want women to remember the ad, so that when they're browsing the drugstore for a razor with the intention of shaving their bikini area, they think of your product, you should go over the top. They want to associate intimate shaving with their product, not just say they offer a gentle shave, since every razor claims that.
Also, I think they're trying to portray trimming your bush as a happy, funky, fun-tastic party, rather than a secret, hidden act performed by self-conscious people. Well, at least it's positive.
I have an idea: why don't we all post pictures of our unshaven beavers as a form of protest.
As someone who absolutely refuses to shave my vag...hair is there for a reason, I am offended. I cant believe this acutally got used!
I really thought I was watching an SNL send up. Wow. That commercial is wrong on many levels, which have already been discussed at length. I have to say though, as wrong as this commercial is, there do seem to be a lot of people here implying that ANY commercial for the same sort of product is wrong. That's simply not true. Just as there's nothing wrong with not shaving your vag, there's nothing wrong with choosing to do so either.
It's biggest problem is that it's not clever enough. The lazy stereotyping take so much of the punch out of this. It could be hilarious without offending the very group it's targeting. Some of the visual puns were clever, but others -- and I don't want to repeat what everyone else above has said -- were just awful. Bonsai tree? Really? Although, we have come a long way when an ad can dance really close to the issue without using vague euphemisms and happy women running down the sand in high cut bathing suits.
as a lady who shaves it all off (just my personal preference), i've got to say it wasn't the shaving part that got to me, it was the in your face racial stereotypes. really? an angry black woman with an afro for a bush? a shy asian woman with a bonsai? that was pretty bad, who on earth thought that should air? it felt like a SNL skit.
i did laugh out loud at the tulips on the mound though...
1) I know the writers that worked on this. Would it interest you to know they're chicks ?
2) I have yet to see how this is racist or sexist or vag-hating... I thought racism/sexism was supposed to be negative? how is a black chick talking about big bushes and an Asian talking about her small bush bad? playing off stereotypes to be sure...but is big or small a negative thing to say about someone's bush? Bush is bush. It's all good.
3) The ad is about choice anyway. It's not saying you *HAVE TO* do anything. If you don't shave, then it's probably not for you.
4) Vaginas are hilarious. And this is pretty celebratory actually. how many pet names do men have for their penises?...oh wait...a million.
I'm actually thinking some of these blog postings are a little sexist. We can't talk about our snatch without a sense of humor? Really? That sucks.