I found this and thought it was hilarious. Its reflection of sexist gender roles is pretty obvious here and hopefully doesn't need me to be pointed out. I think this is generally reflective of an attitude of the time, however. Women were required to adhere to a strict set of social codes that dictated how they dressed, spoke, presented themselves, ate and drank, and acted. The standards were mostly for the benefit of pleasing or looking appealing to men. It seems not much has changed, huh? Maybe the codes have changed, but strict guidelines for how to dress, act, and speak are still hanging over women's heads today for the benefit of heterosexual men's pleasure.Thursday, June 2, 2011
1938's Dating Guide for Women
I found this and thought it was hilarious. Its reflection of sexist gender roles is pretty obvious here and hopefully doesn't need me to be pointed out. I think this is generally reflective of an attitude of the time, however. Women were required to adhere to a strict set of social codes that dictated how they dressed, spoke, presented themselves, ate and drank, and acted. The standards were mostly for the benefit of pleasing or looking appealing to men. It seems not much has changed, huh? Maybe the codes have changed, but strict guidelines for how to dress, act, and speak are still hanging over women's heads today for the benefit of heterosexual men's pleasure.
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I have seen a lot of similar pieces like this. What's interesting is that for how sexist they are, they actually make me realize how more overtly sexist modern media often is.
ReplyDeleteThis is ridiculous and so very amusing. It does appear to be extremely sexist and offensive by today's standards, however; I think it does an exceptional job at serving its purpose. I mean, if you picked up a dating manual from a bookshelf today it would all be similar things: how to impress, how to behave like a lady, how to dress. With the basic tagline that goes against all those corny junior high inspirational posters telling you to BE YOURSELF! I think even if you compared a dating guide for men today you would find similar suggestions of hiding your true self and I think this particular guide is just a reflection of dating strategies that is still alive today.
ReplyDeleteAdvertising in the 1930s is a very intriguing subject in itself. Sexist, yet overtly amusing.Did you come across any other dating guides or things alike, when you were researching this? It would be interesting to compare one dating guide to another throughout the 1930s.
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