Weight Watchers Advertisement Analysis Essay
THE SPECTACLE OF THE FAT
In 2007, Weight Watchers released an ad that features two doors next to the Weight Watchers logo: an extremely wide door marked “entrance” to the left, and a fairly narrow door marked “exit” to the right. This image is a variation of a classic advertisement format that includes entrances and exits which suggest what participants would achieve after completing their programs. For example, there exists a similar ad for a karate school where the exit is a brick wall, implying that those who attend the karate school would be able to break down brick walls. In a similar vein, this advertisement implies that those who participate in Weight Watchers begin the program overweight and obese, and thus require overly large doors through which their large bodies can fit. However, the patrons would be able to fit through the narrow exit door after …show more content…
As an ad targeted toward women, it further devalues fat woman in society and reaffirms the value that culture places upon women’s appearances. Moreover, according to Shguart, “the impulse to (over)consume is vindicated—that is, to redress some fundamental lack, which is the core justification for consumption: the obese overeat to ‘fill a void’ or to ‘stuff a hole’” (Shugart 114). This void is often the feelings of inadequacy and unfulfillment that are induced by our unattainable cultural values of beauty, success, and normality, the very values that Weight Watchers reaffirms with this ad. Therefore, while the ad may be effective in taking advantage of our culture’s values to attract more customers, Weight Watchers, even without considering its lack of success in actually encouraging weight loss, has only exacerbated the deep rooted issues that has led to the obesity epidemic in the first
In 2007, Weight Watchers released an ad that features two doors next to the Weight Watchers logo: an extremely wide door marked “entrance” to the left, and a fairly narrow door marked “exit” to the right. This image is a variation of a classic advertisement format that includes entrances and exits which suggest what participants would achieve after completing their programs. For example, there exists a similar ad for a karate school where the exit is a brick wall, implying that those who attend the karate school would be able to break down brick walls. In a similar vein, this advertisement implies that those who participate in Weight Watchers begin the program overweight and obese, and thus require overly large doors through which their large bodies can fit. However, the patrons would be able to fit through the narrow exit door after …show more content…
As an ad targeted toward women, it further devalues fat woman in society and reaffirms the value that culture places upon women’s appearances. Moreover, according to Shguart, “the impulse to (over)consume is vindicated—that is, to redress some fundamental lack, which is the core justification for consumption: the obese overeat to ‘fill a void’ or to ‘stuff a hole’” (Shugart 114). This void is often the feelings of inadequacy and unfulfillment that are induced by our unattainable cultural values of beauty, success, and normality, the very values that Weight Watchers reaffirms with this ad. Therefore, while the ad may be effective in taking advantage of our culture’s values to attract more customers, Weight Watchers, even without considering its lack of success in actually encouraging weight loss, has only exacerbated the deep rooted issues that has led to the obesity epidemic in the first