Guinness Case Study

Commercials are an essential method in trying to persuade an audience to purchase a product. One aspect to a commercial that makes it effective is conveying a message that will appeal to the audience. More often than not that message is interpreted as a stereotype on a certain group. In Steve Craig's "Men's Men and Women's Women: How TV Commercials Portray Gender to Different Audiences" he analyzes how there are four gender stereotypes in the commercial industry. He defines them as the man's man, man's woman, woman's man, and woman's woman. In Guinness' "Beer Table" commercial there is a stereotype of both a typical man and woman from a man's point of view. In the commercial scene there is a naked woman rocking back and forth with a Guinness beer bottle balancing on her back, giving the implication that she is having sex. Then a man's arm reaches from behind her and grabs the bottle of beer then puts it back. After that a second man reaches from in front of her and grabs the Guinness bottle then puts it back. Finally there is another woman that reaches from the first woman's side and grabs the beer bottle. The hidden message in this Guinness commercial is that women are sexual creatures used to give men pleasure. This message is conveyed through the help of the man's man, man's woman, and pathos.

Guinness utilizes Craig's character of the man's man to produce the hidden message that women are sexual beasts used to give men pleasure. Craig defines the man's man to be a heterosexual male who wants to be free of any commitment from the opposite sex. The man's man also believes in comradely among his fellow man and is adventurous. The men in the commercial fit all of the aforementioned descriptions. They are heterosexual because they are having sex with women. In addition there are two men presented in the commercial as well as two women. If there were just two men and one woman some would question whether the two men engaged in any homosexual actions. Secondly, the faces of all the characters are never shown. The only body parts seen are the arms of the two men, arm of the second woman, and the torso of the first woman. Not seeing the faces of the characters is symbolism for having no commitment. By not being able to see the faces it is assumed that this scene is a one-night stand. Sending the message that these men do not want a relationship, however they just want casual sex from women. There is also an example of comradely because the two men come together and have sex with the same women. The men in this commercial are adventurous as well. Group sex is often considered an adventure because it is not a regular activity for most people. All of these characteristics prove that the hidden message is that women are sexual objects that give pleasure to men because it shows that the men are exploiting the women they are having sex with.