http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdqlxzSU_oE
As I was watching the winter Olympics this weekend, I saw this commercial and it just made me smile. It is so different from all of the other commercials you normally see on television. It reminded me a lot of the commercial that Special K did with the men in the bar talking about their weight and not wanting to get upset about it. We saw the Special K add in the Jean Kilbourne video.
The commercial attempts to challenge heteronormativity in the fact that the one guy orders off of the 550 calorie menu, thus doing something that is traditionally feminine. The commercial, however, conforms to heteronormativity by deeming him less of a man when all of the other guys order their cheeseburgers and ribs, while he orders his not so “manly man” meal. I also loved the fact that the commercial felt the need to put the words “manly man” on the opening screen just to show that he truly is a man even though he is ordering off of the 550 calorie menu. I also thought that it was funny that all of the men at the table had their beers, and they were all trying to be very hyper-masculine. To be a man, you must eat burgers, drink beer, and leave your shirt slightly unbuttoned at the top. This just screams M-A-N to me.
The main thing I got from this commercial was that our society automatically assumes that if low calorie or low fat eating is concerned, it must be for the women. We live in a culture that encourages men to eat and women to limit their intake. Don’t get me wrong, I am excited that Applebee’s has come out with a menu that is healthier and lower in calories than your typical restaurants. I just think it is sad that a majority of the people that order off of it probably are women because men, such as the guy in the add, seem like pansies in the eye of society when they are watching their waistlines.
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What is our society coming to that something like eating healthy, and nourishing our bodies (an essential part of our being I might add) is being ridiculed. I think it is wonderful when men eat healthy. Not necessarily because they are watching their weight, but their overall health. We all know the risks of eating fried, greasy foods all the time. We all know not to eat diets really high in sodium. But how many of us know guys that follow those rules!? My boyfriend's diet consists of Pizza Rolls, Ramen Noodles, Jalepeno Poppers and Wings. I can tell him this isn't healthy until I'm blue in the face and it won't make a difference. Moral of the story is - its refreshing to see all people - men included - eating healthy. And if it is to lose weight - well good for them! We need to stop focusing on what society tells us, and do what is right and healthy for us!
ReplyDeleteYour post made me laugh, and I'm sure the commercial was equally funny. I like how you mentioned how specific foods scream "MAN FOOD!" and others are targeted at women. What would you do if you were out on a date and your boyfriend ordered a salad and you had really wanted a steak for yourself? Or if he ordered a pineapple vodka and you wanted a mega mug of beer? Society and our culture puts ideas in our head about heteronormative rules, even about FOOD and DRINKS! Its so ridiculous! It men want to eat Special K cereal (my favorite by the way!) they should be able to without it being humorous or strange to the rest of society! It's always interesting to me to see how the media constantly "encourages" women to be eating cereal and food like this, but targets men for mashed potatoes, steak and beer advertisements. Great post Darby-very interesting!
ReplyDeleteI have also seen this commercial and find it humorous. I think you made a great point in talking about men not typically been seen as dieting. Most of the diet commercials, such as Jenny Craig we seen involve women. Even though we do not see man as dieting many men are concerned about their appearance but we seen men excessively working our more then dieting. Many men will go to the guy to bulk up and build muscle to look manly. But dieting to look manly and in shape is not talked about. You would not expect to see men discussing with their friends the calories they consumed that day, and that is what makes this commercial so funny. If we saw a man doing this many people would probably assume he was homosexual.
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