It has been apparent in past decades and still in today’s society the ethical issue of the way women and men are portrayed through campaigns for the fashion industry. Frequently, there are controversial images being released from the fashion industry regarding the sexualizing of women with suppressive and anti-feminist suggestions.

The image that I am reflecting on in particular, is the image by Duncan Quinn which portrays a man of apparent high class with a complacent and arrogant look on his face. In contrast to this, a woman is being helplessly pulled across a car by her neck with his tie, wearing only lingerie. It is clear that this is showing a problematic ethical issue; men being portrayed as superior to women.

Primarily, in this image by Duncan Quinn, the man is fully dressed in a smart suit which suggests he is of high class and gives him a status of being wealthy and successful. In contrast, unfairly the woman is left defenseless of a status and identity by the photographer as she wears only meager underwear and her face is being pulled away from the camera by the man and his tie. I believe this is conveying an incredibly immoral and objectifying message to the people who view the photograph.

Furthermore, I believe there is more injustice between the portrayal of the genders in tis photograph through the fact the male is standing and the female is lying down over a car. I believe this gives the man a further sense of confidence, superiority and fits with the outdated view that a man has leadership of a woman as well as being more active a surveyor. In contrast, the woman is in a lying position which suggests vulnerability and weakness. In ‘The Sexual Objectification of Women in Fashion Media: A Contemporary Cultural Perspective’, Namata Sherinah explains how a woman’s position in a photograph for fashion juxtaposes a man’s. She states, ‘fashion ads for instance normally present a woman touching self… lying on the floor… vulnerable… holding an object or a man for support…’. She conveys the difference for a man in a photograph, stating ‘Men on the other hand are often portrayed as alert and conscious of their surroundings… eyes open… gripping things tightly…’. Many descriptions that Sherinah writes are applicable to this image such as the woman looking ‘vulnerable’ whilst the man has his eyes open and his hand is gripping on to the tie.

Lastly, I believe the photograph is sexist because of the way the man is put in to a complimentary light in the way that his suit looks pristine and smart as well as his posture looking proper. Rather than the woman similarly being complimented, her figure looks strained and weak. Furthermore, her hand has been positioned in a way that it looks like a claw and animalistic. Horrifyingly, this then sets the status of the woman as a feeble animal further separates the position between man and woman.

In conclusion, it is clear the man has ownership of this photograph. By wrapping his tie around the woman’s neck and pulling her towards him over presumably his car, he has ownership of both the woman and the car which I believe result in a disturbingly sexist and unjust photograph.

Bibliography:

Sherinah, N, ‘The Sexual Objectification of Women in Fashion Media: A Contemporary Cultural Perspective’, Available from: http://www.kas.de/wf/doc/kas_21095-1442-2-30.pdf?161206174939