Sexism in 19th century advertisements

Ala Rasheed

The system of capitalism that our society is based on fuels the diverse, broad style and techniques of advertisements, trying to convey this message to the consumer oriented public, for a profit.  Advertising to the general public has changed significantly as our socio economic boundaries dissipate. Early in our society advertisements were either met for the bourgeoisie, or the proletariat classes, and therefore concentrated advertising strategies toward high culture and low culture styles. Economic influences just don’t have a correlation with purchasing power, but also directly correlates to the imagery and context of the advertisement. The prevalent message that these strategies draw on are gender roles in our society either reinforcing them, or reversing them depending on the targeted consumer. As long as we are in a free capitalist society, and acculturating ourselves to conform to images, and basically the American way of living, our economy will be strong, which is fueled by advertising.

Women in advertising in the 19th century centered around the stereotypical notion that they are sensitive creatures and that as they progress in society in the form of work they became more prone to sickness and disease. In turn women were chiefly targeted in advertisements relating to medicine.  Paten medicine advertisements flourished in the 1800’s due to the expansion of the penny press. But not until the 19^th century did advertisements take the most aggressive stand toward stereotyping women. The advertisements in this era targeted the social elite or the working women.

This advertisement circa late 1800’s obviously targets white women of high social class. Although these ads promise relief with a dose of Lydia Pinkham’s vegetable compound, they also convey a number of negative messages about women, who are portrayed as sickly, with the ‘‘delicate female organism’’ as the cause. From modest, to sensitive, and high strung women who are likely to be plagued by degenerative orders. Most advertisements play on fear towards women, but ads my Lyndia Pinkham’s took a different approach rather than using a sickly woman as imagery to buy a product the advertisement conveys the message of healthy women, tying the visually pleasing aesthetically to the medicine being advertised. The period in which this symbolism is targeting, is the Victorian socially busy women. With the added stresses of a more outgoing social life you must take this supplement to keep your health. In this time period women were seen as weak, and advertisements were trying to show that women that are outgoing in society, and must take medicine to cure there sensitivities so they could hold up to the rigors of the outside world. An example of this advertising strategy is evident in this advertisement

In this passage the notion of femininity and stereotypes is brought to light advertising Lydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound

“This applies to women, regardless of caste or color. The ambitious

girl striving for school honors; the shop girl, anxious, eager, worried,

for she must keep her place; the society woman: all climb too high.

What follows? Nervous prostration, excitability, fainting spells,

most likely organic diseases of the uterus or womb, and many other

distressing female troubles. Oh, women! If you must bring upon

yourselves these troubles, remember that Lydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable

Compound has done more to relieve such suffering than any

other remedy known.’’

(Hechtlinger 77)

The primary message though underlying is that women should retreat back into their proper sphere and fit the role that society placed upon them in that era.

Lydia E. Pinkham’s. Advertisement. Ladies' World Magazine late 1800's. Print.

Hechtlinger, Adelaide. The Great Patent Medicine Era OR Without Benefit

Of Doctor. New York: Galahad Books, 1970.