{"id":712,"date":"2024-04-15T20:31:15","date_gmt":"2024-04-16T00:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/?p=712"},"modified":"2024-04-15T20:31:16","modified_gmt":"2024-04-16T00:31:16","slug":"think-carlton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/uncategorized\/think-carlton\/","title":{"rendered":"Think Carlton."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Introduction<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

In the late 1990\u2019s, cigarette use was still widespread even though of its growing awareness of significant health issues. It was still socially accepted, and tobacco companies utilized advertisements and marketing to glamorize smoking to targeted audiences. The product was made readily available, and there was less regulation regarding the use. Health risks were well known, but through the media tobacco companies downplayed and misled consumers to purchase their products. Thus, for a visual media analysis, I chose an advertisement from Life magazine, dated back to September 1999, that promoted the use of Carlton cigarettes. Carlton cigarettes were marketed as low-tar, to appeal to more health-conscious smokers. To illustrate the image, there is a white, middle-aged man laying across a pool floaty. The man is centered within the picture, while contrasting use of complementary colors, a range of blues and oranges,  to create an emphasis on him and the product being used. For the foreground, one can see the background area of this subject’s backyard, appealing to middle and upper class Americans at the time. The product is seen at a small scale to help place the product within the context of someone’s life, and at a larger scale in the foreground. The image states \u201cThink Carlton. With 1 MG. Tar, It\u2019s the Ultra Ultra Light,\u201d in a larger size font, while the health effects of warming remain small and in the corner of the image. The Carlton advertisement glamorizes smoking through the use of the “idealized” hegemonic man as consumers want to be able to \u201cpurchase\u201d the life that is being marketed towards them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Visual Analysis <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The hegemonic man is an idealized and culturally accepted representation of a man due to certain desired characteristics of masculinity. These men hold power and they adhere to traditional gender roles and societal norms. These men are often characterized as strong, in control, and the \u201cbreadwinner\u201d. Advertisements often use the portrayal of men with a confident aura or position them to appear successful, so that using their products will lead the consumer to the same social status. Thus, the Carlton advertising misleads consumers about smoking to promote an \u201cidealized\u201d man through the use of color and the background and foreground imagery. For example, the Carlton advertisement uses complementary colors to create a strong visual impact. The orange toned man is not only central to the image, but is surrounded by a predominantly blue background. This helps create a focal point to the man that draws in the viewer closer to the lifestyle Carlton is trying to sell. The dynamic visual experience emphasizes the desirability of the man, to target the product’s main audience to feel the sense of power, control, and success. Similarly, the paper \u201cHow to Look at News Pictures in America,\u201d written by Jason E. Hill, focuses on the mass-circulation of the New York daily newspaper, which can help put in perspective the \u201cmass publishing\u201d of these ideas from Life Magazine to the larger public. The paper discusses how with political cartoons \u201ca single premise unites the otherwise widely varied narratives: the visual field is historical, indelibly structured by ideology, money, power\u201d (Hill, 82). Both political cartoons and advertisements as a visual media are used to sway their audience in hopes of generating money and power. Through Carton\u2019s cigarette advertisement, one can see the ideology behind the inter-connection of stereotypical imagery and masculinity that feed into consumer culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the use of color to promote the idea of hegemonic man, the background and foreground imagery also play an important role in the depiction of traditional gender roles and selling the lifestyle of success and achievement. In the foreground, the subject is laying across a floatation device in a pool with a magazine for landscapes in hand. In the background, the product, Carlton cigarettes, an iced beverage, a plate, and a pair of shoes. Further into the background, there is a lawn mower appearing next to a freshly attended landscape. The connection in subject matter of the foreground and the background helps create a united message within the entirety of the advertisement. Through the use of luxurious and lavish backgrounds, Carlton is promoting the idea that if you use their product you can also be desirable and successful. Thus, through the emphasis of achievement, such as being able to afford living out a high end lifestyle, the product will improve your social status. Additionally, through the use of the landscape magazine and lawn mower, Carlton cigarettes is promoting stereotypic imagery of masculinity, reinforcing what it means to be a \u201creal\u201d man. They are strategically targeting camaraderie among men, as the subject is being portrayed as an expert in outdoor activities, a traditionally masculine domain. The paper \u201cA Short History of Photography,\u201d written by Walter Benjamin discusses and defines optical unconsciousness, which can help analyze and understand the Carlton advertisement on a deeper level. Walter Benjamin states that the \u201cdifferent nature that speaks to the camera from the one which addresses the eye; different above all in a sense that instead of a space worked through by a human consciousness there appears one which is affected unconsciously\u201d (Benjamin, 7). Benjamin defines optical unconsciousness as a way photography can be used to reveal specific details, typically consciously unseen in our reality. This means that through visual media, one can uncover aspects of the pictorial world. With the Carlton advertisement, the viewer can see the deeper roots of capitalism and consumer culture that takes over the photographer’s lens. The viewer is able to dive deep into the layers of visual media to ultimately unfold a reality of misinformation and false advertising through the main theme of hegemonic masculinity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Concluding Thoughts<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Overall, the Carlton advertisement for Life magazine dating back to September 1999 is promoting the use of cigarettes through the concept of hegemonic masculinity and the lifestyle that comes with adhering to traditional gender expectations. The advertisement was able to leverage the \u201cidealized\u201d man to resonate with male consumers through the constructed false reality. These big takeaways relate to John Berger, the author of Ways of Seeing<\/em>, and his claim that \u201cwe never look at just one thing; we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves.\u201d Advertisements can affect the way we perceive products in relation to ourselves through visual media. The way imagery is used can sway and influence individuals based on the pictures and ideas they are consuming. It is crucial to recognize how an individual’s knowledge, environment and personal feelings can change the way people perceive media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“We never look at just one thing; we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\nJohn Berger <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Works Cited<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Benjamin, W. (2014, August 22). A short history of photography <\/em>. Screen.oxfordjournals.org. http:\/\/screen.oxfordjournals.org\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hill, J. (2016). How to Look at New Pictures in America. Stable URL: https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/10.2307\/26556702<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carlton Cigarette . (1999, September 1). Life<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Introduction In the late 1990\u2019s, cigarette use was still widespread even though of its growing awareness of significant health issues. It was still socially accepted, and tobacco companies utilized advertisements and marketing to glamorize smoking to targeted audiences. The product was made readily available, and there was less regulation regarding the use. Health risks were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=712"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/712\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":813,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/712\/revisions\/813"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arth.hamiltonlits.org\/fa-23-110\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}