Analysis of Masculinity Representation in Contemporary Print Advertising. Case Study of the Gentleman’s Quarterly Spain Magazine.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24137/raeic.8.16.17Keywords:
masculinity, advertising, contemporary man, metrosexuality, gender roleAbstract
Based on the high degree of influence that advertising has on the configuration of contemporary men's identities, as well as on the construction and reconstruction of the concept of masculinity, this study seeks to broaden the debate around the representation of men in print advertising using quantitative content analysis techniques, applied to 137 advertisements contained in twelve 2019 editions of Gentleman's Quarterly Spain magazine. The study has revealed that in the representation of masculinity offered in advertising, the communication of values of the self - associated with narcissistic and egocentric characteristics - prevails over collective values and solidarity. The figure of the metrosexual, understood as one who shows a growing interest in grooming and physical improvement practices that have historically been linked to women, dominates the advertising discourse. Finally, it has been found that magazines are increasingly prone to showing diverse expressions of the genre, although in minimal percentages, still resorting to typical communication tools such as the use of idealized images of prototype men, the use of historically associated colors. to masculinity, and the increasing objectification of the male body through graphic elements such as gaze and self-contact.
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