SOC 100 - Gender

This assignment was pretty easy. He had it embedded in the video lecture and even though I don't remember exactly what it was, he said to write a couple of paragraphs on Viagra and Botox. Write about how they are marketed and the social constraints. I got a 43/45 so I was happy with it. Here it is:

Viagra, Botox and Social Constraints

Pfizer makes Viagra, an erectile dysfunction medication for men. This is not an over the counter (OTC) medication, but it is prescribed by doctors for men who have trouble with erectile dysfunction. This medication has been very popular for around 13 years now and since its inception has gained tremendous popularity with men over 50 years of age. Since it came on the market many other similar medications have followed that are similar in nature, but Viagra is the first and most widely used today. The advertising and marketing of Viagra is targeted toward men. Advertisements show strong, seemingly successful, healthy men promoting the product Images are of masculine, good looking men in their 50’s, dressed in business suits or nice casual attire ("Viagra," ). They are usually White or African American men and I don’t think I’ve ever seen any other races or ethnic groups in these ads. On Viagra’s website the description of erectile dysfunction lists the problems and builds the fear of not being able to perform with a woman. Specifically it states erectile dysfunction is when a man has difficulty getting an erection or keeping it long enough for sex. In the ads most of the men look to be either middle or upper class in society, nicely dressed and sometimes the outdoors type. They look strong and powerful and as in one ad, “in charge” of their life. When it comes to social constraints I think normally in our society we think of older men in the later years (65+) as not having sex at all or at least very little and not being concerned with it. At least that’s the way it was seen for years. However, now it seems to be saying that men and women in their later stages of life do want to have sex and have it on a regular basis. There’s even a pill similar to Viagra and it’s taken daily. This is breaking the old idea that sex is for the young. Another social constraint is that people just didn’t use to talk about things like this in public and we never saw it on TV. It wasn’t acceptable. That has certainly changed and advertisements like these are all over the media. Talking about these things is not taboo any longer.

            Botox use on wrinkles was first documented by a plastic surgeon in California in 1989. Cosmetic use of botulinum toxin type A has become popular with celebrities who view it as less intrusive and/or artificial than other types of plastic surgery. The results of cosmetic procedures vary but can last up to eight months ("Botulinum toxin,”). On the website advertising and marketing is targeted toward women. Images show nicely dressed, beautiful, happy, confident women who are smiling ("Botox cosmetic home,”). The images of most of the women look to be in their 40’s, and all who appear in the forefront of the advertising are White American women. On one page they show before and after photos of women who have taken the treatment. On that page there are many photos and the majority are women, but there are couple of men. Most are White women, but I did see one African American women. In the majority of the ads the women all appear to be middle or upper class. On the webpage “About Botox”, it lists some reasons why you might want to have it. It specifically mentions you might want to have it if you look “tired or unapproachable”, which I see as reaching out to women’s fears. When it comes to social constraints I use to think that our society forbid things like plastic surgery and treatments like Botox strictly for the purpose of vanity and we never use to see it advertised on TV. Plastic surgery use to be for people that needed it, say if a person was disfigured in a car accident, but it’s not that way anymore.  It’s acceptable today to see ads like these in all the media. These ads appeal to a person’s vanity and that’s okay today. It’s perfectly acceptable for women and men to talk about these issues openly. Today, people don’t hide the fact they’re considering Botox and people are less likely today to hide the fact that they had the procedure . Also, our society used to think of signs of aging, like wrinkles, as a natural progression and a sign of wisdom, but now people have Botox to remove those signs of aging. In the ads it’s promoted that if you want to be successful you have to look good, either handsome if you are a man, or young and beautiful if you’re a women. I can also see that our society used to believe that when a person ages, looks should be less important.  When you got older you were expected to slow down and stay at home. However, our human lifespan is increasing, our health is better and age is not a constraint like it used to be. As people age, they are more active today than ever before and they care about physical appearances.

            Whether it’s bold advertising on television about erectile dysfunction or talking openly with friends about removing wrinkles with Botox, social constraints have loosened.

 

References

Botox cosmetic home page. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.botoxcosmetic.com/home.aspx

Botulinum toxin. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botulinum_toxin

Viagra. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.viagra.com