Feminism and Swiffer - A Brief Ideological Analysis

The company Swiffer uses a specific approach to marketing their product which speaks to certain ideas about feminism. The commercial featured in this analysis attempts to spin the product so that we as consumers may feel positively about its capabilities and will take the plunge into a new, easier love affair with Swiffer . Yet in taking an ideological approach to analyzing this video with an eye towards feminism, the audience may come away from the commercial feeling much different about Swiffer. This product is designed to make cleaning easier and the viewer is intended to draw this conclusion from the short video advertisement. The commercial consists of a Caucasian woman shopping in what is assumed to be a super market when she stumbles upon the Swiffer product. The display in the store attracted her attention, peaking her interest and causing her to pick up the packaged product. A conveniently placed sales clerk who is also a Caucasian woman, perhaps a bit younger, turns in way of promotion to speak positively about the product. The worker exclaims that the customer will "never go back to your old mop and broom, again".

Upon this revelation, what is implied to be the customer's old mop suddenly "leans" from around the corner of an aisle. A second later a 1970's love song starts to play, more specifically the chorus from the song "Baby Come Back" by the artist Player. The song describes a heart broken man who yearns for his love to return into his life. The old mop and broom are attempting to serenade the woman in hopes of winning back her loyalty from the Swiffer product, however it is to of no avail. After a few shots depicting the woman cleaning in a home, we see the female in the parking lot of the grocery store loading up her car with her groceries along with her new cleaning apparatus.

When viewed from a feminist ideology, this commercial may be considered inappropriate, one sided, or sexist. The Caucasian woman appears to be of middle class social status in her way of dress and her other material possessions such as her furnished kitchen and the car she is loading her groceries into in the parking lot. It is implied by this ad that middle class Caucasian women, or women in general, are the individuals who clean and tend to the upkeep of the home. While this may be true according to the marketing research performed by the company on who to target in their demographics, this attitude still stands in opposition of the many of the struggles of feminism. Complimenting this sexist tone of the advertisement is the use of a love song to attempt to regain a woman's attention. The song is sung by a man, from a male's perspective. When scrutinized one would come away from the commercial thinking that women have a love affair with cleaning, further cementing gender stereotypes that many have dedicated years of their lives to eradicate.

Potential Ideological Artifacts

World:

In the last post, Ideological Criticism was discussed which gives way to the task of analyzing specific artifacts. My area of study, communications, is focused in media and popular culture, therefore I will be making selections tailored to this subject.

One artifact I would like to analyze using the ideological method of criticism is a television commercial by cleaning product Swiffer which was aired several years ago. This artifact would be appropriate for ideological criticism because it is a main stream advertisement that abides by certain standards and implies certain sociological aspects of life that could be examined with a discerning mind.

Another artifact i would be interested in analyzing using the ideological method of criticism would be the music video "One More Drink" by hip-hop artist Ludacris. This music video would be an appropriate artifact for ideological criticism because it communicates an interesting message in a comedic approach. To look into the underlying ideas in this piece of pop culture would be an intriguing venture into a way of living comprised of clubs, revolving around relationships, alcohol, and sex set against a background of hip-hop lyricism.

One last artifact that I could possibly analyze using the ideological method of criticism is the Disney film "Up" by Pixar Animation Studios. An ideological analysis of this film would allow for an intriguing look into the world the filmmaker's created to serve as entertainment for a younger audience. The potential images being communicated to the audience would be appropriately uncovered in implementing the method of ideological criticism.