Female Virtue as Written by Bic

 Here's a song in case you need a break. I rediscovered it while studying reggaetón in Spanish class. Lovumba by Daddy Yankee

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                                  For our final project, JJ and I have decided to analyze the meaning of virtue through advertisement. We are specifically studying how commercials represent virtue differently for men and women. So far, we’ve gathered a plethora of advertisements- some of which people wouldn’t normally think twice about and some of which are blatantly offensive - to form the foundation of our study.

            Up until this point, I’ve looked up the advertisements that show how society defines virtue in women and JJ has focused on those that display male virtue. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines virtue as “conformity to a standard of right: morality” and as “a particular moral excellence.” Most people want to fit in with society and find their niche within the boundaries of predominant ideologies and social constructs. Obviously, everyone is different and people need to feel distinguished as individuals, but there is always a strong, inevitable pull for people to line up their beliefs and actions with society’s ideals. Since virtue is, as Webster says, conformity to a moral standard or excellence, many people strive to be virtuous in the eyes of society; virtuous acts and characteristics align with societal norms.

Advertisements reflect social norms by showing people what’s cool, acceptable, and ideal in a given society. They employ this strategy to convince people to spend money in order to fit into society. In other words, watching an advertisement is like sampling a smoothie at the ridiculously expensive but yummy smoothie shop in Quincy Market. The smoothie is a mix of blended up fruits, juices, and yogurts, but it has its own predominant taste- its own unique flavor. In the same way, American society is a blend of many ideologies, beliefs, and opinions, and these ingredients combine to form an overall flavor- the American mainstream culture. Advertisements capture the ideologies of mainstream culture and reflect them back to people as virtues.

For Her pens by Bic

Given that advertisements show societal definitions of virtue, the role of women in many advertisements is disturbing. For instance, in a Bic Pen commercial, a helpless tween girl anxiously asks the nearly empty halls of her middle school, “Does anybody have a pen?” The girl is classically white and girly with light skin, blonde hair, and a ruffled pink shirt and backpack. After she asks for a pen, five boys hurry over and offer her their blue and black writing implements. She rejects all of them. Sudden, however, the Bic Boy (a person dressed up as the iconic Bic figure) offers her a pink pen decorated with hearts and swirls. She excitedly accepts it, and the Bic Boy puts his arms on his hips, greatly satisfied that he won the girl’s favor. The schoolboys stand around Bic Boy in awe admiring that he just scored. Then the line of Bic’s “For Her” pens appears in the ad, and each has pink or purple color. The male announcer’s voice says, “With its fabulous styling and smooth writing, Bic For Her is the only choice.” The ad closes with the girl pecking Bic Boy on the cheek in gratitude for her super-duper pink pen.

At first glance, this commercial is simply cheesy, but how does it participate in defining virtue for females? First, the protagonist is a girl in need of rescue. When she calls for help, a flock of boys come to try to save her. This aspect of the commercial tells people that society expects girls to wait for boys’ help instead of solving problem independently. The girl’s physical appearance and clothes also immediately display the societal ideal of whiteness and un-challenged conformity to female stereotypes, like wearing pink. Then Bic Boy comes to the rescue, and the girl accepts the pink “For Her” pen he offers because of its “fabulous styling and smooth writing.” The language of this slogan tells the audience that the pen embodies ideals about what a woman should be: stylish and attractive as well as smooth, unflawed, and un-confrontational. Finally, the girl kisses Bic Boy to express her gratitude, which demonstrates that society values the girl more as a sexual entity more than a sincere, thinking human being. Simply saying thanks was not enough to show real gratitude because girl’s value comes from her physical attractiveness, not from her thoughts. If thoughts mattered most, expressing her gratitude with words alone would have been sufficient. This Bic commercial defines female virtue as helpless, docile, and obsequious.

Approaching this advertisement through Klein’s perspective, it is valid to argue that advertisements create the brand of woman. Klein defines a brand as “an attitude, a set of values, a way of life, a look, and an idea.” Even as advertisements create brands for products, they construct the brand of females. Commercials like the Bic Pen one abound. Some subtly and others blatantly define the female “way of life,” “set of values,” and virtue thereby branding what it means to be a girl or woman in our society. Should people, the beings that invented brands, be subjected to their stifling definitions along with products like pink Bic Pens?