Women’s’ Magazines Promote Self Objectification
I am not a consumer of magazine periodicals other than trade publications such as Fine Homebuilding, Journal of Light Construction and Architectural Digest. So with this exercise I went the library in order to try and find material for this essay.
Upon examining the advertisements in various periodicals, I came upon a common theme. If you consume this product, you will be views as appealing by the opposite sex, as is apparent in each and every advertisement in almost every periodical in the genre of women’s fashion. Ill use the January 2016 issue of Elle magazine as an example.
Whether it is for a perfume from Chanel where steam rises from brilliant red lips or a photo for a fashion designer where the emaciated model for Michael Kors (Hegemony) walks by several gawking men, to the cover itself where the model is terribly underweight and surrounded by text explaining the content of the magazine. “Fashion, Sexy Minimalism” “She’s Damn Chic” “Rooney Mora is the REAL THING!” (Social Construction) were a few of the main headlines. Not in any of the advertisements did I see anyone resembling a healthy person.
Perhaps these apparently starved models are put forth in order to create an object that the women of western culture are supposed to aspire to, but I personally se it as a form of objectification for the unnatural, and a perversion of the woman form. This magazine objectifies women in such a way that they are meant to aspire to a lifestyle that is based solely on how they look rather than who they, what they can do, and how they feel (Agenda of News). I find it akin to a form of socially acceptable pornography.
Perhaps I have it all wrong. I have held a biased towards these magazines that tout form over function for my entire life. There may be some useful credibility to Cosmopolitan Magazine displaying in bold print on the cover of almost every issue “10 sex tricks” and “How to dump him painlessly”, but I really don’t. I think that these types of publications, aside from the useful information inside is primarily encouraging an objectification culture, but there could be more to it than what I assessing, and more research would not hurt. (Mindfulness) The same can be said about Playboy Magazine as well, which is not known for its acceptance of the many shapes of women.
In conclusion, I feel that most mainstream publications act against celebrating the individual characteristics of the individual. I would like to see every person viewed as a beautiful creation, and hope that some day, the advertisers of these publications recognize that and adjust their message accordingly

Works Cited
ELLE Magazine: January 2016 Edition 1 Jan. 2016. Print.