Artikel

Abstract

J. Törrönen & I. Juslin; Alcohol in women's magazine advertisements from the 1960s to the 2000s The data for this article consist of alcohol or alcohol-related advertisements appearing in seven Finnish women's magazines: Kodin Kuvalehti (1967–2006), Kotiliesi (1967–2006), Kauneus & Terveys (1967–2006), Me Naiset (1976–2006), Gloria (1991–2006), Trend (1991–2006) and Cosmopolitan (1999–2006). We are interested, firstly, in what kind of subject positions these advertisements have contributed to construct for women's drinking from the 1960s to the present day. Secondly, we analyse the shifts and transformations that have happened in these subject positions with a view to inferring how the cultural position of drinking has changed. Our analysis is grounded in semiotic and phenomenological ways of reading visual materials. The analysis of these advertising materials indicates that in the 1960s, women were placed in the gendered position of housewife or woman responsible for managing the marital relationship. Women's drinking was confined to the private sphere of the home or associated with meals, general socializing with other couples or with their husbands’ business occasions. These same positions continue to persist in the 1970s and 1980s, taking on only marginal new features. In the 1990s and 2000s, women assume a more prominent role as active agents in public spaces, and drinking is associated with women's own time, pleasure and enjoyment. A picture emerges of a drinking, self-conscious woman who is a responsible consumer, a distinctive consumer, a consumer who toys with stereotypes, and a consumer who is oriented to independent breakaways.