Essay #2

Rachel Schelhaas
The advertisements and ideology that I have selected to analyze
and write about are car advertisements and economic status. In my
process of gathering advertisements to analyze I realized that with
each car company there is some sort of theme, value, or ideology that
is projected on a target audience with their advertisement campaign.
For example Subaru targets middle class families with the value of
safety, and love. Ford emphasizes strength, power and durability to
middle aged working class males. In order to gather good and
applicable data I mainly observed high class cars and companies such
as Mercedes-Benz, Lamborghini, Bentley, Ferrari, and Audi.
Many of the advertisements are pushing much more of an
agenda then simply a car, they are promoting a lifestyle that is
entrenched in an ideology. The belief or value system suggested is that
money is crucial to happy living and that owning an expensive vehicle
transforms the person you are and the way you live. These ideologies
emphasize that power is in the hands of the one with money and that
money is synonymous to power, owning a nice car, typically being
male, and dressing well.
These ideologies are expressed through several different
campaigns and strategies. Many advertisements use speed and sound
to convey power. Another way many car companies empower the
average man is by having him dream of what he and his life would

look like if he had such a vehicle. It plants the ideology that a car can
make you better. Another observation I made while gathering data was
the way the advertisements used others perceptions of the car owner
to instill perceptions in the consumer about the car owner. Sometimes
even the help of celebrities was enlisted to assist in creating
perceptions of the car owner as one with status.
The ideologies that are associated with cars are carried out as
hegemony in several ways. Vehicles are a status symbol for many
individuals who have enough money to buy a car that makes some sort
of statement or declaration when viewed by others. Certain types of
vehicles have developed an ideology or label in and of themselves
simply because these vehicles are rare or portray a price tag. It is
obvious that expensive cars are associated with economic status
because it would be odd for someone who didnt have a higher
economic status to own a car that presented wealth or a car period.
The ideology that economic status and vehicles are synonymous is
perpetuated in everyday life when people vocally trivialize individuals
with unappealing vehicles or simply ignore the vehicle. People do not
tend to comment on vehicles unless they are extremely high class and
quality or extremely low quality. By only verbalizing these two
extremes it places value on certain cars and devalues others. When
attention is paid to the extreme of expensive cars it values not only the
car itself but the effort and money it took to own such a vehicle. The

vehicles that we own are somewhat of a declaration of how much

money we have or at least how much we are willing to show off to
others. Another way hegemony of this ideology is clear is in the way
public transportation is looked down upon. Because cars are a sign of
success and independence public transportation has become
stigmatized. Our simple necessity for vehicles everyday in America
perpetuates the very idea that cars are synonymous with wealth since
we are such a wealthy country. Many areas have become impossible to
navigate without a car which states that those without a vehicle (a
status symbol of money) are denied access to such privileged areas.
This is not just a personal observation but one strongly supported by
professionals such as author Mary Springs.
However, humans have also become negatively affected by the
proliferation of the current auto-centered culture, particularly
low-income minority groups. Those who have access to a vehicle
have a great advantage in our society while those who do not
suffer in many ways. The current style of American
transportation planning virtually ignores the needs of those who
do not have access to a personal vehicle.
The very systems and structures in society perpetuate hegemony that
cars represent an ideology of wealth.
When it comes to vehicle ownership in America the people who
own expensive vehicles are typically viewed as people who are

deserving of such a status symbol. The ideology that cars are a

statement of economic status is legitimized by the fact that most of
the owners paid for it themselves. It is seen as right or just for people
who are rich to use their money to buy a nice car because it is their
money and their free will to do so. By pairing the ideology of economic
status and vehicles it encourages the expression of class. In this way it
becomes naturalization for this ideology to live on. If people have
money and nice cars are viewed as an expression of that money in a
positive light it becomes natural for people to associate such a symbol
with an economic status. If the ideology is that owning an expensive
car will contribute to flourishing through advertisements then it is
natural for society to hold such possessions in high regard.
The target audience in many of the advertisements I viewed
were unmarried businessmen in their thirties. These working men are
portrayed to value power, money, attractiveness, sex, control, and
entertainment. According to advertising expert Paul Suggett there are
6 ways that the male audience is targeted through advertising, 1.Men
like manly things 2. Men are crass, arrogant, slobbish, insensitive jerks
3. Men like Women 4. Men dont like to have their masculinity
questioned 5. Men are suckers for flattery 6. Men love a challenge
(Suggett). With these six principles in mind it is clear that men could
easily be influenced by the ideologies presented in car commercials.
Many of the commercials use a strategy of portraying males with cars

as manly men who get women and overcome challenges by adhering

to masculine identities in order to persuade and influence men. All of
these values are blanketed under the ideology of economic success. All
of these men are dressed in suits looking sharp and clearly wealthy.
This points the advertisement viewer to believe that in order to
accomplish such things as listed above one must be financially well off.
A manly man who gets women and overcomes challenges by adhering
to masculine identities is generally economically successful. Because
of this males are influenced to believe that their values and hopes can
be bought. If an expensive car can help the guy in the commercial get
an attractive girlfriend then viewers might be led to believe that by
having such a status symbol they too can get things they want. This
then pushes consumers to believe that happiness can also be bought.
These car advertisements targeted at men and enforcing an ideology
of interconnectedness between wealth and car ownership are harmful
to the process of male thought, action, and purchase.
Bibliography
Springs, Mary. "Inequity in Transport: The Problem with Auto Hegemony."CofC
Chrestomathy 2007 (n.d.): n. pag. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
Suggett, Paul. "6 Ways Advertising Attracts Men." About Money. N.p., n.d. Web.
26 Oct.
2014. <http://advertising.about.com/od/creatingads/a/6-Ways-AdvertisingAttractsMen-2.htm>.