Tide

Question 1

What year was Tide launched by Procter & Gamble?

Answer 1

1946

Question 2

Which advertising agency handled Tide’s accounts during the 1950s?

Answer 2

D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles (DMB&B)

Question 3

What marketing strategy did DMB&B use for Tide in the 1950s?

Answer 3

Print and radio advertising campaigns concurrently

Question 4

What character was commonly used in Tide’s advertising campaigns?

Answer 4

Housewife character

Question 5

What was the cultural context of consumer advertising in the 1950s?

Answer 5

Consumer culture was in its early stages of development

Question 6

What type of technologies developed rapidly in the 1950s?

Answer 6

New technologies for the home

Question 7

Name two examples of technologies that became desirable in the 1950s.

Answer 7

• Vacuum cleaners
• Washing machines

Question 8

What is a characteristic of print adverts from the 1950s?

Answer 8

Used more copy than modern adverts

Question 9

What does the Z-line and rough rule of thirds relate to in advertising?

Answer 9

Composition

Question 10

What do bright, primary colors connote in advertising?

Answer 10

Positive associations with the product

Question 11

What type of font is used for headings and slogans in the Tide advert?

Answer 11

Sans-serif font

Question 12

What style is the image in the bottom right-hand corner of the advert?

Answer 12

Comic strip style

Question 13

What does the serif font in the Tide advert represent?

Answer 13

Serious or factual information

Question 14

According to Roland Barthes, what creates suspense in advertising?

Answer 14

The enigma of ‘what women want’ (Hermeneutic Code)

Question 15

What do the hearts above the main image signify in Barthes’ Semantic Code?

Answer 15

Connotations of love and relationships

Question 16

What are examples of hyperbole used in the Tide advert?

Answer 16

• ‘Miracle’
• ‘World’s cleanest wash!’
• ‘World’s whitest wash!’

Question 17

What is the purpose of using tripling in advertising?

Answer 17

To oppose the connoted superior cleaning power of Tide to its competitors

Question 18

Fill in the blank: The D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles agency aimed to build audience familiarity with Tide through ______.

Answer 18

concurrent media advertising

Question 19

What was the impact of Procter and Gamble’s Tide in the 1950s?

Answer 19

Tide became the brand leader by the mid-1950s, overtaking competitor products.

Question 20

What theory is associated with Claude Lévi-Strauss?

Answer 20

Lévi-Strauss’ theory involves the construction of texts through binary oppositions, where meaning is derived from understanding these conflicts.

Question 21

How does the Tide advertisement reinforce binary opposition?

Answer 21

The advertisement states, ‘Tide gets clothes cleaner than any other washday product you can buy!’ and ‘There’s nothing like Procter and Gamble’s Tide’, contrasting Tide with its rivals.

Question 22

What representations challenge stereotypical views of women in Tide adverts?

Answer 22

The adverts challenge views of women being confined to the domestic sphere, reflecting societal changes as men left to fight in WWII.

Question 23

Who was the primary market for home technologies in the 1950s?

Answer 23

Women were the primary market for technologies and products developed for the home during the post-war boom.

Question 24

What societal changes influenced women’s representations in advertising?

Answer 24

Representations linked domestic perfection and servitude to modern needs for speed, convenience, and a better standard of living.

Question 25

What dress code is depicted in the Tide advertisement?

Answer 25

The main female character's dress code includes a stereotypical 1950s hairstyle with waves, curls, and rolls.

Question 26

What practical reasons influenced women's hairstyles during WWII?

Answer 26

Shorter hair became fashionable as it was safer for women working with machinery in factories and on farms.

Question 27

What does the headband or scarf worn by the woman in the advert signify?

Answer 27

It connotes that she is focused on her work, contrasting with her full make-up.

Question 28

What intertexts are interesting to consider in relation to women's representations?

Answer 28

WWII adverts for the 'Women's Land Army' and J. Howard Miller's 'Rosie The Riveter - We Can Do It!' advert.

Question 29

What does Stuart Hall's theory of representation suggest about audience demographics?

Answer 29

The likely audience demographic is constructed through the advert's use of women with whom they might personally identify. ## Footnote This is part of the 'shared conceptual road map' that gives meaning to the 'world' of the advert.

Question 30

How do women in the Tide advert relate to David Gauntlett's theory of identity?

Answer 30

Women represented in the advert act as role models of domestic perfection that the audience may want to construct their own sense of identity against.

Question 31

What is the preferred reading of the advert's lexical fields according to Stuart Hall?

Answer 31

The preferred reading is that the reassuring lexical fields imply trust and safety, suggesting that Tide is a superior product.

Question 32

What does Liesbet Van Zoonen's feminist theory suggest about the representation of women in the advert?

Answer 32

The advert may contradict Van Zoonen's theory that media contribute to social change by representing women in non-traditional roles.

Question 33

How does bell hooks' feminist theory relate to the Tide advert?

Answer 33

The advert reinforces the idea that lighter skinned women are more desirable, fitting into the western ideology of beauty.

Question 34

What does reception theory (Stuart Hall) say about the mode of address in the Tide advert?

Answer 34

The indirect mode of address connotes that the woman's relationship with the product is of prime importance, indicating a hegemonic encoding of the advert's message.

Question 35

What does cultivation theory (George Gerbner) explain about the Tide advert?

Answer 35

The advert aims to cultivate the idea that Tide is the brand leader and a desirable product for its female audience.

Question 36

What social context influenced the target audience of the Tide advert in the 1950s?

Answer 36

Despite changes in women's roles during the War, domestic products continued to be aimed at female audiences, particularly lower-middle class women.