Advertising & consumption choice of questions
1. Using examples, critically examine Raymond Williams’ claim that advertising is a ‘magic system’ (‘Advertising: The Magic System’: 2000).
2. Pierre Bourdieu has noted the degree to which ‘taste’ and cultural consumption are tied to social class and power. Using one or more examples, outline and critically appraise at least two links between taste, consumption and social class.
3. Gender & consumption are inextricably linked. EITHER:
• Examine the relationship between femininity & consumption
OR
• Critically examine the historical & contemporary interconnections between masculinities & consumption
4. Cities are important spaces in which to practice consumption and/or construct identity. Discuss this statement with reference to ONE of the following:
• The city of, or as a site of, consumption
• Urban cultures and lifestyles
• Consumption-led/culture-led regeneration
• Consumption of those populations/identities that are linked to place
5. Fashion is a key element of contemporary consumer culture and advertising. Using examples EITHER:
• Evaluate the claim that fashion advertising has successfully adapted to the New Media Market
OR
• Examine the claim that fashion simultaneously reflects and creates distinctions between various groups (e.g. one or two of the following: men/women; middle/working class; old/young; mainstream/subcultures)
6. Sex and sexuality are referenced and exploited in various forms through advertising. With reference to one or more examples EITHER:
• Assess the extent to which there has been an increase in the eroticisation of male bodies in advertising over the past 30 years
OR
• Identify the ways in which images of women in advertising have historically been and/or continue to be constructed around the ‘male gaze’.
7. Technology has expanded (and arguably transformed) the scope of advertising and the spaces of consumption practices. Using examples, critically evaluate this claim with reference to ONE of the following:
• Mobile technology (e.g. SmartPhones and tablets) and apps
• Digital worlds/networks (e.g. Videogames, Social Media, etc.)
8. With reference to specific campaigns, illustrate and critically discuss how advertising uses forms of rhetoric as a persuasive device, focusing on humour and/or ‘shockvertising’.
