The paper investigates some of the ways in which contemporary food advertising in Italy and the U.S. identify the concept of 'home' with the figure of the 'homemaker'. The homemaker is not only invariably female, and happy of her role in society: according to food advertising, she does not make a home for herself, since home can only be made for one's family. Hence, one is defined (as a homemaker, which is depicted as a most natural way to be for an Italian or American woman) by her having a husband and children to care for. Six ads and commercials for well-known food brands, circulated in Italy and the U.S. between 2005 and 2009, are discussed in more depth as case-studies.
Torresi I. (2011). The (Gendered) Construction of ‘Home’ in Contemporary Italian and US Food Advertising: Or, What Is Home Without a Mother?. BOLOGNA : Bononia University Press.
The (Gendered) Construction of ‘Home’ in Contemporary Italian and US Food Advertising: Or, What Is Home Without a Mother?
TORRESI, IRA
2011
Abstract
The paper investigates some of the ways in which contemporary food advertising in Italy and the U.S. identify the concept of 'home' with the figure of the 'homemaker'. The homemaker is not only invariably female, and happy of her role in society: according to food advertising, she does not make a home for herself, since home can only be made for one's family. Hence, one is defined (as a homemaker, which is depicted as a most natural way to be for an Italian or American woman) by her having a husband and children to care for. Six ads and commercials for well-known food brands, circulated in Italy and the U.S. between 2005 and 2009, are discussed in more depth as case-studies.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
