Lust in Axe
Audience: Young middle-class American men.
Denotative Examination: There is a happy groom and one scared looking bride clutching on her fiancé's arm.
There is also another bride who has almost reached the top, one trying to pose
promiscuously on the second tier, and two brides on the third tier fighting to
reach the groom. The bride on the right of the third tier is showing her
lingerie to the audience to try and get their attention as well as the groom's.
There is a white window with yellowish curtains. The cake is white.
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| Axe Advertisement published in January 2000. |
Connotative Examination: In this photo Axe is demonstrating lust by
trying to convey the message of "why settle for one woman when you can
have many?" This message emphasizes the "effect" Axe has
on women by demonstrating the women's willingness to give up their fiancés for
this man. This is shown through the two brides on the right side of the wedding
cake; the bride posing promiscuously and the other bride wearing lingerie with
her back out to the audience. By putting these brides in white wedding dresses
it plays on the irony of their purity because they left their previous
relationships to be with this man. The beige drapes in the background play into
this idea of transitioning from innocent to impurity because in Western culture
white is usually seen as a symbol of innocence while beige is commonly used
for women who have been married twice and for women who are not virgins. By
doing this, it persuades the audience, young middle-class American men, to
purchase this product, especially since it is set at an affordable price
(around $4-7), so that they can achieve this lifestyle as well since the groom
looks so happy. Another trend that seems to be gaining popularity is the idea
of side-hoes. Axe appears to be promoting this idea because the groom appears
to want to have multiple women rather than just one since he is not trying to
protect his current bride. This reflects the cultural shift from being
monogamous to polyamorous through the portrayal of lust.
