A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana
Gender-fair language challenges and dismantles prevailing societal gender preconceptions. Cosmetic advertisements have been criticized for unfair language choices that perpetuate gender stereotypes. This study is a morphosyntactic examination of gender-fair language in cosmetic advertisements. The s...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Noyam Journals
2023-11-01
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| Series: | E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EHASS20234117.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797351300632936448 |
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| author | Esther Serwaah Afreh Obed Atta-Asamoah |
| author_facet | Esther Serwaah Afreh Obed Atta-Asamoah |
| author_sort | Esther Serwaah Afreh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Gender-fair language challenges and dismantles prevailing societal gender preconceptions. Cosmetic advertisements have been criticized for unfair language choices that perpetuate gender stereotypes. This study is a morphosyntactic examination of gender-fair language in cosmetic advertisements. The social constructionist theory underpins the study. Thirty (30) product packages and labels for the Ghanaian market were used in this qualitative descriptive survey. Gendered terms were analyzed on the morphological level using Quirk et al.’s (1985) functional principle of word categorization. The data collected revealed that Gender-unfair language is prevalent in cosmetic advertisements. Product names, descriptions and claims often use gendered nouns, pronouns, adjectives, phrases of different types and imperative clauses. This reinforces the idea that certain beauty concerns and products are exclusively tailored to specific genders. Gender-unfair language in cosmetic advertisements results in a limited representation of beauty ideals and practices. The use of inclusive language and representations that challenge gender stereotypes and promote diversity was recommended for cosmetic advertisers. The paper provides insight into academic discourse and practical approaches in gender, communication and marketing studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:58:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-80ebddc62ae24f229c43a4af57ea6819 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2720-7722 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:58:16Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Noyam Journals |
| record_format | Article |
| series | E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-80ebddc62ae24f229c43a4af57ea68192024-01-19T14:28:58ZengNoyam JournalsE-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences2720-77222023-11-0141113911403https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20234117A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in GhanaEsther Serwaah Afreh0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8823-9061Obed Atta-Asamoah1https://orcid.org/0009-0005-2703-1784Department of English, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, GhanaDepartment of English, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, GhanaGender-fair language challenges and dismantles prevailing societal gender preconceptions. Cosmetic advertisements have been criticized for unfair language choices that perpetuate gender stereotypes. This study is a morphosyntactic examination of gender-fair language in cosmetic advertisements. The social constructionist theory underpins the study. Thirty (30) product packages and labels for the Ghanaian market were used in this qualitative descriptive survey. Gendered terms were analyzed on the morphological level using Quirk et al.’s (1985) functional principle of word categorization. The data collected revealed that Gender-unfair language is prevalent in cosmetic advertisements. Product names, descriptions and claims often use gendered nouns, pronouns, adjectives, phrases of different types and imperative clauses. This reinforces the idea that certain beauty concerns and products are exclusively tailored to specific genders. Gender-unfair language in cosmetic advertisements results in a limited representation of beauty ideals and practices. The use of inclusive language and representations that challenge gender stereotypes and promote diversity was recommended for cosmetic advertisers. The paper provides insight into academic discourse and practical approaches in gender, communication and marketing studies.https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EHASS20234117.pdfadvertisementscosmeticsgender-fair languagestereotypemorphosyntactic |
| spellingShingle | Esther Serwaah Afreh Obed Atta-Asamoah A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences advertisements cosmetics gender-fair language stereotype morphosyntactic |
| title | A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana |
| title_full | A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana |
| title_fullStr | A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana |
| title_short | A Morpho-Syntactic Analysis of Gender-Fair Language in Advertisements of Cosmetic Products in Ghana |
| title_sort | morpho syntactic analysis of gender fair language in advertisements of cosmetic products in ghana |
| topic | advertisements cosmetics gender-fair language stereotype morphosyntactic |
| url | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EHASS20234117.pdf |
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