Dear Iacio,
Well, I guess that they are concerned with the bottom line however I congratulate them for their alternative take on beauty. When I watch commercials i enjoy the non glitz of them and feel that it is a strong message for others(like most of us) who dont fit into the north american concept of "beauty"
It makes me think and I like that as opposed to mind-numbing acceptance of artificiality.

Peace GG

Good for them for changing perspectives, however its shame that Unilever/P&G have to test their products on animals.

I think it's obvious that they aren't only concerned about how people see themselves, but it doesn't mean that they are doing a bad thing, or that they ~don't~ believe what they are putting out there.

I particularly like the one where they show the woman getting prettied up, then photoshoped and the tag line is something like "No wonder our image of beauty is so warped"

That and I'm always been a Dove fan.

they are still selling something, as brilliant as this campaign is in changing our perceptions of beauty, they are still selling us a notion of beauty. don't be fooled...

we do not need to buy ANYTHING to feel beautiful.

Well. For once I am in agreement. We are forced everyday to view what other people's view of beauty is. There are some very unhealthy images we see everyday. Some of the kids I work with think they are fat, when infact they are a bit under weight (my wife and I work in a group home). Beauty comes from the inside man, not the outside. You can be really pretty on the outside but really ugly or fugly on the inside. God loves you just they way you are.
I agree with chickenplusdog. We do not need to buy anything to feel beautiful.

AHHH. Agreement can be a most wonderful thing.

As much as I want to believe their sincerity, it's tough to believe. Don't ever expect them to come clean on the truth...it's all about marketing. Truth is we don't need any products. Natural beauty will always prevail.

I think it's absolutely brilliant. It really makes you open your eyes and say yeah, that's so true, we shouldn't feel we need to obtain this look of perfection that doesn't even exist. Even more, it may help teenage girls realize that these girls they see in the magazines they read aren't real, and that they are perfect the way they are. If they happen to make more sales, that's fine. It was something that needed to be said and I'm glad someone did it.

Aren't we still promoting beauty as something physical. The models being used are still voiceless females. I understand and appreciate the work that the company (or advertising agency) has done in expanding the horizons of physical beauty. Many classrooms around my area are using the piece in their media literacy programs, but in the discussions I've had with other teachers, most are applauding the campaign. I'm just wondering if we can further and interrogate the concept of beauty further.

For example, while the campaign does wonders for beginning the conversation around beauty and the way that females see themselves, has it been successful in "interrupting" the male image of what female beauty is all about. Do we find the campaign's presence in men's magazines? I know that it is impossible in the print ads, but do the T.V. ads allow us to hear the voices of the females being featured. (I can't help but think of Ariel in The Little Mermaid,..in order to get the man she had to give up her voice.)

Does the Dove parent company reflect this attitude in the advertising for the other products it sells?

Just some questions...no real answers...yet!

"Even more, it may help teenage girls realize that these girls they see in the magazines they read aren't real, and that they are perfect the way they are. If they happen to make more sales, that's fine. It was something that needed to be said and I'm glad someone did it."

Yes, but they are still sending a message to teenage girls, that they need to BUY something to feel beautiful. Buy DOVE products to feel naturally beautiful, to feel 'Normal' because 'Normal' is beautiful, DOVE is 'Normal'... they are still encouraging teenage girls to BUY something to feel 'Normal'/'Naturally Beautiful'.

It's great that they are sending a different message out there, but at the same time, I think we still need to analyze what messages they are still sending.

Don't expect too much of a corporation, folks. Corporations have only one real concern - making money. That said, I think it is remarkeable that Dove has given some thought to how they can make money, and ALSO do something good (or at least try to). People may not need to buy something to be beautiful, but we do need soap to be clean. At least I can know that when I buy Dove soap I'm not supporting the soul-destroying beauty campaigns of other companies.

I'm with chickenplusdog: wouldn't it be refreshing to see an ad or a magazine or a televison show (tho I don't have a tv) that told young women especially that they were born unique and beautiful (any problem might just be the beholder's) - and that all this fashion-anxiety and emaciated/depiliated/surgically enhanced, photo-retouched body image bullshit was simply calculated to elevate their self-consciousness, nurture their insecurities, step up their fear levels and erode their confidence and self-esteem... making it easier to take their money, and that much easier for guys to get them, unloved, into bed.

Of course Dove is trying to sell something--that's what they do. THey are probably counting on a unique way to catch people's attention. I agree with the message but the bottom line is the botom line.

Along the same topic though, check out this article:
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2006/11/15/thin-models.html

A study has shown that average sized models are jsut as effective sales tools as those unrealistic size 0 ones.

We have a teen girls church group that is using some of the Dove resources for an inner beauty/ meditation night - sure Dove is widening their market base, isn't everyone?
I can't generally afford Dove, but they as a company grew a notch in my eyes. Some For-profit companies are certainly better than others - support them over the crappy ones!

I dunno... i don't think a huge corporation 'needs support'. bottom line, they have money, they don't need more.

yes. people need to be 'clean', but there are alternatives out there, alternatives that are probably better for the environment compared to the processes (large scale and small scale) that 'pure Dove soap' uses. (they do test on animals, or at least their parent companies do).

good on the advertisers for creating a campaign that was so effective in landing a generic soap brand into this message board though, they've effectively done their job for sure.

soap is soap is soap, it's not going to make us feel 'normal' or 'beautiful' maybe clean but that's about all.

If you really disect Dove's "Campaign for Real Beauty" you'll see a couple of things: 1) The Campaign, like every other commercial tells us that we still need one thing, still leaving everyone searching for something. And this something just happens to be soap or skin product provided by, DOVE. So the REAL beauty only comes from Dove products, not from the inside of ourselves. 2) God made beauty in everyone and in everything....my uncle once said....if God wanted your ears peirced he would have made you with holes in them. This makes me stop and think. Prior to the fall of man kind in the Garden of Eden I'm sure all of us would have perfect skin and then again...have no need for any of what the world offers. I'm just trying to say that there is always something behind these ,"Selfless" campains. Some thing that gets us all sucked in. One thing that will always be out of our reach as long as we have not be doctored by a computer or artist. Only God can bring real beauty...which comes from the inside.

It would have been nice if they had chosen to show representations of non-western beauty.

Good point, Blah.

Dove didn't invent this approach to challenging the pop media image of female beauty. I remember a controversial documentary produced by the national Film Board back in the 70's called "Not A Love Story" about the porn industry that really exposed the way in which women are exploited, made over, typed, paintbrushed and digitized to make money. Media awareness magazines and films have taught this for decades. So . . .
I don't think it minimizes the importance of this message to have it deceminated by a corporate entity. There are good corporate citizens and bad corporate citizens. Bringing the awareness mainstream is I think a good thing.
And by the way, the Dove campaign does depict women of various ethnicities, ages, colours, sizes etc.

Yes, obviously, bottom line, Dove is still trying to sell soap BUT in the meantime they are actually using this campaign to address body image and self-esteem issues primarily with young girls. They have created funding and programs around the world supporting eating disorder groups, working with the Girl Scouts, touring photo exhibits, establishing mentoring programs, etc, etc to help combat the stereotype that most other advertising campaigns promote SO even if they are still trying to sell soap good on them for trying to make a difference where they can. It's not that different from MAC doing it's thing for AIDS or Aveda, trying to save the planet. Both those companies are doing pretty well for themselves along the way.

I appreciate everyone's input on this. I also applaud Dove for getting a new conversation going. At the same time, I think that we need to teach our children how to "read" the Dove text and understand the whole world of advertising a little better.

Has anyone ever seen "The Marketing of Cool" by Douglas Rushkoff...a PBS documentary. I use it in my media literacy class with grade 8's. It helps begin the discussion about the influence of media on the way that we perceive ourselves, our world, and ourselves within that world.

Thanks again for your input into this thread.