04 Construction of Feminine Identity and Objectification: A Case Study of Advertisements in Pakistani Entertainment Channels

Abstract

The aim of the study is to find out how feminine identity is constructed in Pakistani Television advertisements; to find the roles portrayed by women in different product categories in the advertisements and to analyze advertisement categories that mostly objectify women. The researcher has used content analysis as a research technique for this purpose. Purposive sampling technique has been used to collect samples for this study. Primetime advertisements (8pm-9pm) collected from 3 private television channels i.e. ARY Digital, GEO entertainment and HUM TV have been analyzed on the basis of their popularity among people in Pakistan. The variables of objectification theory of Roberts and Fredrickson (1997) and the stereotypical feminine traits of Himashree Patowary (2014) were observed in advertisements. Results revealed that advertisements on-aired in channels contribute a lot in the objectification of women as they were mostly found exposing their body either by tight fitting clothes or revealing clothes.