Cover to Cover: Ideology of the Ideal in Vogue, Allure and Self

34 Pages·2010·1.36 MB·English

by  Jenna Antonelli

Antonelli 1

Cover
 to
 Cover:
 Ideology
 of
 the
 Ideal
 in
 Vogue,

Allure
 and
 Self

Jenna
 Antonelli

Prepared
 for
 D.
 Matthew
 Ramsey

English
 Department

Salve
 Regina

April
 22,
 2010

ABSTRACT

The magazine industry has been said to be one of the most influential and
accessible media outlets for female consumers in the United States. Due to this
accessibility, women purchase several magazines each month hoping to gain
insight on different topics that the magazine claims to cover, focusing on lifestyle
physical improvements. Condé Nast Publications owns and publishes nearly twenty
magazines and reaches 70 million readers each month. As seen through the
mission statements of three of Condé Nast’s most popular magazines, Vogue,
Allure and Self, corporations that publish several magazines seem to discuss
topics, sell products, and send messages that are unique to each magazine as well
as each reader. The magazines alter their aesthetics and overall approach to
discussing topics such as fashion, beauty, health, relationships and body image
based on income. Using notions of representation and ideology to study the
mission statements, demographics, cover images, editorial content and
advertisements of Vogue, Allure and Self I will discuss the way that one large
magazine corporation, Condé Nast Publications, Inc., has shaped an ideology of
“ideal” that is shared through their several publications.
Antonelli 2

In a culture where images of younger, thinner, more beautiful looking women are
constantly produced, I believe American women are facing an epidemic far from a cure: the
never-ending effort to be perfect. The reason that such aspirations have no end in sight is in
large part due to the magazine industry’s coverage of trends, which promise to enhance a
woman’s physical appearance, that are continually changing. Magazines are not only at-
home tutorials for women to learn how to be beautiful, but are filled with lists of products
that will make them beautiful. Each instructive editorial piece is paired with images using
some combination of cosmetics, airbrushing and Photoshop, likely not only selling a look,
but a product as well. Portraying consumer products as catalysts for perfection, the women in
the pages appear flawless rendering an illusion of “ideal” for female readers. The Oxford
English Dictionary defines ideal as “Conceived or regarded as perfect or supremely excellent
in its kind; answering to one's highest conception.” This notion of attaining perfection and
excellence through consumer products can be found throughout the magazine industry.
There are several magazines targeted at female audiences that offer tips on how to be
ideal in our culture. Magazines, such as Parenting, offer the tips and tools to be the best
mother in the PTA, while Good Housekeeping instructs women on how to be the best
housewife on the block. However, I chose to focus my study on the magazine genre that
offers advice to women who want to perfect their physical look. The magazines offer advice
for women to live for themselves, rather than their home or garden, husband or children. A
sense of independence and self-indulgence can be found in the content because the
publication is constantly telling women to buy things for themselves, such as clothing,
handbags, shoes, makeup and other materialistic goods. This tone is necessary to provide
woman with a sense that to be in this caliber of women, purchasing and self-indulgence is
Antonelli 3
necessary. Images within these magazines often depict beautiful, single, twenty-somethings
in designer clothing with flawless, wrinkle-free and acne-free skin. These magazines can also
be distinguished by the advertisements, usually selling expensive beauty products for hair,
face, skin and body, as well as high-end clothing, handbags and shoes, parallel to the
products discussed in the editorial content. To distinguish the magazines that are the focus of
my study from other women’s magazines, I have chosen five categories that the images,
discussions and advertisements fall under: fashion, beauty, health, relationships and body
image. These themes, found through images and contextual evidence, set these magazines
apart from others.
I began looking at the several media outlets that offer images of women and have a
large influence on female audiences. While television has the ability to represent a class or
culture, it is still only a representation and cannot be blamed in entirety for creating an
ideology. However, I believe that the magazine industry is set apart from this notion of
representation because of the closeness between magazines and readers as well as the
difference in the experience that consumers have with television and magazines. Readers
purchase specific magazines that they believe already represent their interests, rather than
turning on a television show and feeling removed from the content. Magazine readers are
also purchasing a magazine in its entirety, reading the advertisements as if they were part of
the editorial content. While television might advertise the same products, viewers often
change the channel, fast-forward with the advancement of TiVo, or get up to do something
else, whenever a commercial begins. I believe the unique traits of the magazine industry,
specifically publications provided for female readers, set them apart from television and
make the viewing experience seem more personal, which lends itself to the trust of a
Antonelli 4
magazine. When audiences trust magazines, it stabilizes the consumerism. Women who are
reading these magazines are more willing to purchase the products being advertised. Because
of this notion of trust, I believe the industry should be studied for shaping an ideology that
may be overlooked by readers.
Research shows that there are many reasons why magazines play such a large role in
a woman’s life. Lorna Stevens, Pauline Maclaran and Miriam Catterall, authors of “A Space
of One’s Own: Women’s Magazine Consumption,” argue that this is due to the fact that
magazines satisfy essential female needs: “a quest for order, a sense of community and
transformation” meaning woman are looking to transform, therefore more easily influenced
by the content (248). They also state the consumption of magazines is “a highly charged,
emotional activity that cannot merely be explained away as a silly habit or trivial time-filler”
(248). Their study states that magazines “both facilitate and legitimize me-time” and “enable
some women consumers to engage in ‘sacred consumption’” (248). Janna Kim and L.
Ward’s article, “Pleasure Reading: Associations Between Young Women’s Sexual Attitudes
and Their Reading of Contemporary Women’s Magazines,” claims that the unique scripts in
magazines work well because “they are written specifically for young women”; “easily
accessible and private”; “available for multiple readings” and are “sexually explicit” (Kim,
49). While I agree that the relationship between magazines and readers is established because
of these elements, the research provides only the physical reasons for a female audience to
have a relationship with a magazine: tangibility, accessibility, shared consumption, privacy
and availability. I believe that the more intrinsic and newly introduced aspects of a magazine,
such as the cover images, advertisements and editorial content are equally significant to this
relationship because there has recently been a change in what women are seeing in
Antonelli 5
magazines, however, the bond is stronger than ever between reader and publication. But what
is this new and innovative tool we find throughout magazines?
I believe the emergence within the last decade of celebrity exposure on magazine
covers, in advertisements and within editorial content allows magazines to supply their
audiences with a new and broad set of material. Traditionally, magazine readers would find
unknown, tall, thin, nameless models as the female image, however, the recent development
of celebrity as model gives audiences a more relatable figure to aspire to. While the typical
unrecognizable face of a model brings beauty and fashion to the covers and pages of
magazines, celebrities bring those as well as a unique aspect of their history, talent,
relationships and health choices. Women are much more likely to aspire to a certain look or
lifestyle if they trust the woman who is selling it to them. Trust and history come hand in
hand, therefore the knowledge of celebrities strengthens this trust for readers and magazines
are now using well-known celebrities as the new archetypes for perfection. Because the use
of a known celebrity has become so prominent, it is no surprise when several magazines are
sharing the same celebrity as their cover girl, or in a feature story. This new development has
truly made me question how magazines will be able to stand by their separate missions and
ideologies, when the same celebrities are found throughout each story, bringing their history
and personal stories.
Three major contemporary women’s magazines that cover the topics of fashion,
beauty, health, relationships and body image with the face, body and background of a
celebrity in their issue each month are Vogue, Allure and Self magazines. Each of these is
unique in their approach to covering the five major topics. By looking at the mission
statements of all three, I will learn the different approaches that the magazines are taking to
Antonelli 6
inform readers. The purpose of a mission statement is to offer a quick reference to audiences
on the contents and aim of the publication. Reading and comparing these mission statements
is valuable to understanding the acknowledged and unacknowledged messages of each
magazine in question.
The intent of three major publications, Vogue, Allure and Self, is to inform women on
the ideals of fashion, beauty, health, relationships and body image. Each magazine is backed
by an individualized mission statement, which then targets a separate audience. However, the
ideology of attaining perfection in these categories is shared among the three magazines.
These representations of “ideal” can be attributed to the shared use of celebrities on covers,
in advertisements and throughout editorial content in each of the magazines. This is
significant because the close relationship established between magazines and female readers
invites information to reach a wide audience. Condé Nast Publications reaches an audience of
seventy million readers each month, but more specifically, these three magazines reach more
than twenty-five million of those readers combined. The mission statements may differ, the
overall aesthetics may vary, however the ideology among Vogue, Allure and Self is shared.
A Brief History of Vogue
Each month, Vogue reaches an audience, both male and female, just over 12 million.
The magazine owes much of its success to Editor-in-Chief since 1988, Anna Wintour. Her
commitment to the magazine and role as a fashion icon definitely fuels the contents within it.
The contents of Vogue have grown to include a whole array of discussion topics but the
mission to use fashion as a catalyst for every aspect of a woman’s life, which can be found in
Vogue’s Media Kit, is clear:
Antonelli 7
For 118 years, Vogue has been America’s cultural barometer, putting fashion
in the context of the larger world we live in- how we dress, live, socialize;
what we eat, listen to, watch; who leads and inspires us.
From its beginnings to today, three central principles have set Vogue apart: a
commitment to visual genius, investment in storytelling that puts women at
the center of the culture, and a selective, optimistic editorial eye.
Vogue’s story is the story of women, of culture, of what is worth knowing and
seeing, of individuality and grace, and of the steady power of earned
influence. For millions of women each month, Vogue is the eye of the culture,
inspiring and challenging them to see things differently, in both themselves
and the world.
(Vogue)
In this mission, Vogue aims to dictate the ideals of fashion by explaining itself as
“America’s cultural barometer.” The mission statement incorporates the word “culture” as to
say that it is a widespread aspect of American culture. By using “we,” the publication takes
on a tone that the industry and the audience are the same: “how we dress, live socialize; what
we eat, listen to, watch; who leads and inspires us.” This use of a plural and personal pronoun
instructs the audience to join the publication in the beliefs that are mentioned. By placing
“fashion in the context of the larger world,” the magazine is also claiming that fashion is an
inherent part of everything, not only dressing, but eating, living, socializing, listening. Most
importantly, the mission says fashion must be looked at through “who leads and inspires us.”
This claim alone explains that a large aspect of fashion is in following others, others such as
the people in the magazine who are wearing this fashion, i.e. celebrities. Through this
Antonelli 8
mission statement, I see in the grammar and language that the intention of the publication is
to invite audiences to read the magazine with the notion of acceptance and sameness.
However, the magazine is actually stating that the fashion of “who leads and inspires us” is
the underlying focus.
History of Self
Self magazine is a monthly publication run by Editor-in-Chief Lucy Danziger. Since
taking over the magazine in 2001, Danziger has increased readership by 28%, inviting a print
audience of 6.1 million. Within Self’s Media Kit, the mission statement reads:
Self launched in 1979 as the first-ever magazine of total well-being,
integrating beauty and health, fitness and nutrition, and happiness and
personal style together in one package. Since the magazine’s inception the
achievement of well-being has become the cultural mantra of our time. Self is
a resource for the woman who wants to stay informed, get inspired, grow and
achieve her personal goals.
(Self)
The mission of Self is to be used as a “resource for the woman who wants
to…achieve her personal goals.” The publication claims the “cultural mantra of our time” is
found in the “achievement of well-being.” The magazine deems itself the first “of total well-
being” and renders beauty, health, fitness, nutrition and personal style as the aspects found in
achieving this. Self’s mission statement claims it is for the woman “who wants to…get
inspired” but in different areas of this same “culture.” Informing women on how to improve
their lives through well-being is the overall message of this publication.
History of Allure
Antonelli 9
Editor-in-Chief Linda Wells has been with Allure since it was established in 1991.
Since the first year of publication, Allure’s audience has grown vastly, reaching more than 6
million readers each month, 91% of which are female. In Allure’s Media Kit, the mission
statement says:
Allure, the first and only magazine devoted to beauty, is an insider's guide to a
woman's total image. Allure investigates and celebrates beauty and fashion
with objectivity and candor, and places appearance in a larger cultural context.
(Allure)
Allure also uses an element of women in America as a catalyst to discuss a “larger
cultural context.” Unlike Vogue, Allure claims that along with fashion, beauty is a significant
aspect of this culture. While Self claims to be the “first-ever magazine of total well-being,”
Allure claims to be the “first and only magazine devoted to beauty,” but is also a “guide to a
woman’s total image.” The two publications aim to highlight an aspect of women achieving
totality in their lives.
Even after a close reading of these three mission statements, it might appear to an
audience that these three magazines differ in their aims. Although the three publications use
cultural context and the goal of achieving totality as a woman as fundamental elements, each
deems a certain aspect of a woman more important than the other; Vogue places fashion at
the forefront of their mission, Self chooses well-being and Allure highlights image.
Audiences view these three approaches as different publications entirely, with unique
messages and varying motives. However, it is important to mention one necessary fact about
these three publications. They are all owned and published under the same corporation:
Condé Nast Publications.
Antonelli 10
The general purpose of a woman’s contemporary magazine is to inform a large
audience of female readers on fashion, beauty, health, relationships and body image.
Therefore, it is important to look at the larger corporations that provide multiple publications
with varying mission statements for female audiences. If one corporation is reaching mass
numbers of people, it is important to discuss the spoken and unspoken ideologies driving
these large publication companies, since many readers are unaware that several of the
publications they read might seem to offer different information, however, are backed by the
same corporation and are offering the same ideology of idealism.
In an effort to study one corporation with major influence, I chose Condé Nast
Publications. The company has a highly respected reputation; for those who are not familiar
with Condé Nast, perhaps you’ve heard of Vogue? While magazine titles are household
names, their publication company often is not. Even though Condé Nast owns and publishes
17 magazines, several of which have circulations well over one million readers per month, it
is often overlooked that these magazines are siblings from the same parent. Even without
recognition from readers, Condé Nast is one of the most successful publication companies.
History of Condé Nast Publications
Condé Nast Publications, established in 1922, is one of the largest publication
companies to date. “The Condé Nast magazine empire reaches about 70 million readers a
month” (Media & Culture, 308). That’s seventy million readers who choose specialty
magazines based on what they believe to be their interests, containing their type of fashion,
jargon, body image, consumer products and lifestyle tips. The publications of Condé Nast
meet such success because of they pursue positive coverage of respectable celebrities that fit
the mission of their magazines. Today, the company owns and publishes several magazines