Discourse, in linguistic terms, is defined as “a connected series of expressions; a text or conversation” (Oxford), however this simple definition does not fully capture the true meaning of the speech. Discourse is a complicated concept that allows us to talk about language in use and seeks to explain how language and its meaning do not exist explicitly or generally, but are instead created within a society. Looking at specific discursive approaches, I will analyze the 2014 Always #LikeAGirl campaign. I will show how this advertisement uses gender stereotype discourse to push women to reclaim the derogatory phrase “like a girl” by changing the expression from an insult to a positive and inspiring statement. I will use the concepts of subject positioning, reliance on socially created and continued stereotypes, and synthetic personalization to show how texts construct the issue of gender stereotypes and the effect the discourse surrounding the phrase "like a girl" has on girls. it is ultimately responsible for holding women back in society and perpetuating harmful stereotypes. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Discourse refers to the rules and practices created by society, which allow certain words and statements to have meaning. It is made up of the social relations without which it cannot exist, in the sense that if the social relations were different or non-existent, the discourse would exist completely differently or would cease to exist. Therefore, discourse does not simply create meaning, but rather discourse is a process that constantly shapes meaning over time. The linguistic choices made by an author can reveal and in a certain sense disengage socially constructed versions of reality from a discourse and shed light on what discourses are like in practice at that specific historical moment. This method will allow us to visualize the social effects of the discourse towards which a reader is pushed and positioned in the text, and how these techniques essentially change the function of the text. In this way we are able to analyze how these techniques can play an important role in a reader's thematic positioning by studying a specific text. “An advertisement is never the program they are watching, never the letter they are waiting for, never the part of the newspaper they are reading” (Cook, 1992:13). As stated in Freita's text, advertising has “intruder status.” As an advertisement, the first hurdle to overcome is whether anyone actually wants to see it, so adverts are usually condensed or broken down to be understood at first glance. I will be analyzing the #LikeAGirl campaign from feminine care brand, Always. I saw this advert for the first time on Youtube, but it caught my attention, because I had no idea what the advert was advertising, so instead of skipping it after five seconds, I watched the entire advert. The focus of the advert is the phrase “like a girl”. In the commercial, a director, Lauren Greenfield, introduces several older people (teens and adults) and asks them to do various activities “like a girl,” such as “throwing like a girl” and “running like a girl.” The video shows these elderly people imitating what they think "like a girl" means, and carrying out these activities weakly with flailing arms and legs and silly facial expressions. However, a separate group of girls are asked to do the same, and they throw and run ferociously, doing their best. The advertisement essentially shows the associationnegative that people develop with the expression "like a girl" as they get older. As a company specializing in menstrual products marketed to women, the target audience is girls and women. It is important to note that Always is a women's care brand owned by Procter and Gamble, an American multinational consumer goods company. This advertisement contrasts greatly with previous advertisements and departs from the brand and company's typical method of simple product advertisements. The advertising allows the company to be seen in a different light, which shows that it cares about consumers, society and women, not just sales. The purpose of the advertisement appears to be quite positive, however, if you go back to the idea that this is an advertisement for Always, a women's care brand, Proctor and Gamble, a Fortune 500 company, the actual purpose of the advertising was in fact to increase sales. Many people often feel confused and feel a sense of skepticism towards advertisements that show an apparent social conscience (Freita's). This is because advertising always has an ulterior motive to increase sales and consumers are generally aware of this. However, this ad managed to overcome the skepticism towards ads as text, the ad was hugely successful not only in sales, but in social terms, as it raised awareness and created a new dialogue about gender stereotypes . The overall response to the advert was very positive, however it was met with some criticism, especially from men. However, as stated earlier, Always being a feminine hygiene brand, the advertising is aimed at women and aims to increase sales to women, not men. Advertising plays a lot on gender stereotypes and social constructs created in society regarding boys and girls. Discrimination against women has been a prevalent social issue throughout history. Even today, women are considered inferior to men in many ways. Girls are especially vulnerable during puberty and being exposed to these stereotypes and derogatory phrases, however harmless they may seem, cause significant harm. Learning that acting like a girl isn't a good thing when you're a girl is a scary thing. However, this ongoing problem in our society has created the need for a video like this, which has led to this video being broadcast all the time. She always works to challenge these structures and positions by showing how women are held back by these harmful social constructs and demonstrating how capable women can be. She fights to show the public and make them understand how it has been unconsciously constructed by society's discourse on gender and how this can have a negative impact on one's self-esteem or on sisters, mothers or friends. It shows that women can choose to have low self-esteem or change their outlook and attitude and overcome it. I will use Fairclough's approach to CDA from Locke's Critical Discourse Analysis. Fairclough focuses on the idea that no language can ever be completely neutral and that it always contains a controlling point of view. His research shows how texts, especially in media and advertising, can be persuasive because they are based on stereotypes (socially accepted beliefs or ideas that are considered normal) which allow them to be effective. Fairclough's three-dimensional framework includes discourse as a text, discourse as practice, and discourse as sociocultural practice. One of the specific tools I will use to analyze text will be synthetic personalization(Fairclough). Synthetic personalization is the process of addressing audiences as individuals to create a false relationship. A common way to establish this type of relationship is to use inclusive language, such as personal pronouns like “you.” Using second person and possessive pronouns like “you” and “your” works to address audience members directly. When people are addressed individually, outside of the crowd, rather than simply as part of the mass audience, they are made to feel more valued. Another technique the ad uses is its structure itself (this is something I need to explore more). The announcement begins with the presence of several elderly peopleasked to do something “like a girl”. Then the ad shifts to a group of younger girls. The framework aims to show the clear difference in the meanings of sentences to different people of different age groups, as a result of exposure to stereotypes. The juxtaposition further emphasizes the idea that girls are not born prejudiced but are taught this negative prejudice. This in turn gives importance to this advertisement as it essentially states that sending this message to girls will allow them to gain confidence at a young age, setting them up for success as adults. Another way this advertising aims to engage the audience is by trying to find common ground. One way advertising tries to find common ground with audiences is by using “average” or “real” people in advertising, not unlike the advertising's target audience. In addition to this, the responses given by the subjects appear to be spontaneous, conversational and natural. This allows the advertisement to gain authenticity or credibility, which advertisements typically lack, and helps the company gain the public's trust. The video is structured strategically: from the beginning of the video, the audience is immediately shown a series of the filmed video. The audience is essentially put behind the scenes, allowing for a more transparent, or seemingly transparent, message. The video is in a simple question and answer format between the director and the people present, who essentially represent the audience. In the video there are parts where people state their name and age. For example: "My name is Dakota and I am ten years old." Whether this is his real name and age or not, this information and introduction allows for a more personal connection to be formed between individuals and the public. The format of the video, as well as the personal responses of individuals, creates a more candid and honest video that allows the company to create a sense of trust between the company and future consumers. The sense of trust built through this advertising technique essentially allows the company's menstrual products to be more attractive to the public. Another technique used by advertising is its platform. This ad was posted on Youtube.com and also played at the Super Bowl. By publishing on a popular and free platform like Youtube, Always is able to ensure exposure to a wide range of viewers, as online videos can be viewed by a wider audience. It is also significant that Always chose to make a video advert, rather than a print advert. Video ads allow for greater engagement as they feature other factors such as images and audio, which attract the audience. Throughout the first half of the video, however, there is no background music, as the video transitions to a more powerful moment. While girls are likely their target audience, choosing to air the ad at the SuperBowl, a sporting event that is watched by the majority of men,this shows that the advertising is also aimed at the male audience. This may allow the public to have good faith in the company's intentions, as it appears to focus more on conveying the social message to everyone, rather than just people who might influence sales. It allows boys and even men to realize how a seemingly funny insult can have a lasting effect on a girl's confidence and, in turn, have a negative effect on her place in society. He always seems to realize that making everyone, both men and women, understand that a problem exists is the first step in solving it as a whole society. One significant text to unpack is the hashtag slogan #LikeAGirl. I would like to approach this topic as someone who is not familiar with the conversations that these three words entail. These three words completely out of context, without knowledge of the discourse surrounding them, have so little meaning. This establishes the importance of social speech in understanding language. It is necessary to understand that the words themselves are not of a negative nature, however, at some point in our society, doing something like a girl began to mean doing something bad or at least not good like a boy. In our current society, the expression “like a girl” is still commonly associated with weakness. The phrase has been structured by society to have a negative connotation, and as a result, girls and women are positioned to be seen in that negative light and to believe that being a girl and doing something "like a girl" is a bad thing , to be ashamed of. Questions are another technique that advertisements, like this one, typically rely on. For example, “What does it mean to you to do #LikeAGirl things?” This question asks something to the audience and refers to them as “you”, as an individual. In advertisements, readers are asked questions to create succinct personalization by simulating an informal conversation with the audience. By not simply conveying information but asking questions, engage the audience in conversation through the ad. It is also evident that advertising plays on the emotions of the audience, appealing to pathos. The advertisement, although seemingly lighthearted, becomes emotional as older women realize how they have been conditioned and held back by society and its debilitating and discouraging ideas about women. This advertisement works to get the audience to realize something about themselves and society: it works to show the negative association that people develop with the expression "like a girl" as they get older. The structure of the questions and the order in which they are asked also plays a significant role in conveying the company's message. At the beginning of the video, subjects are asked, "What does it mean to you to do something 'like a girl'?" , then they are asked "When did doing something 'like a girl' become an insult?" This last question essentially implies that it is an insult. These implications arising from the organization and structure of the advertisement play a role in how the public sees and understands it. The purpose of the advertisement was to make the public realize and change the negative association people have with the expression "like a girl", and to allow women to reclaim the phrase "like a girl" by redefining the expression from a insult to a positive and inspiring statement. The ad works to build a new definition of the phrase “like a girl.” Advertising essentially relies on different discourses to subvert the sentence from its expected meaning. At the end of the video, one of the subjects says "Why can't you run like a girl.