Mow The Lawn

[filkertom]

Hey, ladies! Looking for a new euphemism involving being ashamed of your own bodies? Some Stepford wives and the Schick Quattro are here to help!

(And just so you know, I'm not for or against the idea itself. It doesn't matter, and you don't need to know. It's the selling of it, as a cutesy way to deal with something they want you to think you should be ashamed of, that ticks me off.)

(h/t Thers at Eschaton)

Comments

[wyattkelly.livejournal.com]

...
THE HELL???

[sophia9847.livejournal.com]

*eyerolls at commercial*

I don't dispute your analysis, and i also just got up, but doesn't seem that much worse than the zillions of other ads that prey on females' body insecurities--just more giggleworthy/eyecatching. That said, it's nice when males notice the sort of stuff that most women over 15 or so have learned to snort at and tune out. The biggest problem is that jingle's a damn earworm!

*wanders off to listen to some Tom Smith to swap out the in-my-head tune*

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

Wow...it made me think of Julie Brown's "Cause I'm a Blond" from Earth Girls are Easy, but that was clearly satire.

Sorry Tom - not this time.

[mouser.livejournal.com]

I've heard that euphemism for years, actually.

And as offensive ads, I don't think it's any worse then any OTHER female product. Or really any OTHER product aimed at women in general.

Seriously, this is aimed at women that trim. the running theme seems to be "whatever you do, consider our product."

Re: Sorry Tom - not this time.

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Oh, I understand -- I was talking with huskiebear a few minutes ago, and she said (and I agree) that if it was a Saturday Night Live commercial parody, we'd be laughing our asses off. It's adorable on one level. It's catchy. It's Benny Hill...

... played straight.

I'm just boggled, is all.

[jannyblue.livejournal.com]

Buh?!?!

Even without the sound it's really farking condescending.

And that's WAAAAAAY too much T&A showing for this commercial to actually be for women. It's probably designed to be internet/viral rather than for TV...


Nevermind that four blades is too damn many. Three is more than enough for ANY shaving needs you might have. The key to a smooth shave isn't how many blades your razor has, it's technique.

It basically boils down to: Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize and then let the blade do the work. If a razor won't cut the hair with a gentle touch, it's too dull.

[jcw-da-dmg.livejournal.com]

I remember SNL doing a skit when the first three blade razors came out. It was for the first four blade razor. "Because you'll buy anything!" was the tagline.

[jcw-da-dmg.livejournal.com]

And, BTW:

OW! (sound of JCW's brain hurting)

[jannyblue.livejournal.com]

You think that's bad?

I've actually seen FIVE blade razors for sale...

Methinks people need to learn how to shave better. One-pass shaving is NOT necessary. Nobody's that short on time...

[kilbia.livejournal.com]

You've made me wonder where a gender-bending friend of mine is. S/he wrote a whole skit on the topic.

[peachtales.livejournal.com]

That is completely insane.

[momentrabbit.livejournal.com]

.... they should have used a hairless rex (http://www.cfainc.org/breeds/profiles/cornish.html) for the cat.

[jannyblue.livejournal.com]

The second time you see a cat, that's indeed what it is...

(Or at least I HOPE they didn't shave that gorgeous orange long-haired tabby just for a cheap "shaved pu**y" joke.)

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

All they did was cheap jokes. "Tulips on the mound"? They should've dressed up some guy like Benny Hill to say that.

[jannyblue.livejournal.com]

I don't have a problem with cheap jokes, I just care about not shaving cats that don't need it.

[the-yoyogod.livejournal.com]

It's hardly a new euphemism, my first thought when I heard it was the old < a href="http://www.snopes.com/medical/emergent/mowed.asp">"Keep Off The Grass" tatoo on a punk rock girl urban legend. I'll admit that the comedy in this one is a bit over the top, though.

[rivkaesque.livejournal.com]

Good heavens. And here I thought they'd done the most t&a heavy comercial they could already. Oh, well. And that song is an earworm, too. I'm going to go listen to my failsafe ear-worm remover (well, replacer) Can't Get the File to Play.

[thatcrazycajun.livejournal.com]

What strikes me as odd is that though the ad is obviously made by Schick's UK division for that audience, the women appear to all speak with US accents. But you're right—it does seem at a minimum highly condescending to women, if not outright insulting. I would never have bought this as real and not an SNL-type parody if I'd seen it without the warning. And it's obviously overseas-made; that type of content would never fly with US networks' Standards & Practices people.

[ann-totusek.livejournal.com]

I have to say- as a woman, I don't find it offensive. It's hysterically funny. The fact is that the ad in question wouldn't make me feel ashamed of my below-the-belt coiffure, be it a 'fro or a Picard. What I _would_ be embarassed about would be my "hairdo" poking out from behind a swimsuit. And I think that's not unreasonable. It's a private area of the body. I shouldn't have to see anyone else's (unless I choose to) and no one should be visually assaulted by mine. It's an ad that acknowledges that many of us have private bits that are more like tresses than a bristle brush, and that there is a method that many of us choose to use in order to contain it. They're just advertising the product that they make for that purpose. If they _really_ wanted us to be ashamed of it, it would look much more like one of the old douching ads of the early to late mid 1900's- http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=lysol%20douche&w=all&m=tags

[shekkara.livejournal.com]

I actually do resent the idea that society has this idea that we shouldn't see any hair at all poking out from any bathing suit line. A bit of hair is not the same as showing off one's labia. I find the usual methods of "containing it" extremely uncomfortable, so my choices are... risk "assaulting" someone with a bit of hair, bow to societal pressure and put up with the painful results, or never wear a bathing suit.

[ann-totusek.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't disagree with a small bit of hair not being a problem. But there are those for whom it is NOT a small bit of hair. And one doesn't actually have to shave to prevent it- a nice little scissors and some careful minimalist snipping takes care of it just fine. That's not generally painful.

[kayshapero]

Once upon a time I tried trimming my pubic hair out of sheer curiosity. Itched like the devil all the time it was growing back. Will NOT do that again...

[realinterrobang.livejournal.com]

Considering that I don't happen to think anything of swimming nude in front of strangers, and I don't shave or trim, I hope I don't run into you anywhere, because you will be assaulted by my hair, bathing suit or no. You'll also get to be offended by my hairy legs, if that turns you on. :)

Just don't look. It saves everyone a lot of time.

The thing I resent most about this whole "shave every body hair everywhere, ladies" thing is that it was more or less completely invented by advertising men in the early 20th C. as a means of selling razors, and the way they managed it was to inculcate into the body public that female body hair is unclean. I'm still seeing echoes of that in modern ad campaigns. (Just say no to razors. Your skin will thank you in the long run.)

[ailsaek.livejournal.com]

What you said. Assaultive body hairs R us.

[seanmonster.livejournal.com]

Erika Moen did it better. (http://www.webcomicsnation.com/erika/dar/series.php?view=archive&chapter=33211) The comic in the link is (arguably) work-safe, but most of her other comics are not.

[peachtales.livejournal.com]

That is cute *giggle*

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Compared to the Campbell's Soup ads aimed at girls that touted their broths as "low in calories and good for dieters" (ad showed normal TV-thin girls, of course) -- at the same time that their "hearty, chunky" soups were being sold to males? Waaaay back in ...1998?

Psh. This is nothing.

[umbran.livejournal.com]

Well, check one thing out here - the url they present at the end of the ad isn't a .com. It is a .uk. Maybe that ad isn't designed for American sensibilities.

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

Might I suggest that this kind of "trimming" might be a fun addition to foreplay... going both ways?

Seriously -- if a guy isn't willing to take a razor to the equivalent area on his own body, he'd damn well better not suggest that I take it to mine.

[faxpaladin.livejournal.com]

By the by: When I was talking about Bill Hicks last night, this was the ad I was thinking of...

[enjis.livejournal.com]

I thought it was an adorable ad, and quite catchy! I really laughed at the woman petting her blonde pussy near the end of the commercial...cheap jokes make me giggle....
And the worst part is, I didn't even get the 'tulips on the mound' gag till it was pointed out in the comments here! *turns in her 'gutter handball team' tee shirt*

[jonbaker.livejournal.com]

Meanwhile, in Biblical antiquity, society seems to have had radically different ideas about female body hair:

Song of Songs 4:5: Thy two breasts are like two fawns that are twins of a gazelle, which feed among the lilies.

Brown, furry, spotted...