Gallery Home – Women's Day 2006

Pick 'n Pay 2006 (Negative Adverts)

The text for this advert reads: Whether it has been a gentle touch, making it all seem better, showing us the way, or making the world a better place, the women of our country have made an incredible difference to our lives. We salute them all on their special day. Join us in making a women’s day today and help make a difference to one of the women’s organisations we support. We applaud Pick ‘n Pay’s support of a women’s organisation through the printing of the advert and recognise that Pick 'n Pay involves itself often in supporting charities. Pick ‘n Pay underscores their image as a family organisation with this advert, however, it is disturbing in two separate but interlinked ways. Firstly, it speaks of women as ‘them’. Feminists have long argued that there is a societal push which identifies women as ‘the other sex’. This advert confirms this mindset by referring to women’s day as ‘their special day’ as opposed to the difference ‘they’ make to ‘our lives’. This advert also uses language which identify women in their role as mothers as opposed to the various other roles which women fulfil, including, many of Pick ‘n Pay’s own staff and a good proportion of the readers of newspapers. This type of coverage perpetuates stereotypes about what women do. This is not to say that women aren’t or shouldn’t fulfil their valued role as mothers, but sublety implies that this is the only role women fill in society.