The Representation of Women’s Figures in Advertisements for Medicine in Taiwanese Newspapers, 1956~1970

Author: Hsiao-Ling Lin(Graduate Institute of Applied Art, Fu Jen Catholic University)、Jin-Tsann Yeh(Department of Commercial Design, Vanung University)

Vol.&No.：Vol. 53, No.2
Date：July 2008
Pages：69-85
DOI：10.6210/JNTNULL.2008.53(2).04

Abstract：

The Taiwanese like to take medicine, for many people think that taking medicine can keep healthy. Patent medicines are easy to get in Taiwan, and there are many advertisements for medicine in the island’s newspapers. Especially in the period 1956-1970, Taiwanese newspaper ads promoting the importance of patent medicines for maintaining our health often featured women. Relatively young and attractive women were usually used, and these ads would emphasize the woman’s healthy-looking body, her figure. This study uses The Content Analysis to examine a selection of these ads and the role played in them by women and the female figure. This is thus a form of cultural studies that focuses on visual media, more specifically the visual “art” of advertising, and analyzes the symbolic function of the female body or figure in medical advertising. The results indicate that these attractive female figures tend to make people (potential customers) of both genders respect their bodies and their physical health more. Of course, the kind of medicine being advertised is also important to each ad’s meaning. This is also, in effect, a study of Taiwan’s “visual history.”

Keywords：Women, Visual Symbol, Figure, Medical Advertising

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