Polysemic Images

When we learned about media and symbolic representation in class, I was very interested in the concept of polysemic images. It is logical that images can have more than one meaning at the same time, but, until now, I have never realized that there is actually a defined term for it. I thought about polysemic images, and I connected it to symbols or images in a novel. When reading or analyzing a novel, people make many interpretations about what means what, and the longer the content is discussed, the more possibility there is for more interpretations to be introduced. This is because people view things in different lights, and everyone interprets images differently. What comes off as a positive image to one person may be negative or offensive to another. I feel that the meaning of images is a very opinioned thing, always open to interpretation.

I definitely thought the Dove advertisement was a great way to introduce polysemic images. In the past, I have mostly seen the Dove advertisements in magazines geared toward women. First of all, I think that it is very reassuring that the image consists of women representing a variety of races. Seeing as though it is a campaign for “real beauty,” I thought that a lot of the women featured in the advertisement were still fairly thin, as well as pretty. But then again, these adjectives, “thin” and “pretty,” can all be interpreted differently. What I find to be thin or pretty may not be your same definition of thin or pretty.

I found it ironic that this advertisement focused toward “real beauty” by using an image of a group of racially and physically diverse women, yet was actually promoting their product of anti aging lotion. To me, “real beauty” means that everyone will be accepted no matter what they look like, but Dove is trying to persuade the person that looks at their advertisement to purchase their product that is meant to combat the effects of aging skin. Really, how does “real beauty” translate to purchasing products in an attempt to stay looking young, rather than accepting the way we look in the first place and finding that beautiful?

My reaction to the Dove advertisement was initially a fairly positive one, but once I thought about the image I was seeing and actually analyzed it, I felt that the image itself was almost too perfect. However, I think that Dove did a reasonably good job with their advertisement. Their first and foremost goal is to make money, so they are going to try to incorporate this image of “real beauty” into their product in order to broadcast it, which is a great idea. The more you can communicate with “real” women about your product, the more likely they will be to try it. I think that even though they are using “real” women to advertise their anti aging lotion, the product will still sell. Women seek out beauty products in order to maintain their beauty, and Dove is simply trying to please their current customers as well as drum up new business. I think that Dove found a good balance between focusing on selling their product as well as connecting to “real” women.

Even discussing examples of polysemic images prove to be difficult, because there is so much meaning behind the images in the first place, and then there is meaning behind the opinions of those images. I am sure there are people that disagree with my interpretation of the Dove advertisement, but the whole point of it is to prove that images are polysemic, and no matter what, there will be endless possibilities of interpretations.