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| SELF magazine (2010) |
Wait, let me get this straight. You’re telling me, a sweet, innocent, food loving girl, can eat while on a diet, with “31 Tiny Tricks” (Self Magazine)?! And not only that, but I can “Get Slimmer Every Day” without going to the gym? I can save so much time by doing that! Oh, and no magazine cover, geared towards women ages 18 to 45 would be complete without some tips on how to *ahem* spice up their bedroom. Sure, some of these articles might actually be helpful, but for the most part, I’m just picking up this magazine because I know that they have delicious recipes inside.
Those scrumptious recipes wont help much with “Peel[ing] Off Major Pounds.” Not to mention, where in the world would I have time to cook? I’m a college student. I’m lucky as it is to have at the very least 30 minutes of exercise on most days. If I don’t have that kind of time, then I’m certain a working mom wouldn’t. The magazines are merely bought out of the desire to gloat. These woman want to say, “Oh, that article? It helped me to be able to fit into my old jeans from high school.
The reality of it is not many of the readers will actually utilize those health tips. Only a percentage of the readers of SELF magazine will apply these occasionally helpful tips to their life. After all, each issue will repeat itself again next month. All you have to do is change the way it is written out. I’m sure the audience wont notice that one of those thirty one tricks was already mentioned two or three months ago. (This right here, personal opinion).
Why would anyone subject themselves to the torture of reading such things? Is it for the false sense of possibly doing something that might help them stay or become healthy? Or maybe it is just more entertainment that occasionally gives the reader ideas of things to do, only to be forgotten the next day. Regardless, a cover can’t promise you anything. Those tricks and tips are empty words, mentioned before. Maybe they were said in a different magazine you half heartedly read at the hair salon. The magazines themselves aren’t meant to promise anything more than entertainment for when you can’t find anything better to read.
I completely agree! I think it is very rare that the readers of magazines, such as this one, actually follow through with the tips and diet tricks they read in a magazine. Also I find it very odd that Carrie Underwood is on the cover when she obviously works out and exercises, most likely daily due to her being on tour all the time. The magazine is almost falsely advertising by having her on the cover. I think this magazine shows just how body conscious women are, and how willing they are to try things that will probably never work just so that they can look better. Like does eating certain foods really “Peel Off Major Pounds?” Last I heard it was diet and exercise that did that not just eating. Don’t get me wrong I love food just as much as the next person, but I’m not so willing to believe that eating will add to my weight loss. It seems as this cover is all about achieving big goals in a small amount of time, which appeals to the common woman, who is very busy leading their life, maybe taking care of a family, going to school, or even working. However, I think most people know that if they really want improvement in any aspect of life it takes time, not shortcuts.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was a great magazine to choose. The way you went about picking apart at the details of the cover really worked nicely, since there were so many things to talk about. It is so true that the cover talks about "shedding major pounds in one week" and things like that, yet have diet plans that only work for specific people and body types. This cover also shows how self-conscious women can be by resorting to these "tried and tested" tips. Another aspect of your response I liked was the fact that these types of magazines are repetitive each month. There are only so many ways the same thing can be written out, yet thousands of people take the pointers so seriously. Even though that point was an opinion on your part, I completely agree. It also seems kind of interesting that superstar Carrie Underwood is on the cover, considering many celebrities now have personal chefs, nutritionists, and personal trainers. They are in no way a regular stay at home mother looking to shed twenty pounds. Also, many people simply read these types of magazines for leisure or just standing in line at the supermarket. They may not have the full intention of following through with everything they saw.
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