APPETITE

A lot of images we perceive in everyday life are images from the media. Media can be regarded as the cultural instance, which constantly attempts to manipulate us, the receiver, and therefore our worldview with its one-sided transfer of current social norms. Its purpose is of course to maintain and reinforce cultural constraints of male and female behavior.

This 2006 Burger King commercial features men's anthem to the Texas Double Whopper and their unrestrictable preference for meat. The message is simple, "EAT LIKE A MAN, MAN!" and decline "chick food". No small orders, no quiche, no tofu. This isn't male. 

Male appetite is animalistic since men "go on the prowl" for beef and their need is "incorrigible". Women have no power over men's diet as we can see when the singer is striding out of the restaurant at the very beginning of the commercial. They, women, are not allowed to tell what is good for men and what is not. The recipient of this commercial learns that men are permitted to snarf down their food, while women are by comparison almost "starving" due to their low diet. Male appetite is therefore not subject to the same cultural norms as female appetite. Men are free to choose whatever they'd like to eat, preferably the Texas Double Whopper, just because they are men. Well, maybe it's not choosing at all, it's rather an irrepressible claim for something greasy and beefy. No one can deny men to appease their hunger. Female appetite, on the other hand, is completely regulated from above to make women conform to society's ideal of attractive slenderness. In fact, females' constant denial of food, the permanent unfulfilled need of being sated can lead to serious disorders. The lack of contentment, hunger, is in such cases often covered up with the veil of a healthy diet to avoid obesity. This is also closely linked to the fitness trend. But for men, there's no reason to be slim, they can batten. It's a sign of prosperity. 

So, what is this ad for? None of the presented images are getting close to a balanced diet we all should strive for. Certainly, we have to accept this ad as nothing but an exaggerated portrayal of men's eating habits but it's nonetheless implying how appetite needs to be dealt with these days. We have two extremes, namely intemperance and disallowance and we are reminded what our tendencies are according to our gender. Males are supposed to tend to the one extreme and females to the other. Burgers are okay for men, not for women. 

I'd suggest we place ourselves somewhere in between the extremes but we still can't help keeping culture's guidelines in mind when it comes to our appetite.

At long last, this burger has roughly 1050 calories. No soda, no fries. Bon appétit!

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Another commercial's instruction on how to be a man: