Images of Utopia in the Advertising Page [Hardcover]

In this book, Luigi Manca and Alessandra Manca examine the use of utopian imagery in magazine advertisements from the 1970s through the early 2020s. Positing that these advertisements reflect the publics unbridled desires, rather than reality itself, the authors argue that these idealistic reflections can lead the public to be unable or unwilling to recognize real threats to democracy, social justice, and the environment. They extend this analysis to argue that political moderates have long underestimated the ability of mass media and charismatic, radical politicians to tap into the utopian dreams of millions of disillusionedand predominantly whiteAmericans to leverage these dreams in order to further their own political agendas. Ultimately, this cumulative study spanning decades of advertisement history portrays a consumer utopia shaped almost exclusively by unrestrained consumer desire.This book examines the use of utopian imagery in magazine advertisements, positing that these advertisements reflect the public's unbridled desires, rather than reality itself. The authors argue that these reflections can lead the public to be unable or unwilling to recognize real threats to democracy, social justice, and the environment.

Luigi Mancais professor of communication arts at Benedictine University.

Alessandra Mancais an independent scholar. Her area of research focuses on sociology and gender studies.

Chapter 1: Understanding the Advertising Page and the Hidden Persuaders Who Created It
Chapter 2: The Concept of Advertising Utopia
Chapter 3: The Maverick Utopia
Chapter 4: The Inner Haven Utopia
Chapter 5: The Middle-Class Utopia
Chapter 6: The Upper-Class Utopia
Chapter 7: The Yuppie Utopia
Chapter 8: Reality Demands Our Attention