In this paper for the seminar "The American Culture of Consumption", I want to deal with the complex topic of African American hair. In 1992, African Americans bought 34% of all sold hair care products in the United States. They spent thrice as much money on this than any other customer group. The majority of the purchased products were hair relaxers (Rooks, p.117).
These are only figures, but they demonstrate how important hair is to African Americans. I want to explain the roots of this significance in the first chapter and show how the way hair was rated changed during the times of slavery. Then, I want to examine advertisements for black hair treatment products by white- and black-owned firms to find out whether they differ in their strategies and how strong their influence on the consumers was and still is. The third chapter will deal with hair dressing as a career choice. In conclusion, I would like to attempt to provide answers for the question why African Americans might feel the urge to change their hair’s texture at all.
Table of Contents
Prologue
1. The History of African American Hair
2. Advertisements for African American Hair Care Products
2.1. Early Advertisements by White-owned Companies
2.2. Early Advertisements by Black-owned Companies
2.3. Current Advertisements
3. Hair Care as a Career Choice
4. Black Women’s Magazines
Epilogue
Research Objectives and Core Themes
This seminar paper investigates the cultural and social significance of African American hair, specifically analyzing how advertising strategies have historically influenced beauty standards and consumer behavior among Black women. It seeks to understand why, despite shifting social movements, the pressure to conform to Eurocentric hair standards has persisted.
- Historical roots of African American hair symbolism and the impact of slavery on perception.
- Comparative analysis of advertising strategies employed by White-owned versus Black-owned companies.
- The emergence of the hair care industry as a career and economic avenue for Black women.
- The role of Black women’s magazines in shaping identity, class, and social roles.
- The perpetuation of beauty standards through "before-and-after" visual marketing techniques.
Excerpt from the Book
2.2. Early Advertisements by Black-owned Companies
Around 1906, African American manufacturers of hair care products began to advertise, too. In opposite to the white-owned companies, they neither implied that African American hair lacked something nor that the use of their products would improve the customer’s entire life. All they promised was that with the application of the product, everyone’s mane would grow longer, healthier, and thus prettier. They also did not command the users to straighten their hair; they left the choice to them. If processing was wanted, then they presented it as a matter of style, fashion, and personal predilection not as one of manners or social acceptance. (Rooks, p.42)
Instead of creating a feeling of inferiority in the reader, many ads used kinship language and rhetoric. Madam T.D. Perkins’ advertisement for her hairdressing product, for example, included a Bible verse (“If a woman have long hair, it is a Glory to Her: 1 Cor 11-15” (Rooks, p.44)) to appeal to religion, an important issue to many African Americans. At the same time, by calling herself a ‘Scientific Scalp Specialist’, she also made a connection to science, which should assure the reader of her abilities and professionalism. Another technique that she used is to make her product special by underlining the ‘regional limited availability’. (Rooks, p.44) In the entire ad we cannot find a single connotation that unprocessed hair is undesirable or that the use of her product will improve anyone’s social and financial status. It is clear that her product is a means of gaining more beauty, it does not convey racial ideologies like that without the use of it an African American woman is unattractive. (Rooks, p.45)
Summary of Chapters
Prologue: Introduces the complex subject of African American hair and establishes the paper's focus on the cultural and economic importance of hair care products.
1. The History of African American Hair: Explores the historical and social significance of hair in African cultures and the disruptive impact of the slave trade on Black identity and self-perception.
2. Advertisements for African American Hair Care Products: Examines how different advertising strategies, ranging from early White-owned to Black-owned firms, have influenced perceptions of natural versus straightened hair.
3. Hair Care as a Career Choice: Discusses how the hair care industry provided economic independence for Black women, highlighting the influential role of figures like Madam C.J. Walker.
4. Black Women’s Magazines: Analyzes how early style magazines provided conflicting narratives regarding the role of Black women, balancing domestic expectations with emerging social and professional identities.
Epilogue: Concludes with a reflection on current motivations for hair straightening and argues for increased sensitivity in advertising toward minority cultural particularities.
Keywords
African American hair, Hair care industry, Advertising, Beauty standards, Madam C.J. Walker, Racial identity, Consumer behavior, Black women, History of slavery, Hair straightening, Cultural assimilation, Empowerment, Women's magazines, Socio-economic status, Beauty ideals.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the central focus of this seminar paper?
The paper examines the socio-cultural significance of African American hair, focusing on how advertising has historically influenced beauty standards and consumer behavior within the Black community.
What are the primary themes discussed in the work?
The core themes include the historical impact of slavery on perceptions of hair, the evolution of advertising strategies in the hair care industry, the rise of hair care as a career for Black women, and the role of Black magazines in shaping societal norms.
What is the main research question or objective?
The objective is to analyze why African Americans feel the urge to alter their natural hair texture and how advertisements have functioned to promote specific Eurocentric beauty ideals over time.
Which scientific methodology is applied here?
The paper utilizes a qualitative analysis of historical advertisements, literary references, and sociological texts to map the intersection of consumer culture and racial identity.
What does the main body of the text cover?
The main body covers the history of African American hair, a comparative study of White-owned versus Black-owned business advertisements, the socio-economic rise of Black women in the beauty trade, and the influence of early Black fashion media.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include African American hair, advertising, consumer behavior, racial identity, Madam C.J. Walker, and beauty standards.
How did early advertising by Black-owned companies differ from White-owned ones?
Unlike White-owned companies, which often equated natural hair with inferiority and social failure, Black-owned companies often utilized kinship and religious rhetoric, focusing on healthy growth rather than racial conformity.
What role did Madam C.J. Walker play in this discourse?
Madam C.J. Walker is identified as a central figure who provided economic opportunities for Black women through hair care, serving as a role model and creating institutional structures like the Lelia College of Hair Culture.
- Quote paper
- Sandra Radtke (Author), 2003, African American Hair and its role in Advertising, Black Women's Careers, and Consumption Behavior, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/40551
