Creme Magazine

In the magazine Creme there are different interpretations to be taken about teenage girls. Whilst the focus isn’t necessarily about teenage girls, it is a magazine intended for them to be their audience, which gives across an image that perhaps isn’t realistic and a typical stereotype.

 

The type of representation we are getting for girls can be covered by being both negative and positive. If you look at the front cover of the magazine, the featured cover-girl is Taylor Swift. To younger teenage girls, such as 13-14 year olds she is a very innocent person, and the clothes she is wearing are quite laid back and not overly fancy or intimidating. Her make-up is very relaxed and her jewellery is simple. This is one way to make this magazine have a positive effect on the representation of teenage girls. However when you look at the articles and even Taylor Swift again, a lot of connotations could be quite negative. Taylor Swift has blonde hair with blue eyes and pale skin, which is typically a ‘perfect girl’. It could also take us back in history to Hitler’s demand or idea of the perfect race of people, who had blonde hair and blue eyes which again is a pressure and representation of teenage girls; that they have to be perfect in order to be successful. The colours on the front of the magazine revolve around pinks, white and with a hint of blue as well. These colours are definitive girly-girl colours, and are also reinforcing the idea that you need to be pink and pretty in order to be the definition of an ideal girl. The articles advertised on the front cover of the magazine are also indications of the representation of teenage girls. Alongside the title (Creme), it also says “A girl’s best friend” which is a strong indication that in order to be a ‘cool’ girl, you have to own this magazine. Five out of the eight articles advertised on the front cover involve celebrities. This shows us that teenage girls are constantly needing the celebrities to look up to and aspire to be like. Inside the magazine, there are many articles and adverts revolving around clothes and other beauty products. There are numerous articles which also double up as adverts for clothing and other sorts of things. However the clothing in these articles are priced at unreasonable levels, and are not typically something that teenage girls would be able to afford.

The effect of Taylor Swift’s make-up being quite relaxed and simple, along with her clothes, results in teenage girls feeling that they don’t have to dress and wear a ton of make-up in order to be the ‘perfect’ girl to society. This is a very positive outcome in an otherwise quite unrealistic magazine. The rest of the cover however, does not give similar effects. The fact that Taylor Swift has the perfect skin that is pale with blonde hair and blue eyes, while also looking very stunning the way she is, in an almost natural look, this doesn’t help with the ideas that teenage girls can gather. The representation of this can result in teenage girls wanting to naturally be like her, and because not everyone naturally is like that, it results in a want that is too difficult to fulfil. It also gives society the effect or image that teenage girls are supposed to be like Taylor Swift. To society, by presenting the magazine in pink and white (very girly colours) this just gives off the connotation that they love the colour pink and that every girl out there likes pink, which really is just a false judgement. When the clothes advertised in the magazine are priced at prices which are far too high for a normal teenage girl, this results in beauty or the representation of being a perfect teenage girl unattainable for them to achieve. The effect of this is a let-down for girls not being to successfully be the media’s idea of a normal, attractive and stylish teenage girl.

This is can be used in comparison to magazines Madison where the focus is more on older teenagers,

heading into their twenties. The covers feature girls/women looking more sexy rather than Taylor Swift looking young and girl-like. The focus on these magazines is more about fashion, and health. So it is a focus on dieting and exercise plans. This is not directed at teenage girls which is a good thing because it would give an even worse representation for them. It would give an image that is even more unattainable for their age.

 

The representation of teenage girls that could be interpreted from this magazine would not be seen as realistic or accurate. It is not likely that every teenage girl loves the colour pink, or has a fascination for certain celebrities. They wouldn’t typically be able to afford the clothes advertised constantly in the magazine. This makes this magazine a bad representation of teenage girls, and reflects that the media doesn’t necessarily have their images about this group in the correct context.