The Sexual Politics of Meat in Commercials

In an Arby’s commercial titled “This Is Meat Craft- We Have the Meats”, it is very clear that the target audience is men. The commercial begins with the slabs of meat being aggressively slammed onto the table, followed by a man’s deep voice asking in an almost mocking tone, “Did the meat scare you? Are you intimidated by their might and marbley-ness?” Saying that one should be intimidated by the meat implies that meat is strong and formidable, and should be feared. The deep voice then says “You sit atop the food chain and these meats are your prize, your championship belt, your protein trophy”. By placing man on the top of the food chain, the commercial is reinforcing the idea that man has the highest ranking in all of nature, which also contributes to human exceptionalism. By calling meat a “prize” or a “trophy”, it relates it to sports, something typically masculine. Although the meat is only ever bought in the form of a sandwich, which is shown briefly at the end, the whole emphasis of the commercial is on the meat. The bread and vegetables are entirely unmentioned because they placid and feminine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xm2dxy2YNg