Article
Don’t Smile for the Camera: Black Power, Para-Proxemics and Prolepsis in Print Ads for Hip-Hop Clothing
International Journal of Communication
(2007)
Abstract
While much has been written on marketing to children, there remains a curious gap in the literature concerning marketing through children. This study considers print ads for three brands of hip-hop clothing for children (Rocawear, Sean John, and Baby Phat) that appeared in Cookie, a parenting magazine aimed at adults. I argue that, by depicting children in a “cool pose” of “flat affect,” these ads violate social expectations and assert "Black Power" through a para-proxemic challenge to the viewer. The result is a prolepsis — or foretaste of the future — which rhymes the child models with their adult equivalents.
Keywords
- children,
- fashion,
- hip-hop,
- cool pose,
- para-proxemics,
- prolepsis
Disciplines
Publication Date
2007
Publisher Statement
http://ijoc.org/ojs/index.php/ijoc/article/view/88
Citation Information
Christopher Boulton. "Don’t Smile for the Camera: Black Power, Para-Proxemics and Prolepsis in Print Ads for Hip-Hop Clothing" International Journal of Communication Vol. 1 Iss. 1 (2007) p. Christopher - Boulton Available at: http://works.bepress.com/chris_boulton/5/