True Housewife, The Career Woman or Would-Be Career Woman and Balanced Homemaker

By: Michael Villegas, jiyoung yoon, Brandon Tierney and Kristian Thompson

 

 

 

 

 

Swiffer Wet Jet TV Commercial, 'Generations'

 The Swiffer Wet Jet Commercial embodies Betty Friedan's "The Sexual Sell". This commercial has the three types of women that Friedan mentions. Friedan mentions the "True Housewife". This character is portrayed in the commercial as the grandmother who is reluctantly afraid to try new devices. She mentions that she used to clean the floor on her hands and knees. The second person Friedan mentions is "The Career Woman or Would-Be Career Woman".  This role is played by the mother in the commercial. I found this woman to embody the character of using her time wisely.  Her methods of cleaning the floor were different from her mother's way of scrubbing the floor on her hands and knees.  The daughter found a new method of cleaning using a "MOP". Finally, we are introduced to the granddaughter who Friedan would call the "Balanced Homemaker".  The granddaughter would clean the floor by using her foot. With the granddaughter cleaning the floor with her foot she gives her grandmother anxiety.   This is a woman that uses her executive ability of a well-run household. The Swiffer Wet Jet product brings three generations together by simulating the grandmother cleaning on her hand and knees, the mother cleaning the floor with an old fashion mop and bucket and finally the granddaughter cleaning the floor with the Swiffer Wet Jet. All three find that the floor was still dirty. The grandmother and mother were amazed that a cleaning tool like the Swiffer Wet Jet could clean a virtually clean, yet unclean floor.