Introduction

Advertising has implemented methods to sway public opinion since the beginning of civilization. Generally aiming to sell a product or idea, marketers utilize both subliminal and overt techniques to influence the minds of consumers. Because of these techniques, there exists a clear correlation between societal norms and advertising. While this correlation is useful, it does not mean that advertisements can be used as accurate historical records. “Fundamentally, advertising seeks to shape,” and this ultimate aim cannot be ignored (Parkin 5). Rather than clear historical documentation, advertisements “can only reveal the ideologies and messages that advertisers hoped would sell products,” (Parkin 5). The idea that marketers sell ideas along with their products means that advertisements give us a unique lens into societal norms. 

Studying the advertisement of yerba mate is particularly enlightening because of the long life span and regional importance of mate itself. Introduced in the 16th century and prevailing in modern times, yerba mate has been sold through a plethora of changing societal norms. This gives historians a unique opportunity to study the change in the selling of an idea over time. In addition, unlike other commodities, the popularity of yerba mate has remained relatively regional, moving only throughout Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina (Folch). This gives us the potential to study societal norms in a specific region. 

In my exhibit, I analyze the shift in the portrayal of gender and class roles throughout 20th century Argentina. I focus on Argentina in particular because while Paraguay and Brazil played a significant role in mate production early on, Argentina became the biggest consumer and producer of the stimulant in the 20th century. While Paraguayan companies remained in the mate market, most of the advertisements were targeting Argentinian consumers. Yerba mate has long been connected to Argentinian “index wealth, social status, and community identity,” (Folch 23). The change in connotation to the levels of these components is reflected in the themes conveyed in the two series of advertisements in this exhibit. I use two groups of advertisements — one from the early 20th century, and one from the second half of the century — present a historical narrative of this shift. 

In 1946, President Juan Domingo Perón introduced purchasing power to working class Argentinians for the first time (Milanesio 21). I use this change in the internal mass consumer demographic as well as the change in yerba mate advertising themes and techniques to argue that Argentinian yerba mate advertisements shifted from targeting middle and upper class women to appealing to lower socioeconomic classes. I contend that this change in target audience influenced the way that the yerba mate advertisements portrayed gender and class roles. 

The themes that I study throughout this exhibit are significant because they have modern day implications. The reinforcement of the objectification of women, followed by the emphasis on the subservient position of women are still themes that are present in Argentina and all over the world. This exhibit intends to analyze the origins of these themes to allow people to understand their impacts today.