ABSTRACT
Barbara Stem's chapter in this volume addresses recent shifts in literary studies away from notions of stable texts evoking singular ‘correct' interpretations by passive readers. Reviewing various perspectives on text—reader relationships, Stem considers how women and men respond to androcentric and gynocentric texts and describes different styles and models of reading. This chapter seeks to develop her argument that literary theories and research have implications for the gendered consumption of advertising. It begins by revisiting questions of text—reader relationships and the reading experience, relating these to advertising consumption. The difficulties of classifying ads as androcentric or gynocentric are examined, and tills chapter then considers how advertisements position women as readers, and how women respond; some textual strategies which encourage the adoption of particular vantage-points for women as readers of ads are considered, along with research on gendered attitudes and readings with respect to advertising.
