In recent times some social historians have taken to interpreting a given time and place in terms of its advertising. Are the creative directors of advertising agencies, who are hardly typical citizens, really the people who most have their fingers on the pulse of a society? And if so, are they merely reflecting the society back at itself, or do their activities themselves help to change the collective perception?
At all events, it is certainly true that advertisements can sometimes -- perhaps unintentionally -- be revealing about how particular concepts are viewed and how they might relate to the contemporary zeitgeist in a particular culture.
And the concept of corporal punishment is no exception. In this feature we look at 15 US and UK press advertisements in which CP is pictured. What are they telling us about the attitudes of the period, and the place of CP in popular culture?
Click on each title in turn to see the advertisement in full and read the commentary. They are in roughly chronological order:
19th century: Power & Stuart Tobacco
c.1900?: Atwood & Brigham's Chop and Oyster Café
1937: Post Office Speaking Clock
1945: Borden's Hemo Food Supplement
1940s: Ivory Bath Soap
1940s: Fletcher's Castoria Children's Laxative
1940s: Fletcher's Castoria Children's Laxative (again)
1948: Shinola Shoe Polish
1950s: Sanka Decaffeinated Coffee
1954: Liberty Mutual Insurance Company
c.1960: Havoline Motor Oil
1960: European Cars
1960s: Cheez-It Cheese Crackers
1997: King of the Hill
2000: Virgin Megastores
