I made two collages to compare the content between magazines for Christian and religiously unaffiliated teen girls. One collage is a collection of images and headlines from a Christian magazine named “Brio” and the other collage is a collection images and headlines from magazines such as “Us,” “People,” “In Touch,” and “Ok.” I collected many things from throughout each magazine to try and capture the tone and message of each one. My goal was to analyze the similarities and differences between the two types of magazines in order to come to conclusions about the cultural expectations for people, girls especially, in these groups.

Both magazines targeted teenage girls and young women. While they both may be very different, their gendered expectations are similarly high for both groups of girls. Both groups are pressured to look and act a certain way. The magazines utilize things like tone and language and pictures to attract their viewers and then the content of the magazines is meant to influence their behaviors and actions.

Style:

Both the font and color scheme for each magazine help to set the tone. The secular magazines used brighter and bolder colors. The lettering in these magazines was also much bolder and bigger, and much of it was block lettering. This caused the tone of the magazine to to seem louder and feel alarming. The secular magazine’s language was more casual and straightforward. The headlines felt more instructive, like they were telling the reader what to do. These magazines sometimes used harsher language and it felt alarming.

Portrayals of Women:

The secular magazines had lot of talk about relationships and relationship issues and successes. Another thing was interesting was that these magazines discussed girls bodies, whether that be in a good or bad way, and the christian magazine did not. In the nonreligious magazines, the people are shown in scandalous outfits. The dresses are low cut and have slits, girls are shown in bathing suits, celebrities are shown in scandalous costumes. This made sense because secular groups tend to be open about discussing their bodies and sex.

Style:

The tone of Brio, the Christian magazine felt warmer and comforting. It utilized lighter, softer colors and a lot of pastels. The Christian magazine used softer fonts and sometimes cursive. It focused on self reflection, whereas the other magazines looked at other people and their lives. Brio included a lot of encouraging messages and Bible quotes that seemed to build people up. But the religious magazine could sometimes feel overwhelming as a secular reader, and a bit like a self help book for Christians.

Portrayal of Women:

There were generally less pictures showcasing women. When the religious magazine Brio talked about relationships, it often discussed motherhood and what being a mother has to offer. The girls also wore more more conservative outfits, such as longer dresses and other outfits that didn’t show very much skin. This was much different from the secular magazines.

Citations:

People Magazine, May 11, 2011

In Touch, May 6, 2019

Us, August 18, 2016

Ok!, May 6, 2019

Brio, April/May 2020

Freitas, Donna. Sex and the Soul: Juggling Sexuality, Spirituality, Romance, and Religion on America’s College Campuses. New York, Oxford University Press, 2015.