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In the modern age, companies spend untold amounts of money on advertising, desperately seeking the next breakthrough that will help influence the American consumer to purchase a certain product. A truth long known to those who design and implement these advertisements is the basic premise that “sex sells.” Turn on any television, drive through a city and look at the billboards, open a magazine and we are assailed by the result of this knowledge. Perhaps the truest reflection of this trend was a commercial by the restaurant chain Carl Jr’s (along with its sister chain Hardee’s) that depicted the socialite Paris Hilton washing a car before biting into a hamburger in the last seconds of the advertisement. No matter what a person’s own personal opinion of this trend, the fact that it is successful is attested to by the growing use of such ads. Trojan, makers of the most popular brand of condoms in the United States, has remained at the forefront of this trend. Their latest campaign, as evidenced in an advertisement in Maxim magazine, prompts men to “evolve.”

A famous line spoken by countless women goes, “men are pigs.” Trojan, in their Evolve campaign, uses this idea to help prompt the male audience to “be a man” instead of the swine that it claims others are. The advertisement is of an unnamed beach where, in the middle of the scene, a young, attractive couple stands with their backs turned, holding hands. Perhaps the first thing one notices is that other than the male holding the lady’s hand in the middle of the ad, there are no other “men.” Instead the four other female beach-goers in the foreground are being harassed and leered at by six pigs. The actions the pigs are taking and the reactions of the female beach goers are as important as any picture within the image.

At the bottom left of the picture, which appears to be closest to the viewer, an attractive woman is sitting in a beach chair reading a novel that appears to be of the romance genre, based upon the cover’s silhouetted man and woman. The book’s title matches with the image at large by claiming “No time for Swine.” Instead of enjoying the novel, however, the female is looking with distaste at a hovering pig that is possibly trying to whisper in her ear. Her expression shows a total lack of interest and perhaps even no small amount of pity.

To the right of the reader, another young woman lies sunbathing, her face turned away from the entire scene and her eyes hidden behind large sunglasses. Yet whether she knows it or not, her peace is being disturbed by another pig, who is busy taking pictures of the woman with a camera phone. This hints at the idea that the normal men the ad is bemoaning, the so called “swine,” are sneaky and willing to use whatever means necessary to further their perverted goals. Behind the sunbather and her peeping pig, another young woman, in a red bikini, is holding a volleyball with one hand and turning away from where two pigs sit pointing and staring at her rear.

Another female, this one on the left side of the ad, is having sunscreen applied to her back by one of the pigs. Instead of doing a proper job, the animal has squirted an unnecessarily large amount of the lotion onto the female’s back and she is recoiling in shock. This “accident” is ambiguous in its intention. At first glance it seems to be merely a reflection of the “normal” man’s inability to act in a decent and proper manner, instead engaging in silly antics perhaps more suited to a frat house than the adult world. Yet the sexual undertones are unquestionable, from the manner the animal holds the bottle to the appearance of the lotion itself. This too is perhaps an urge for men to “grow up” and show respect while maintaining the overall sensual nature of the advertisement.

A final pig, the last one clearly visible in the foreground, sits under an umbrella using a pair of binoculars in what can only be taken as a less-than-intended purpose. It is hinted that the animal is using the binoculars to stare and leer at the attractive women that frequent the beach.

In the middle of the ad stands the young couple, both attractive and gazing lovingly into one another’s eyes while holding hands. They alone seem unaffected by the events unfolding around them. Indeed, it is not lost on the viewer that the young woman is the only one not being harassed by the ever-invasive swine. The two stand alone, an island in the midst of male chaos and juvenile impropriety.

Also of note is the use of color. The pigs pictured in the advertisement are dull and almost dirty, a pale and unpleasant shade of pink infusing their skin. The young women all wear bathing suits of vibrant colors, yellows and reds and blues, while the swine they are repulsed by seem to blend in more with the sand than the wider world. The young man in the center, the one the advertisement implores the viewer to reflect, also denotes the vibrant colors of life. He is the only “man” to be distinguished by any shade other than the dusky tan and pink, no doubt affirming his higher status.

The sun in the advertisement plays a pivota1 role. Although there is no lack of light, the side antics and unwanted advances of the swine are shown almost as though taking place under overcast skies. The happy couple, meanwhile, walks in the light of the sun. A rectangular window surrounds them and the open space in front, almost beckoning them to walk forward and ignore the less savory events that surround them. This in some primitive way plays on our sense of religion, of aspiring to “walk in the light.” Along with the colors used, this play of shade and light help lead us to acknowledge that we want to be like the guy, not the swine that other, more primitive men aspire to. The male audience is lead to affirm that they want to be a real man, not an animal.

The text of the advertisement is minimal. In yellow letters in the bottom left corner, the entire campaign is summed up in one word: “evolve.” Leave your baser self in the past and grow up. In plain black text next to “evolve” is the demand, “be a man, use a condom every time.” Do not take chances with life; do not allow yourself to follow the more primitive elements that surround us. No, let us grow up and begin taking responsibility. While the advertisement is, without a doubt, trying to sell the company’s product, attested to by the yellow Trojan image and name on the bottom left, perhaps the campaign is also a cry for maturity in an immature world. Such an idea is a stretch, that a simple ad campaign by a condom manufacturer would be a call to arms against the immaturity of the world, yet it must be at least considered.

Perhaps the advertisement is not simply a request to purchase a specific brand of condoms. Maybe, just on this side of perhaps, is the possibility that this company is imploring its consumer to truly “be a man.” Leave childish games behind and begin taking responsibility for your actions and their consequences. Let us all evolve and, just maybe, we can become men, an act that will have farther reaching implications than what brand of condoms to use. It is impossible to determine whether or not this is the intended idea of the campaign or merely the byproduct of the advertisement’s dissection, but it is a conclusion that we are left with. The difference in price between Trojan condoms and other brands is perhaps a small price to pay for supporting a company that seems to want us to better ourselves. After all, there is “No time for Swine.”