18 Ads That Changed How We Think About Women

When people say sex sells, most of the time, what they really mean is that sexy women sell.

For decades, advertisers have been finding different ways to feature women in ads in order to entice buyers. And, it would seem, the strategy works.

But the way women have been portrayed in advertising has changed over the decades, and changed the way society views women because of it. From housebound drudge to sexpot to business leader, ads are constantly arguing with us about women's role in society.

Here's how advertisements featuring women have shifted throughout the last century.

1890s: Led by Susan B. Anthony, the National American Woman Suffrage Association was formed in May 1890. At the same time, this ad from 1893 clearly says that a woman's place was in the kitchen, far from polling sites.

1900: Women were fighting for their rights across the nation, but it seems advertisers were not taking them very seriously. Note the quotation marks around "her declaration of independence."

1920s: The 19th Amendment to the Constitution was signed, giving women the right to vote. Yet this ad suggests that women were afraid to go beyond the walls of their kitchens.

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