The Perfect Mate

(Letter sent to the three dailies this morning)

The Editor:

The Perfect Mate?

A new ad for the Subaru Legacy carries the headline: "Sexy, Smart and Completely under your control". The subhead goes on to say: "And you thought the perfect mate didn't exist."

A large image of an attractive Indian woman fills much of the page. In the lower right corner is a small, dark, hazy image of the car being advertised. Clearly this ad is targeting men and the creators of the ad probably thought they were being clever with their concept and wording. Regardless of this, what kind of message is being projected when it comes to the image of the woman as a 'perfect mate'? There is nothing wrong with being sexy and smart, but who wants to be under any other human being's control?

The perpetuated myth that women must be 'completely under the control' of men is partly responsible for many of the problems we see in our society today. I don't need to list these problems. Just read the papers, look at or listen to the news, look at popular music videos and walk down the street.

Elspeth Duncan,
St. Augustine