Beauty Ideology: Critical Discourse Analysis of Online Filipino Beauty Product Advertisements

Abstract

This study investigates the linguistic and discursive features of collected online Filipino beauty advertisements from 2016 to 2025, with the aim of uncovering how these texts construct and reinforce prevailing beauty ideologies. Grounded in Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), the research applies Fairclough’s Three-Dimensional Model to examine the textual structures, discursive practices, and social practices that shape these online advertisements. The findings reveal that advertisers use a strategic blend of emotive language, pseudo-scientific terminology, and personalized messaging to create persuasive narratives around beauty. These advertisements often frame beauty as both an attainable goal and a personal responsibility, closely tied to consumption and self-improvement. Distributed across everyday platforms like social media and product packaging, the ads promote a neoliberal view of beauty as a marker of empowerment, success, and social acceptance. Ultimately, this study demonstrates how language and discourse in beauty advertising play a powerful role in shaping cultural ideals, reinforcing gender norms, and influencing consumer behavior and self-perception.