indulge
verb (used without object), indulged, indulging.
1. to yield to an inclination or desire; allow oneself to follow one’s will
(via dictionary.com)
“The obesity and eating disorder epidemics are not separate issues…both conditions stem from our inability to think of health and well-being in terms of balance…just as we are a white and black society, a rich and poor society, an us and them society, we are a thin and fat society. There is no middle ground. There is all and there is nothing.”
-Courtney E. Martin, Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters
It sounds great, to be able to “indulge without the bulge.” Indulgence isn’t necessarily negative, according to the definition “to allow oneself to follow one’s will.” But in this slogan, indulgence is associated with a perceived consequence that many girls and women fear: bulge. The slogan sells the idea of “middle ground,” what will attract customers into the store and purchase compression shapewear.
“Will” is defined as “the faculty of conscious and especially of deliberate action; the power of control the mind has over its own actions” or “the power of choosing one’s own actions.” In other words, will is choice. To have will is empowering. To follow it, even more so.
“Indulge without the bulge,” however, says that we cannot trust our own will; it leads to a negative outcome, an unwanted effect, namely “bulge”–unless we buy shapewear.
It sends the message that you can’t trust your own will, and if you do, your body will do something ugly, and leave you feeling powerless over it. Empower our brand, not your body.
Yes, Spanx has an “In-Power Line” that includes: Power Panties®, Higher Power® Brief, Power Capri, Higher Power Capri, Higher Power Shorty, Power Shorty, Higher Power Short, Power Short, Higher Power Panties, Higher Power®, and Power Skort.
If you feel sexy wearing In-Power panties, that’s cool. If you feel sexy only when wearing them, if you’re sick of wearing them, or if they’re uncomfortable to wear but you wear them anyway, you may be wearing them to fit into someone else’s mold.
Is The Message 