“Preserving the health, add to which an irresistible personal beauty”: advertisements for cosmetics and medicines in The Morning Chronicle , 1800-1810

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a case for the incorporation of cosmetic products in studies of medical advertisements and marketing. Through a study of advertisements published between 1800 and 1810 in the London daily newspaper The Morning Chronicle, linguistic, organisational and visual analysis illustrates the similarities between the advertising of cosmetics and medications advocating for the inclusion in studies of medical professionalisation and narratives of medical authority. Design/methodology/approach In all, 292 issues of The Morning Chronicle were analysed using the British Library Newspaper Database. In all, 2,092 published advertisements were categorised as relating to “health and medicine”. Of these advertisements, over 450 different products, services and providers were identified. Advertisements were analysed regarding linguistic, organisational and visual elements. Findings Over 9% of all advertisements in The Morning Chronicle between 1880 and 1810 were categorised in this paper as “health and medicine”, split across six “subcategories”. The categories of “medication” and “cosmetic” displayed the most similarities in their language and visuality. This study suggests that the organisation of advertisements across the pages of The Morning Chronicle reveals further similarities in the marketing of commercial medicines and cosmetic goods. Originality/value This paper advocates for including cosmetics in studies of 19th-century medicine, justified by not only the branding and composition of these products but also the advertisements of these products in print media. This paper offers a novel approach to analysing newspaper advertisements through mise-en-page and organisational features, demonstrating the use of shared language and cohesive organisation of cosmetics and medications in print advertisements.