Abstract:

Historically, negative attitudes, prejudices, and stereotypes about mental illnesses have prevailed, and this information has been inherited from generation to generation. The influence of media content has played a significant role in conveying and spreading information about mental illnesses. The aim of this study is to examine the discourses produced about the disease in question through representations of depression in advertisements and to evaluate the relationship of these discourses with the stigmatization process of individuals with depression. Through purposive sampling, three advertisements for chocolate/chocolate products by the brand "Eti" were selected. In this qualitative study, the advertisements were analyzed using Fairclough's critical discourse analysis. The analysis of the advertisements was conducted through four themes: the discourse of the depressive woman, the discourse of loneliness, the discourse of humor, and the discourse of consumption as a treatment. In the advertisements examined, depression is represented as a disease seen only in women that can be cured by consuming chocolate, humorous narrative is preferred, and the disease is placed in a position far from seriousness, in line with the common view in society. As a result, the representations of depression in the analyzed advertisements align with negative attitudes, prejudices, stereotypes, and discriminatory views entrenched in society regarding depression. These negative thoughts maintain their existence by being fed through advertisements and are deeply embedded in the social and cultural structure. This situation reinforces the stigmatization process of individuals suffering from depression.

Keywords: