Rhetorical Analysis of an Advertisement - Essay Example

Ramakrishna Surampudi 16 April Rhetorical Analysis of an Advertisement Human beings have an inherent urge to look good, fresh and bright. All day, all the time, that is. Though this applies to both sexes alike, women usually formed the target segment of companies manufacturing cosmetic products. The probable logic is that the products that they draw the attention of women will manage to creep into households, thus getting a platform to introduce themselves to the other members of the household as well (Faigley et al. 34). We all talk about inner beauty but then we all are aware of the crude reality that it is the outer beauty that the world gets carried away by. Even if that statement appears to be stretching things a bit too far, there would still be agreement that the first impressions, to a large extent, will be based on appearances. Since we only can make a first impression once, cosmetics become indispensable with our lives and then how much advantage a company will be able take of this fact remains on the strategies it adopts in publicizing and marketing its products. The success of an advertisement, in turn, depends again on its ability to make a strong first impression on the customer – to produce a ‘wow’ effect – and obviously it only has one chance to do it. Advertising therefore is a high-stake game in which the success or failure of a commercial can be an issue of life and death for the product. What is shown above is the advertisement of a perfume manufactured by DONNA KARAN NEW YORK or DKNY. What strikes the eye first is a woman – no, a young woman – no, a beautiful young woman, with an expression in her eyes, looking in your eyes (Faigley et al. 87). The message of the non-verbal expression is not very hard to come across, yet there is a caption that translates it for you into the verbal form – BE DELICIOUS. It may be noted that the location of the caption is neither at the bottom nor in a corner, but right in the center of the advertisement. The significance of this setting is that the caption is as striking as the woman. It is one of the first things that catches the viewer’s eye. The image and the caption occupy the entire image so much so that everything else, including the background, becomes irrelevant. Grammatically, the message BE DELICIOUS is not a phrase or clause. It is a sentence – an imperative sentence, to be precise. Imperative sentences offer an advantage to advertisers because of their very nature. The subject of these sentences is not explicit, but quite clear and it is YOU. The exhortation is YOU BE DELICIOUS and the temptation it induces is indeed hard to resist. If you are a woman, it offers you something that can make you more attractive and if you are a man, it challenges you to discover what women want and when the challenge is from a woman – a charming woman – that makes it all the more irresistible. Further, her look and the body language seem to carry either conviction if you trust the product or censure if you don’t. The impact of eye contact cannot be understated. A lot of care is called for in selecting and structuring the images in an advertisement (Faigley et al. 226). The thermometer to decide the effectiveness of the included images is whether or not the viewer takes a pause and comes back to it after having taken a glimpse of it. What is true of the ad in question? The combined outcome of the colors, pictures and words on the viewer is certainly durable. They appeal not only to the senses but also to the ethos (Faigley et al. 65). Care is also taken not to let the colors or features of the woman’s clothes or ornaments dominate the main theme. It may also be observed that she is gorgeous, not because of excessive make-up or accessories but in the sense she is really brilliant and good-looking. There is nothing that diverts the attention from her feminine look – the soft hair, clear and communicative eyes and glowing skin. She is delicious just by being her own self. What one sees is a real human countenance and not an animation. It adds to the reliability of the claims of the advertisement. Beneath the caption are found the words The Fragrance for Women but they are meant only to be a brief description of the product being marketed. The key words are BE DELICIOUS which serve the capital purpose of the ad and literally they are all in the capital case. Other than the model and the slogan, one more thing that is meaty to the viewer’s eye is the apple in her hand that she bit into and a bunch of fresh, tender apples beneath the caption. The name of the manufacturing company appears on the row of these apples suggesting that the perfume must be as sumptuous as the apples behind. Apples have a great appeal. The word delicious is very much compatible with the image that apples conjure up. Moreover, they are a universal favourite. Not that there is not anybody who does not relish them. But even those who are not very impressed with their taste cannot deny the magnetic charm of their looks. DKNY is a reputed brand and the objects in the advertisement need to meet the standard of the splendor associated with the brand. The genuineness of the product is as fail-safe as that of the woman’s beauty and the taste of apples. Of late, it has become common for advertisers to mention their social community network platforms like FACEBOOK. Theoretically, it gives the customers the option to join the community, share issues, send queries and seek clarifications pertaining to the product. However, in practice, it is not likely that there will be many with such enthusiasm. Still, the practice of mentioning is these accounts is reflects well on the product because it becomes a testimony to its popularity (Faigley et al. 53). All said and done, the undercurrent of all this is the proverbial notion – honesty is the best policy. After a manufacturer has been absolutely convinced about the ability of his product to deliver the goods, the advertisement then is an instrument to convey the manufacturer’s conviction to the customer. The business is all about generating and sustaining trust. In fact, there is nothing else that brings as much freshness and glow to a human face than honesty does. Works Cited Faigley, Lester and Jack Selzer. Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments: Reading, Designing and Writing Effective Arguments. New York: Longman Publishing Group, 2004. Print. Read More