Words Kill Advertisement - Report Example

Words Kill Advertisement There is a common saying that “sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me”, it was initially a children’s rhymes scheme that emerged in the 19th century (George and Dun 78). While people do still quote it today, it could not be further from the truth, words, in the age of modern psychology have been proven to hurt just as bad and sometimes worse than any beating one may get from the proverbial sticks and stones. The pain caused by words often linger long after they have been uttered and they can create and invisible scar which may result in psychological trauma and stress for an individual that could last as long as lifetime or even dictate the length of the lifetime if the victim is driven to self-destruction by the words (Christensen). The adverts which will be the subject of this paper’s analysis are based on the thematic notion that words can hurt or even kill, both adverts use graphic pictorial representations that symbolically depict the potential and active harm that words can cause. While there is no arguing with the logic behind the theme, this paper seeks to determine if the two adverts which will both be compared and analyzed are ethical and to what extent they are effective in driving their intended message home. The first commercial is a picture of a knife made out of different letters in various sizes and shapes, the letters do not form any words so no implicit meaning can be derived from them. The knife is however made to appear extra sharp with a capital letter A at its tip. The advert is set on a dark background; next to the knife are the words, “Be careful, your words can kill”. This can be classified under shock advertisement; the implication of this type of advert is that one’s choice of words can result in harm to another person or probably even themselves should they cause offense or enrage the audience. The second advert depicts the face of a young boy probably five or six years old, he looks terrifies and tears are is visible on his face, around his neck is the reason for his terror. A hand is gripping him and seemingly choking him, and from the angle of the picture the boy is looking at the owner of the hand which seems to be a major cause of his fear. The hand like the knife in the previous advert is made out of letters; however in this case the letters form words that explain why one would be hurt by such. The visible ones include, Moron, Fool, Punk and Pig, there are several others including a sentence saying “you are such a …” given the tone of the rest of the image, it is unlikely that the missing adjective is a complement. It is also worth taking to account that the boy is shirtless which could symbolically imply nakedness and by extension vulnerability which makes sense given that in the pictorial context, he is a child in the hands of a threatening creature or entity. The caption for the picture is “your words have power use them wisely”. The two adverts are similar, albeit not identically themed, the dominant center idea for both of them is the implications that words are not only harmful but potentially fatal, in the first picture; words have been used to construct a knife. In a confrontational context the notion of a knife precipitates ideas if hurt pain and destruction in the second advert, words are used to create a more explicit representation of the potential for evil. That they form a hand which is apparently throttling an innocent and scary looking child, the implication that words can have dangerous effects is made shockingly clear as the advert is clearly designed to affront the moral sensibilities of the viewer given that brutality to children is a universally abhorred action. The underlying message from both adverts is more overly articulated in the second picture. Words often have a great effect on those to whom they are uttered especially if they are negative, and children are especially susceptible to them when they are come from adults who they tend to trust more so if it is their teachers or parents. The choice of words for the two adverts are also similar in that both are warnings; the first is an injunction that words can kill while the second states that words should be used carefully as they have power. Nevertheless, the two adverts are quite different in several ways, if one was to presented with the two pictures and no words, they would probably be interchange the corresponding captions. This is because the second caption is a rather covert warning with a more overt picture while the first picture is less overt than the caption. The knife in the first adverts is a menacing symbol of the potential harm the knife can cause, the second on the other hand depicts an active harm and is likely to evoke a sharper response at it appeals to ethos of the audience in a moral sense. When once uses harsh, abusive or crass words on someone else, they may not know it but they could be actually sowing seeds of depression, stress and low self-esteem in the victim. While these are not a guarantee for it, they contribute a great deal to self-destructive behaviors which can include although is not limited to suicide. To a large extent the adverts are effective since they are in resonance with day to day realities and in their own blunt way they serve both to remind and warn of the capability of words as a source of harm. Case to point, in 2013 a Connecticut school boy shot and killed himself and investigations into his death proved that his suicide was probably a result of the bullying he had had to undergo every day in school because of his above average height (Vatagliano). His older schoolmates would taunt and sometimes insult him because he was tall and awkward and even though there was no physical violence involved, it is apparent he suffered a great deal from the verbal torture which ultimately is believed to have driven him to suicide. Words as precisely mentioned, will often do more harm than actions, this is especially when they are directed to someone’s perceived weakness about which they may have no control over. In the symbolic interactionism theory labeling occurs when someone gradually starts to believe that the words used to describe them are descriptive or prescriptive and they end up sub-consciously acting out the prescribed role even when it is a negative one. When a child grows up being called some of the words on the hand choking the boy in the second advert, they are likely to start believing them at some point. The psychological harm on an individual who is confronted with such verbal negativity can be tremendous and even if they do not commit suicide of act self destructively; they may end up suffering from depression in the long run. However while conceding that the adverts are effective, there is the ethical question to be considered, is it justifiable to use the image of a child being chocked to make a point? Well, this is fundamentally a matter of personal opinion since the picture itself is a mere representation, while some may claim that is immoral shock advertising, in this context it is actually a true albeit metaphorical representation of what words when misused. However the fact that this picture could actually traumatize a child cannot be ignore, after all the fact that child abuse and pornography happens does not justify making graphic depictions of the same. Works Cited Christensen, Thor. "When Words Hurt Verbal Abuse can be Hazardous to Your Health." Milwaukee Journal: 0. Feb 03 1995. Web. 25 Mar. 2014 . George, Ann and Dunn Douglas . “Tappys Chicks: And Other Links Between Nature and Human Nature” (1872). London: Strahan & Co. p. 78. Vatagliano, Brian.. “Friends: 15-year-old Connecticut boy who committed suicide was bullied”. CNN. 2013. Web 25 Mar. 2014 . http://edition.cnn.com/2013/09/02/us/connecticut-teen-suicide/ Read More