Advertisement Analysis

This advertisement utilizes an inspiring figure to help sell their products. The Nike ad above does not highlight a specific product, but instead, it connects its company with a spirit of determination and willpower. It uses a famous runner who was born without legs below his knees and instead runs using prosthetic legs. It is targeting athletes, mostly male, by using a male athlete as its model. His muscles are well-defined and oiled up to highlight the effort and strain he is going through. Also, his face is hidden, keeping him anonymous, so that he stands more for a principle. Its somewhat difficult to notice the prosthetic legs, making him seem more like a normal athlete. He is doing what many would have thought he couldn't do. It also targets this audience through the dark background, simple design, and the message being based off of weapons. The way the photo compiles three separate movements of the body in one frame helps visualize the process in slow motion, suggesting the high speed at which he is moving. There is a serious and inspiring tone to this advertisement, influencing the observer of this ad that you can always persevere, no matter what is holding you back.

Cartoon Analysis

The cartoon above addresses the issue of the high price of attending college. In the cartoon, a father is seen with bills in his hands and a shirt reading, "My kid went to college and all I have left is this t-shirt" while his son is driving away waving, seemingly oblivious to the pain seen in his parents' faces. The author is targeting the average American parents who understand the cost of not only college, but also the cost of just for raising a child. Joe Heller, a famous cartoonist for The Green Bay Press-Gazette, is known for producing cartoons relating to politics and the American lifestyle. The author's message is mainly an observation of the cost of college, however, an attitude of "was it worth it?" could be interpreted. Both the word and image aspects are used in this cartoon, and I would say that they are used equally. I can conclude this because of the vast array of visuals in the cartoon, however, without the words it loses its sense of humor because all that can be seen is a old sad man standing in his doorway. Other than making the characters look cartoonish for humor reasons, Heller mainly keeps the imagery realistic. His message is not based off of the image's unrealistic visuals. The fictional characters represent a middle class family struggling to pay for their teenage son's college. The father's dad-like appearance mixed with the sad emotion seen on his face gets the reader to pity him. The rhetoric used could persuade the reader to question the worth of a college education at the high cost that is required.

Rhetorically Speaking...

...if someone I knew were to write nothing but observations, would it still count as a blog entry? I type this as my eyes begin to wander towards the fliers I received at the Bowman Block Party, carelessly crumpled and thrown onto my desk out of my pocket from days ago. These pieces of paper were forced upon me as unwanted advertisement, evading the trash only by my pure laziness. However, I begin to wonder if they have served their purpose. I notice the Chick-fil-A flier first because of the bright and large letters. There are three cows holding up signs spelling "EAT MOR CHIKIN" misspelled as to appear as if the cows wrote them because everyone knows cows are uneducated. I become hungry. I see a pamphlet for Clemson first year experience. Its slogan at the bottom of the cover reads, "The First Year Experience just for you!" trying to connect with me personally as a student using the phrase "just for you" while also attempting to excite me by using an exclamation point. As I watch television, I see all of the modes of persuasion used by the companies. The shampoo company uses flowery and soothing language to show how elegant their product is, inferring the buyer will be as well. I also see an ad for a beer commercial. Targeted at men, it attempts to connect it's product with sports, brotherhood, and attractive women. The examples are completely different in style, yet they are essentially doing the same thing. After leaving the room to do anything other than write this blog, I take notice of some fliers advertising different clubs hanging on the wall, all of them attempting to connect with me personally as to gain my interest. They accomplished this by using questions and using the word "you" while associating it with words like interactive and fun to make it seem as if I was in that group of smiling faces in the photo on the flier. Those were my observations and this is my closing.