Assigned: [date]
Workshop: [date]
Due: [date]
Length: 5-6 minutes
Lately we’ve been looking at cultural myths, and some of the
ways these myths get transmitted. Advertisements are one of the more
obvious ways of showing us what we “need,” what we ought
to desire, and who we should be. Jean Kilbourne suggests that while
it’s selling us the product, an advertisement also sells us on
a particular idea of “normal”—on what’s normal
for our age group, for our particular station in life, for the values
we aspire to.
In this speech, you’ll be focusing your powers of analysis and
observation on print advertisements from a newspaper or magazine. You’ll
make explicit these ads’ techniques for selling their product,
and you’ll compare and contrast ads across different target markets.
So What Do I Do? Compare and contrast two advertisements, taking
either of these approaches:
- Find two different ads for the same product, each ad targeting a
different market. (For example: are the Coke ads in Woman’s
Day the same as the ads for Coke in Maxim?)
or
-
Find two different ads for different brands of essentially the same
thing. (How does Chevy sell cars? How does Toyota?)
How Do I Do That? Your goal is to present a critical analysis.
You’ll need to:
- Summarize the content of the ads. Literally, what is in them? How
are they laid out? What do you see first? What’s there, but
hard to see—in other words, what’s subtly included?
- What audience were these ads created for? What kind of publication
did they run in, and who’s the audiences for each? Who reads
this publication, and how do you know?
- Now, analyze this ad. Consider questions or ideas like these:
- What types of appeals are being used here to persuade: Pathos
(sentimental appeals, scare tactics)? Ethos (celebrity testimony,
appeal to authority)? Logos (facts and figures, logical explanation)?
Bandwagon (everybody else is doing it)? Are these appeals the
major part of the ad, or are they secondary to some other technique?
- In this ad, what “does the talking”? Does the picture,
rather than text, sell the product?
- What types of images are used in the ad? Do we see the actual
product, or does the company use some other image to sell the
product? Why are those images used? What effect are they intended
to have on the audience? How do the colors work here? The language?
The design style?
- Do these images symbolize anything—the Marlboro Man, for
example, is a solitary cowboy who comes with a horse, some mountains,
and a beautiful setting. What does he represent, and how does
that help sell smokes?
- How, exactly, does the ad appeal to its target audience? For
example, if the ad appears in a magazine for skaters, what types
of images/text/symbols does it use to appeal to that particular
audience? If it appears in Maxim, how does it make the
product especially appealing to dudes? Feel free to speculate
here—or do a little research with your own test audience—about
whether or not the ad “works” for that particular
demographic.
- In addition, I’d like everyone to address at least one
of the following considerations:
- How is gender portrayed in your ads? Do the ads put either gender
in a negative light, depict gender-based power relationships,
conform to or oppose traditional notions of masculinity and femininity?
Why is gender portrayed this way?
- How is race portrayed in your ads? Is the ad multiracial, or
is it a racial monoculture? Are there any power dynamics here,
and how does race figure into those? Why is race portrayed that
way?
- How is class portrayed here? What classes are represented, and
how? What classes are missing, and what does that mean?
- What cultural values does this ad normalize? Patriotism, individuality,
freedom, conspicuous consumerism, marriage, family, rebellion?
How does it sell us that view of “normal”?
Organization: Because you like us and want to use our time well,
your speech should be carefully organized, with the following parts:
- Introduction. Start with an attention-getter, and preview the
major points of analysis.
- Body. Here’s where you summarize the content and explain
your analysis.
- Conclusion. Review your major points, then leave us with some
final thoughts that bring a sense of closure to the work you’ve
just done.
Visual Aids: We need to see the ads you’re talking about.
Here are a few possibilities—before you choose one, think carefully
about the pros and cons of each approach.
- Mount the original ads on posterboard, if they’re big enough.
- Blow the ads up to a larger size—copy stores are very good
at this.
- Make photocopies for everyone.
- Make a color overhead and project them during your speech.
There are other approaches that you’ll think of and I won’t,
so don’t stop here.
When You Speak: This is important: I ask that you work off a
one-page outline, with keywords and short phrases only. The goal is
for you to speak extemporaneously—that’s a more casual style,
where you’re really talking to us. Don’t read at us. That’s
gross. Reading will do gross things to your grade.
Hand In: On the day of your speech, you’ll need to hand
me your outline and copies of your ads.
Workshopping: We’ll workshop speeches in class on [date].
Grading: here are some of the things I’ll be looking for.
- Was your introduction attention-getting, effective, and relevant
to the rest of your speech?
- Did the body contain a sound analysis of the audience(s) and the
ads?
- Did the body provide relevant comparison and contrast?
- Did the conclusion help summarize without being redundant?
- Were your visual aids effective?
- Was your delivery effective? Rehearsed, smooth, worked out? Did
it seem like you cared?
- Were you within the 5-6 minute target range?
As always, I’m happy to
help with analysis or delivery...and so is the Speaking Center.
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