Week 3 post

So in week 3 we had to present and show how an advertising image selected by you deploys (at least one) rhetorical figure and advance an informed opinion (ie a hypothesis) as to why this is so.

Just thought I’d quickly refresh and revise what I presented that week.

So the advertisement that I had chosen to analyse was this image of Jessica alba:

declare yourself

So, this image was one of the many images used by a national US, non partisan, non profit campaign called Declare Yourself which urges the young demographic in the US to vote during last year’s election.

In applying Durand’s breakdown of Rhetorical figures we can see this image clearly utilises a similarity of content consisting of the use of metaphors.

In justifying how and why this image significantly employs the use of metaphor we can start to look at the image connotatively. The image is a significant metaphor for being ‘silenced’ just like the text reads. It features Jessica Alba looking like a tortured victim, naked, masked and desperate for help. The image is ultimately a metaphor for being binded down and silenced by one’s own indifference and inactivation in not voting. The terrorising scene is made more realistic with the isolated, dark unknown surroundings and red tinges of light to suggest danger and terror. Thus, suggesting bad things are happening and will happen to yourself and the country if you don’t “declare yourself” and make a difference by voting. The bold white text which reads “only you can silence yourself” seems to be composed strategically as if she is speaking the words she could speak to the audience if she were not binded. In referring to Ethos, the fact that they have used Jessica Alba to target a demographic of 18 – 29 year olds is interesting in questioning the authority of Jessica Alba amongst the young generation.

Like Gillian said in the lecture yesterday the language here, in particular the metaphor has been manipulated to play on emotions and meanings to heavily persuade and influence the audience. It is almost like a form of violence, a threat, telling us that if we do not vote; bad things will happen? It, in a way defines the nature of our identity suggesting that if you’re a good citizen who wants to make a difference; you will vote. Also as Durand suggests, photographic images have the ability to transpose and manipulate our perception of reality and thus easily provides us with this persuasive metaphor of Jessica Alba being ‘silenced’. It comes a long way from a voting campaign poster like this: although both images do provide threatening use of language to persuade.

So consequently it is safe to argue that this ad is definitely employed to persuade through the significant use of metaphor.

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