post 3: advertisement analysis

This particular ad is selling Axe body wash for men; however, it is selling much more than just that. This ad uses adventure, unpredictability, fun, and girls to imply that by using this product, you (any guy) can be the life of the party. Therefore, this ad sells not only Axe body wash, but also sells adventure, fun, sex appeal, and confidence. All of these “fun” qualities appeal to high school and college-aged males, particularly the ones feeling as though they lead boring lives. Through crafty rhetoric, this commercial boasts that axe body wash can transform a dull night into an exciting adventure where the fun never ends and beautiful girls are insanely attracted to any guy that wears Axe products. 

Therefore, beyond convincing the targeted male between the ages of 16-24 to buy this product, this advertisement portrays the underlying message that a person can buy confidence and attraction. The commercial implies that the main character has such an adventurous night solely because he wore Axe body wash. In reality, any person could wear the same Axe product and not attend the craziest party, not attract the hottest girls, and not have the time of his life.

While the body wash may make the user smell clean and nice, it does not yield the results shown in the commercial. However, the commercial could give the consumer a false sense of confidence after buying the product. In such a case, the consumer could truly believe that the body wash made him more attractive and therefore he could consequentially have more confidence. This is what the company aims to lead the buyer to believe so that he will continue to buy their product.

The medium of this advertisement is a television commercial. It is currently airing in the United States. There isn’t any speaking during the majority of the actual commercial, which forces the viewer to focus on what Axe is really selling: confidence, sex appeal, adventure, and fun. 

Oh and body wash too.

Post 2: comic analysis

The preceding comic deals with the issue of escalating college tuition costs. The comic shows two trucks moving students go off to college. The first truck is a u-haul, typical of new college students moving away from home. The second is a brinks truck with loads of money. The comic is implying that college students not only take all their stuff with them to college, but they also take a lot of money too. The author of this comic strip sarcastically questions the ridiculous tuition costs while poking fun at the financial situation of many families that send their children to college. Therefore, this political cartoon uses images to imply a substantial message, the insanity of college tuition. However, the rhetoric of this cartoon is made of both images and words.The words are just as important as the pictures in the comic strip because otherwise the reader would not understand where and what the trucks were doing. Because of both the words and the images, the reader can pick up on the implied message about the ridiculousness of rising tuition costs for a college education.

post 1: Rhetoric

Rhetoric is an implied message within a work of multimedia. Ways in which the implied message is interpreted vary vastly making the rhetoric potentially unique to each audience. Some examples of rhetoric seen on a daily basis are advertisements, cartoons, newspapers, flyers, textbooks, and signs, just to name a few. Some specific examples of rhetoric seen on campus are sorority t-shirts. To some, the letters can imply a very positive message of sisterhood, philanthropy, and common bonds. To others, these same letters can display a very negative message of catty girls, drama, and partying. Furthermore, these letters could hold no meaning for an individual unaware of Greek affiliations. No matter what the true intended implied message, whether it be good, bad, or indifferent, the encounter with the rhetoric takes on a unique identity with each individual's interpretation.