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Making Money, Making Monsters Advertising Human Images. The Monsters We Make Spring 2005 Stacey Jean Barron. Basics of Advertising. Ads persuade the “buyer” to: get the “good” (Acquisition) keep the “good” (Protection) avoid the “bad” (Prevention) get rid of the “bad” (Relief)
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Making Money, Making MonstersAdvertising Human Images The Monsters We Make Spring 2005 Stacey Jean Barron
Basics of Advertising • Ads persuade the “buyer” to: • get the “good” (Acquisition) • keep the “good” (Protection) • avoid the “bad” (Prevention) • get rid of the “bad” (Relief) • Persuasion is a mutual transaction between benefit-promisers (the ads) and benefit-seekers (the viewer). • Persuasion need not be explicit or rational.
The Basics…. • Ads follow this formula: • Hi (attention-getting) • Trust Me (confidence-building) • You Need (desire-stimulating) • Hurry (urgency-stressing) • Buy (response-seeking) • Ads are everywhere, created by hundreds of people, and are not going away.
Analyzing Ads • Analysis (deconstruction): careful and close examination of a piece’s explicit and implicit meaning(s). • Analysis need not be expansive. • While analyzing an ad look at: > images > emotional appeal > shape & color > value judgements > placement > juxtaposition > size > text
Analyzing the Harm of Ads • Harmful effects of advertising can be: • indirect • delayed • cumulative • Ads can be: • Intrusive (too many ads, ads in inappropriate places) • Deceptive (“bad” downplayed, lied about, ignored) • Offensive (negative images of/toward people/groups) • Prob. Inducing (increase debt, stress, poor self-image)
Questions to Ask • What is the product? • Who is being targeted? What text, images, etc. lead you to this conclusion? • What is the subtext? • What values are expressed? • What tools/techniques of persuassion are used? • In what ways is this a healthy and/or unhealthy message?
Example • Image: nude woman in plastic, man w/gun, corner • Placement: man hidden, woman’s face hidden, woman as focus • Emotions: fear, anger, abuse, vulnerability
Exercise • Pick an ad from www.genderads.com, print it out, then answer these questions: • What is the product and who is targeted? • What’s explicit? Implicit? Explain. • What are the emotions and values? Explain. • Is this ad harmful? How? Explain. • How does monstrosity figure into the ad?