It All Ads Up: Use of Rhetoric in Advertisement

            Whenever I would look at an ad I would see it for what it appeared to be, a combination of words and images urging consumers to purchase some product or another simply because it existed. I never realized that advertisements used rhetoric to appeal to consumers in a big way. Every advertisement falls into one of three rhetorical categories: logos, pathos, and ethos. I myself learned these terms and their specific meanings in my sophomore English class. Even then I didn’t realize they were not only used in writing, but in everyday life. Envision states that the average adult will encounter around 3000 advertisements every day. This is attributed to the fact that advertising is everywhere. Advertising can be logical (logos), emotional (pathos), or characteristic and authoritative (ethos).

            Logical ads tend to make a point through facts, evidence, and reason. Nearly every advertisement features logos because they relate to before and after situations. Ads with logos make a statement that says, “if you buy this product, then such and such will happen.” For instance, a shampoo ad may say that if you purchase the shampoo, you will have strong and healthy hair. Ads that appeal to emotion or pathos generally use ad campaigns that will appeal to the highs and lows of human emotion. There has been a car commercial on television for a while which first shows a little boy sleeping in the backseat while his mother glances at him in the rearview mirror and smiles to herself. All the while a voice is whispering about the safety features the Chrysler Town and Country offers. The ending statement is “we don’t think safety or technology should be optional.” This appeals to the viewers’ maternal instincts, wanting her child to be as safe as possible. The third ad type, ethos, draws from the credibility or goodwill of a person or statement. This applies to the Visa commercials that were on during the Olympic Games a few years ago. These commercials featured the voice of an iconic American actor, Morgan Freeman. Those who love Morgan Freeman’s work would recognize his voice thereby transferring that trust and credibility onto the Visa card.

            Reading chapter two of Envision made me realize that commercials and advertisements I have seen relate to rhetoric in many different ways. Logos, pathos, and ethos are not only for use in rhetorical writing, but they surround us in our everyday lives. We see rhetorical advertisements everywhere, on television, on the Internet, on billboards and even on clothing. Every ad uses rhetoric to persuade the consumer to buy. Wherever ads are found, rhetoric is there.
Lauryn Wiseman