Heh... this is my paper that I get to turn in in the morning- an analysis of a magazine advertisement.... sure was fun to pick on it...hee hee....
English 225
Many people assume that everything that an advertisement says, is the whole truth, and nothing but it. However, with a little closer look, an average ad is revealed to have many sly tricks and word plays within it. To look at this, I analyzed a “Johnson’s” lotion ad, from “Allure” magazine.
The ad reads:
“Where dry skin finally ends, and baby soft skin begins.
JOHNSON’S Extra Care Body Wash & Lotion
Extra relief for extra dry skin
Now you can have that baby soft skin you love. With a touch of baby oil, the Wash leaves skin feeling moisturized for 24 hours, and the Lotion continually hydrates to help prevent dry skin, so there’s little difference between yours and your baby’s.
Johnsons’
Let us nurture your skin. Again.”
The picture is of a woman wearing a tank top (and no noticeable underwear) holding a baby. All you can see is their skin, other than the pink tank-top covering her bosom. She has a smile on her face, and rests her cheek on the little baby boy’s head. He has his hand on her chest. The background is pink, with bottles of lotion and body-wash in the bottom right corner.
There are many different ways that ad-creators try to mislead us. The first thing I noticed about this ad, was the way it uses “weasel” words. A “weasel word” is a word that is being used to obscure meaning or trick people. The first “weasel” word I noticed was “Now”..."Now you can have that baby soft skin you love.” Here, the “Now” is indicating that it is either new, or different, or immediate, but without offering any guarantees or proof of that.
Words are used similarly in this phrase, “With a touch of baby oil, the wash leaves skin feeling moisturized for 24 hours." The weasel word "feeling" tries to make you believe that the product works: all that the ad says is that their product makes your skin “feel” moisturized. It does not even say that it actually IS moisturized, but only that it feels like it is. Another thing that pokes out at me from this, is the mention of “baby oil.” Isn’t this just mineral oil? However, they use the name “baby oil” to keep with the attitude of their ad. Furthermore, don’t a lot of lotions have mineral oil as one of their main ingredients? What makes this lotion special?
This pattern continues throughout the ad- "The Lotion continually hydrates to prevent dry skin”- wait... “to prevent”? If we did not have dry skin, why should we need the lotion? What will this lotion do, to fix the problem of having dry skin in the first place? Nothing, that it mentions.
Yet another word..."So there's little difference between your skin and your baby's.” First, I would like to ask, is this necessarily a good thing? Also, it does not say that there is NO difference, or that it will make your skin like a baby's skin; just that there is "little" difference. Little compared to what, I might ask? Could it be compared to snake scales? Alligator hide?
The advertisement makes several appeals, of different sorts. It uses babies and family as attractants for it. It also uses beauty, happiness, and a sex appeal. The baby is adorable, and will make people like the ad just for that. Family is indicated by the way the woman is holding the baby, as well as the wedding ring on her finger. Beauty is demonstrated in that the woman is beautiful and has flawless skin, which people will imagine being a result of using the lotion. The woman is smiling and looking happy, thus happiness is a target. Finally, mothers will look at this woman, and identifying her as the mother of that baby, will make connections between the lotion, and them feeling and looking sexy.
Now, to point out some curiosities in this ad. The ad doesn't say how the lotion will help your skin, or what it will really do. Just that it will leave it feeling moisturized, and that it hydrates to prevent dry skin. It also calls it "extra relief"... what is "extra" referring to? Is relief a noun that can be quantified, or is it one of those absolutes, like “unique”? The ad also uses words like "nurture," and "care" to make it sound like the lotion is doing much more than merely softening your skin, or preventing it from becoming dry.
The magazine this ad is found in is focused on young women, and perhaps young mothers. The ad calls out to young mothers and women in general, with its appearance and design. Johnson’s is a relatively inexpensive brand of lotion, so the ad is probably not being focused towards those with an upper-level income, but they are trying to make the lotion look appealing nonetheless. The other ads in the magazine included a lot of scented perfume ads, a McDonald’s ad for salads, and a Jeep ad. Most of the ads have an air of elegance to them, and the woman in this lotion ad carries that, with the expression on her face. With that expression, she could easily have been standing in an evening gown in some other advertisement, doing something completely different.
As you can now see, ads are very sneaky. They use “weasel words” to hide their products’ true claims. They try to appeal to your ideals, values, desires, and your ego, in order to sell their products. They even purposefully use ambiguous words so that you will misunderstand them. I hope that you will keep this in mind the next time that you are looking at a commercial or magazine ad. If you keep your eyes open, you will prevent yourself from being tricked by many different types of advertising. You may be surprised by what you find; you will most definitely be entertained.
