When you’re walking down the street, taking the bus, watching TV, or catching the Metra, ads are everywhere. They’re plastered on signs, billboards, and in train cars. We are constantly exposed to these ads, good or bad, on a daily basis. Whether it is realized or not, rhetoric plays a large role in the advertisements we see every single day. As I was looking through ads, I found one that advocates against domestic violence.
In the ad above, an Everlast punching bag is shown wearing a woman’s green dress. Underneath this image is a caption that reads, “It’s Not Acceptable to Treat a Woman Like One.” In one short and simple phrase, this advertisement implies that in any type of relationship, a woman should not be treated like she is a punching bag. Without directly stating that women should not be abused in relationships, this domestic violence advertisement uses the punching bag as a symbol for women who are abused by men.
This ad is so effective simply because it is simple. There is not a disturbing picture of a battered woman, but rather a short, simple message that gets right to the point. Although it does not boldly state, “Don’t abuse women and treat them like your punching bag,” through rhetoric and imagery, the ad implies this message. This ad is also effective because it plays off the pathos of both women and men. Personally, when I saw this ad, I was angered that any man would think it was acceptable to physically abuse a woman or even see them as anything less than who they are: real people. I’m sure I’m not the only girl who feels like they should not be seen or treated this way. Also, the ad directly targets men by using a punching bag in place of an actual woman. Because it states that women shouldn’t be treated like a punching bag, it implies that the men are domestic abusers. It seems to be a warning to men that they don’t want to be this type of guy.
Through the use of rhetoric, this advertisement conveys the message that domestic violence against women is wrong. It is a common place that any type of abuse is wrong, but this ad shows that it is more common that most people expect and fights out against the violence.
This is a great ad and I love your take on it, but it actually raised the question in my mind of why it specifically targets men. I mean men are stereotypically cast as the agressors who use others as punching bags but what about women who do so? Or even parents or others that abuse children? I feel like this ad would be much better if it was instead revised to say that NO ONE should be used as a punching bag.
ReplyDeleteYour interpretation of this ad is so clever- I've never seen it before, but I agree that it's very creative and effective just because it's simple. The image is a little startling, actually, which really conveys the message in a strong manner. Hopefully it helps to get the message across to those who need to see it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first looked at this ad, I thought it was some sort of satire or humor piece, along the lines of those jokes with the punchlines that always end in telling the woman to go make a sandwich. This image is definitely attention-grabbing and clever, but it could be misinterpreted as something very far from anti-violence advocacy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Nickie when she says that "NO ONE should be used as a punching bag."
Great rhetorical analysis! Ads like this that juxtapose unexpected elements usually work really well.
ReplyDeleteFor a slightly different take on this method, you might check out adbusters.org. They're spoofs, rather than legit advertising, but still are accomplishing interesting rhetorical tasks.