Who is the author? Is the author credible? What “problem” might the author be attempting to overcome through their chosen media?
Essay #3: Analyzing Media Messages
Recently, we have been examining the media, particularly advertisements. Advertisers seek to sell us something, usually a product, but sometimes a point of view. In order to sell their product or point of view successfully, they use “situations, values, beliefs and cultural norms” as a backdrop for their advertisements (Chiat, 224). Hidden beneath the basic message are messages telling us what it means to be an American, what kind of lifestyle we should try to attain, what values we should place above others, etc. Members of the media (advertisers/filmmakers/producers) use many of the same rhetorical devices as writers of persuasive arguments – appealing to their audience’s logic, emotions, and ethics.
Your
Assignment
Write a paper in which you
analyze an advertisement.
Your chosen advertisement can be from a newspaper, a magazine, a
billboard, or even a flyer on campus. You
may also analyze non-print ads like TV commercials.
Just about anything that is trying to sell you something is fair game.
Keep in mind that this paper is
not a review, but an analysis.
You should describe the product being sold, the layout, the text, etc.
Readers should be able to visualize the advertisement without actually
seeing it. However, the
main focus of your essay should be on
the message the media-makers are
sending, the techniques the
media-makers are using to send that message, and the
effectiveness of those techniques.
Your paper should be a minimum of 4 pages, typed, double-spaced, in 12-point font with 1-inch margins, and should be in MLA format.
You should refer to your handout on the Rhetorical Triangle, and the sections assigned in Everyday Writer, as you complete this assignment. However, to briefly get you thinking:
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Who is the author? Is the author credible? What “problem” might the author be attempting to overcome through their chosen media? |
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What is the message (simple and hidden) of the piece of media? How is that message presented? What kinds of appeals – logical, ethical, emotional – does the author use to persuade the audience? |
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Who is the intended audience? Is the message effectively coming across to that audience? What might be the consequences of that message being received? |
Due Dates
First Draft Due: Tuesday, March 29 at the beginning of class. (No late first drafts accepted) You will participate in a peer revision workshop on this day. Bring copies of your submission length draft for each of your group members, and one copy for me. Failure to turn in the above will hurt your grade, and will cause you to lose valuable feedback necessary for revision.
Second Draft Due: Tuesday, April 5 at the beginning of class. Turn in both drafts of your essay, along with the revision response forms your peers completed for you. Late second drafts will receive no credit, but I will give you as much feedback as I can in the time allotted. Failure to turn in a second draft will result in automatic failure of this course.
Please Note: If you must miss the workshop, please tell me in advance so that we can work out a way for you to get feedback on your essay. If you must miss class the day the second draft is due, drop your paper off at the English Department Office (CLV 102), or have someone else drop it off for you. Be sure you contact me immediately at sunderman@csus.edu if you must miss class on any of the due dates.