This last week was my busiest week yet. I had a test on Monday on chapter 3 in Art, was told that we would have a quiz on Tuesday on chapter 4. I had that draft for English due on Wednesday and a ton of reading left to do for that class too. I sometimes wish we had at least a few weeks notice on some things. It's very hard to manage my time with the family and homework without some notice. If I knew we were going right into chapter 4, I would of made more of an effort to find time to read it over the weekend. I put so much weight on the test that was on Monday that I put all my study effort into that one thing.
We're doing a lot of studio work in Art now to help cement visual element definitions into our brains. It's lots of fun using so many different mediums, and exploring so many different visual elements. I'll have to scan some of my work in before Monday (that's when we're mounting them to larger boards) and share them with you all. I have one piece that I titled flying bacon.
I am pretty confident that I'm doing well in my classes. I just fret to no end over little things.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
SAB
Well here's my most recent assignment for English. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do this one, and I was surprised when it didn't take me hours to complete it. Please read it, edit it, whatever. Let me know if you understand my thesis, and if it makes sense. Thanks...
Extraordinary Ride
Here I am. Sitting in my boring little house, in my boring little chair, staring at my boring little computer, and thinking about how ho hum my little life is. I reach for a magazine and flip through it. Right away a magnificent advertisement catches my eye. In it I see a monstrously powerful 4X4 sport utility vehicle trudging through some faraway, secluded jungle. The glossy black paint on the hood is covered with the excitement of mud splats that were thrown upon it by wheels that are triumphing over the slippery terrain. Bold lettering across the image directs my attention to notice that the vehicle is “BEAUTIFUL IN UGLY SITUATIONS”. The marketing people for Land Rover work to pull me into this perceived world. They attempt to make me feel that if I buy a Land Rover, I too will become an explorer and go off road in the jungle.
While the generalized Dilbert stereotype of evil marketing director may not be appropriate for every advertiser, many of the more successful ones find that weasel words work. Humans are visually sensitive beings, and emotional imagery presented to us through pictures or language can be very swaying. Many companies take advantage of our emotions, and use deceiving language that compel us to buy their products even if we don't need or want them at all. The team of marketing mustela at Land Rover have excelled at using many weasel tools in an attempt to do just that.
After the powerful image of off road excitement pulls the reader in to examine the ad, the eye is drawn to the smaller images and text bordering the page. At the top left of the page is a small picture of a rugged looking man. Readers are compelled to think that this is the kind of person who owns a Land Rover. He is in below freezing conditions, bundled up in a lot of mountain climbing gear, and has scruffy but short beard. He is an icon of strength under extraordinary conditions. After reading a caption in a space cell next to his portrait, readers then know that he is “Sir Ranulph Fiennes, the greatest of living explorers (from the Guinness Book of World Records ᵀᴹ)”. The weasel marketing team has introduced an authority on exploring extraordinary terrain. If consumers don't analyze the information on the explorer they may assume that he had used the vehicle to achieve his “greatest of living explorers” title. However, information is presented that informs more inquisitive readers that Sir Ranulph Fiennes, indeed, did all his exploring by foot. The information wants us to believe that the Land Rover is LIKE Sir Ranulph Fiennes. This is a false analogy, the Land Rover is neither a man nor does it traverse mountain ranges by foot. This authority on exploring serves as a double weasel whammy.
In the bottom left corner of the page is another image of a rugged Land Rover, this time forging through a wheel well high flood. The photo draws the imagination into another perceived world, again in a jungle like setting. This image provides the false perception that the Land Rover will take owners anywhere and get them out of any tough situation. In another strategically placed space cell the text reads, “This isn't the end of the world. But you can see it from here.” Here advertisers use weasel words to make potential customers feel like adventure is right at hand (if they buy a Land Rover). The ad team presents a hypothesis contrary to fact. No matter what someone uses their Land Rover for, they will not be able to see the end of the world.
The minute text goes on to sell readers on a patented Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system without explaining to them what exactly a Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system is. It sure sounds good doesn't it? But without definition the words are meaningless. While readers contemplate exactly what a Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system is, they can take comfort knowing that it will, at the very least, help Land Rover owners out of the most extraordinary situations. The weasel word help is used here to make it clear that there is no guarantee that if Land Rover owners get in an extraordinary situation the Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system will get them out of trouble, but it will “help” them out, whatever that means.
A general conclusion after looking at the entire ad is that the whole thing is a hypothesis contrary to fact. Most Land Rover owners, especially the ones that will read this ad in Domingo magazine (a home decorating magazine), will never find themselves in these extraordinary situations. Most Land Rover owners enjoy the luxury of paved roads, dry conditions, and otherwise ordinary terrain. The idea that by simply purchasing a Land Rover, consumers will transform from having a boring, urban life to having an adventurous life of an explorer is non sequitur. Some Land Rover owners may have their vehicles around to use as farm equipment, or perhaps transportation for some weekend sport (i.e. boating or hunting). But generally Land Rovers are driven to WalMart on diaper runs, and make the guys in the carpool feel cool on their way to the office.
The weasel words of advertising are pretty obvious in this ad. There is no doubt that the imagery of this beautiful, but tough Land Rover will appeal to those longing for escape from the mundane. With this ad, the image of a rugged, beautiful, and dependable Land Rover has been embedded in the subconscious minds of thousands of readers. The advertisers performed for their management, and probably sold more than a few vehicles. The weasels did their weasel job, and the fallacious imagery of instant adventure with a Land Rover was just an extraordinary ride.
Here I am. Sitting in my boring little house, in my boring little chair, staring at my boring little computer, and thinking about how ho hum my little life is. I reach for a magazine and flip through it. Right away a magnificent advertisement catches my eye. In it I see a monstrously powerful 4X4 sport utility vehicle trudging through some faraway, secluded jungle. The glossy black paint on the hood is covered with the excitement of mud splats that were thrown upon it by wheels that are triumphing over the slippery terrain. Bold lettering across the image directs my attention to notice that the vehicle is “BEAUTIFUL IN UGLY SITUATIONS”. The marketing people for Land Rover work to pull me into this perceived world. They attempt to make me feel that if I buy a Land Rover, I too will become an explorer and go off road in the jungle.
While the generalized Dilbert stereotype of evil marketing director may not be appropriate for every advertiser, many of the more successful ones find that weasel words work. Humans are visually sensitive beings, and emotional imagery presented to us through pictures or language can be very swaying. Many companies take advantage of our emotions, and use deceiving language that compel us to buy their products even if we don't need or want them at all. The team of marketing mustela at Land Rover have excelled at using many weasel tools in an attempt to do just that.
After the powerful image of off road excitement pulls the reader in to examine the ad, the eye is drawn to the smaller images and text bordering the page. At the top left of the page is a small picture of a rugged looking man. Readers are compelled to think that this is the kind of person who owns a Land Rover. He is in below freezing conditions, bundled up in a lot of mountain climbing gear, and has scruffy but short beard. He is an icon of strength under extraordinary conditions. After reading a caption in a space cell next to his portrait, readers then know that he is “Sir Ranulph Fiennes, the greatest of living explorers (from the Guinness Book of World Records ᵀᴹ)”. The weasel marketing team has introduced an authority on exploring extraordinary terrain. If consumers don't analyze the information on the explorer they may assume that he had used the vehicle to achieve his “greatest of living explorers” title. However, information is presented that informs more inquisitive readers that Sir Ranulph Fiennes, indeed, did all his exploring by foot. The information wants us to believe that the Land Rover is LIKE Sir Ranulph Fiennes. This is a false analogy, the Land Rover is neither a man nor does it traverse mountain ranges by foot. This authority on exploring serves as a double weasel whammy.
In the bottom left corner of the page is another image of a rugged Land Rover, this time forging through a wheel well high flood. The photo draws the imagination into another perceived world, again in a jungle like setting. This image provides the false perception that the Land Rover will take owners anywhere and get them out of any tough situation. In another strategically placed space cell the text reads, “This isn't the end of the world. But you can see it from here.” Here advertisers use weasel words to make potential customers feel like adventure is right at hand (if they buy a Land Rover). The ad team presents a hypothesis contrary to fact. No matter what someone uses their Land Rover for, they will not be able to see the end of the world.
The minute text goes on to sell readers on a patented Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system without explaining to them what exactly a Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system is. It sure sounds good doesn't it? But without definition the words are meaningless. While readers contemplate exactly what a Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system is, they can take comfort knowing that it will, at the very least, help Land Rover owners out of the most extraordinary situations. The weasel word help is used here to make it clear that there is no guarantee that if Land Rover owners get in an extraordinary situation the Terrain Responseᵀᴹ system will get them out of trouble, but it will “help” them out, whatever that means.
A general conclusion after looking at the entire ad is that the whole thing is a hypothesis contrary to fact. Most Land Rover owners, especially the ones that will read this ad in Domingo magazine (a home decorating magazine), will never find themselves in these extraordinary situations. Most Land Rover owners enjoy the luxury of paved roads, dry conditions, and otherwise ordinary terrain. The idea that by simply purchasing a Land Rover, consumers will transform from having a boring, urban life to having an adventurous life of an explorer is non sequitur. Some Land Rover owners may have their vehicles around to use as farm equipment, or perhaps transportation for some weekend sport (i.e. boating or hunting). But generally Land Rovers are driven to WalMart on diaper runs, and make the guys in the carpool feel cool on their way to the office.
The weasel words of advertising are pretty obvious in this ad. There is no doubt that the imagery of this beautiful, but tough Land Rover will appeal to those longing for escape from the mundane. With this ad, the image of a rugged, beautiful, and dependable Land Rover has been embedded in the subconscious minds of thousands of readers. The advertisers performed for their management, and probably sold more than a few vehicles. The weasels did their weasel job, and the fallacious imagery of instant adventure with a Land Rover was just an extraordinary ride.
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