Advertisement-Rhetorical Analysis Essay Examples

In light of the fast depletion of sea fish and other associated plant and animal species being promoted on a large scale by man’s ruthless means of treating the marine ecosystem, Greenpeace has started its responsible campaign of protecting the ecosystem from man. The advertisement with a visual showing artificial breathing aids installed in the deep sea along with an appeal to the public to go on breathing normally since after all they are fortunately not fish sends a deep and touching appeal directly to the hearts of the audience. The audience the advertisement focuses comprise of industries that ultimately dump their non-degradable and other wastes into the sea, the younger generation who are knowingly or unknowingly continuously wounding the marine ecosystem by throwing plastic and other wastes into the ocean and the general public. It is also a strong appeal to the nations and the scientific fraternities to frame suitable policies and regulations to protect the sea in addition to taking the message to each and every human being breathing right now on this earth. The advertisement uses a rich blend of ethos, pathos and logos to reach out to all the audience. In short, the essence of the message the advertisement conveys is that man depends on the sea and the associated marine ecosystem for supplying him with oxygen to breath, and without realizing it he is suffocating the ocean with wastes that kills the fish and other plant species living in the sea that nevertheless continue to supply him with oxygen reserves.
Primarily the advertisement tries to educate the audience about the scientific truth, which is a logical appeal (logos). Appeal through logos dominates the advertisement all through. Man mostly sees the sea as containing water which breeds fish for his food. Most of the time, we take for granted the water bodies like rivers that join the oceans and drain sewage and other wastes ultimately into them. Also reckless usage of chemical inputs and pesticides in the agricultural farms ultimately contaminates the sea when rain water washes them away through streams and rivers into the sea. Huge factories also add their chemical wastes into the sea while offshore exploration leaves crude oil and other debris into the sea. As a result, the sea is filled with Garbage Mountains that kill the sea fish and other plant species. We often do not realize the seriousness of this issue since wastes dumped deep under the sea are not visible to our naked eyes. Apart from the sea fish, we do not have much knowledge about the plant species that live in the sea and provide food to the fish we eat. The tiny plant species living on the surface of sea water in fact supply around 50 percent of the oxygen that human beings living on earth need to breathe. The advertisement sensitively applies the logos appeal of educating the audience using the act of breathing. Breathing that requires oxygen is the sign that someone is alive and hence man cannot exist without anything that supplies him with oxygen on a regular basis. Even as most of us know that trees and plants supply us with oxygen to breathe, some of us are still not aware that the sea is able to supply us with fifty percent of our oxygen requirement. Usage of the phrase ‘every second breath’ reminds man that he owes to the sea every minute of his life. Man breathes around 10 times in a minute, and for 5 breaths in a minute he is indebted to the sea. The visual image also teaches the audience about the interior and deep ocean, which they do not recollect often otherwise. The visual also shows a school of fish near a cluster of sea weeds, which supply oxygen for them to breathe. Dumping garbage and wastes into the sea contaminates the sea water thereby killing the sea weeds, which in addition to blocking the oxygen supply to the earth kills the fish too. Thus the visual and text together enlighten the audience about the necessity of caring the sea.
The credibility of the Greenpeace Organization affirmed by their social commitment toward protecting the sea is the main ethos appeal in the advertisement. Besides, the irresponsible actions of the humankind that result in transforming the oceans into garbage mountains as claimed in the advertisement are readily understandable to the audience of all classes. The mission undertaken by Greenpeace through sailing in the ocean for a longer period toward defending the ocean is a noble deed which gives Greenpeace more credibility. Unlike many other campaigns which hardly last for a few days, Greenpeace adds further value to the appeal by informing the audience that thousands of people all over the world are joining the expedition to battle against contaminating the sea and the marine ecosystem. Having clearly defined the causes leading to the destruction of the sea and the associated plant species that have the potential of threatening the very existence of human beings on the earth in itself is a highly credible and action-inviting appeal.
As for the pathos appeal the logo suggesting the audience of all classes to breathe as though everything is normal since they are not the unfortunate fish fighting to breathe in the sea is an emotional appeal warranting more curiosity and action. In fact, the issue does not end with the destruction of the fish in the ocean but as a chain reaction it affects the very existence of mankind on the earth. The visual speaks it all silently. We normally do not look forward to breathe with the help of artificial breathing equipments; instead, we love to breathe natural fresh air, mostly without even being aware that we are breathing in oxygen. Hence, seeing an artificial breathing support system means sickness to us. Even though the picture depicts an artificial breathing support system to the fish, it is only a dream since we do not provide such facilities to the fish living in the sea. The visual tries to move the hearts of the audience by reminding them that the fish and other living organisms in the sea have reached a stage in which they require artificial life support systems to survive since the natural ecosystem of the sea is being continuously destroyed by man to satisfy his greed. The visual only reminds the audience of their role in making the life of the fish terrible in the sea. Besides, the text indicating that ‘in thanks’ to the supply of oxygen for his breathing, man suffocates the sea with garbage exposes man as a perpetrator of cruelty in response to good deeds. This indelible emotional appeal through the text and visual invokes the audience’s commitment for immediate action.
Overall, I found this advertisement very educative and real. The information, both textual and visual, provided in this advertisement are meant for educating the public and opening their eyes and minds about their actions leading to the gradual destruction of marine life. The author uses a good blend of ethos, pathos and logos to make it more appealing to the audience. Even though the visual is more touching with its emotional appeal, I personally feel the necessity of adding more to enrich the pathos in this advertisement; for example linking the situation to the future of mankind since it is bound to affect them in due course could have given it a much deeper emotional appeal. Also, the creator of this advertisement only explains the causes leading to the destruction of life in the ocean; I would suggest adding some alternate solutions to disposing the waste through environment- friendly ways to make the appeal still educative.