Lesson 7

CONTROVERSIAL ADVERTISEMENTS

This lesson we discussed about controversial advertisements. Controversial advertisements are ones that are seen in different ways by different people and hence spark off debate. Companies come up with controversial advertisements to draw attention to the ad, making it more well known and memorable. These advertisements have different effects on different people. In this lesson we looked at some controversial advertisements and analysed it using a graph with the 4 headings 'Shock', I'd buy it', 'Funny', 'It's disgusting'. Here is one of the analysis I did of an ad we discussed: 

I gave this ad a 3/5 for 'Funny' and 'I'd buy it'. I find it amusing that the undergarment smells so good that the man is stuffing it in his face. It stands out from other ads as you don't usually see one with people smelling underwear. It is able to catch my attention, make me laugh, and get its message to me, therefore I'd buy it. This is how I see the ad. Many of my classmates did not have the same opinion as me, some thought it was disgusting, some didn't find it funny at all. This shows that this is a controversial advertisement as people have different views on it and hence is a cause for debate. 

Companies also make ads that are shocking to capture the attention of the public. Here I found an ad that most people would find shocking though I find disgusting, and debatable:

This hand soap advertisement depicts a patient being fed by a hand full of maggots. To many, the image will shock them and make them think about how dirty their hands really are and of how much they need good sanitisers such as this hand soap to help them keep hygienic, hence making the product appealing to them. However, that is not how I look at this ad. Though I get the message, I do not like this ad and I will not buy the product. I personally hate bugs, and cannot stand the sight of them. Not matter how strong or shocking the message is in this ad, the sight of bugs is more than enough to make me crinkle my face in disgust and look away immediately. This also shows that not everyone will find one thing shocking. What could be shocking to, for example, old people, may not be shocking to children.

That is it for this entry. Thank you.