This document provides advice and reminders for analyzing advertisements. It states that an analysis should have a subject (specific advertiser and ads chosen) and point of view (two conclusions about persuasive tactics and cultural significance). The thesis should not be a personal reflection, but could include an evaluation. Analyses should look at text and images individually and together, be inclusive of details, and base conclusions on what is present, not absent. Analyses should avoid generalizations and assumptions and should discuss compositional features, implied strategies, and details as evidence for analytic claims.

1. Advice and Reminders

2.  Needs a subject and a Point of View
◦ Subject = your specific advertiser and the
advertisements you chose
◦ POV = two conclusions based on your analysis of
details
 1) A conclusion regarding the ad’s persuasive
tactics/strategies
 2) An interpretation of the cultural significance of that
changing strategy

3. ◦ The thesis statement is not a personal reflection
on how the ads personally affected/impacted
you, how you experienced them, came upon
them, etc.
◦ The thesis statement could include an evaluative
claim (i.e., I like it, it was good/bad/whatever),
but that should not be the central point of the
thesis

4.  Analyze the text by itself, the image by itself,
and how the text and image function
together.
 Be inclusive (attention to detail)
 Base your conclusion on what is present—not
on what is absent
 Be wary of generalizations (and assumptions
about culture that are hasty generalization
and/or can’t be supported)

5.  Rhetorical triangle
 Compositional features
 Audience analysis
 Logical fallacies

6.  Include an analysis of
compositional
features
 Discuss what the ad
implies
 Discuss the ad’s
intended strategy
 Include details of the
ad as evidence for
your analytic claims
 Just describe what it
looks like
 Assume that all
readers will react the
way you do
 Assume it works or is
successful (or not)
 Bring up ad’s detail
without discussing
it’s
significance(rhetorica
lly or culturally)