The Use of Advertising to Confront the Problem of Illiteracy

Illiteracy is a serious widespread problem facing each community nowadays. Moreover, there won’t be an easy solution for this continuing problem without concerted international efforts to find a viable solution which refers to the problem’s seriousness. Statistics show that 1 in every 4 people in the world is illiterate, 2/3 are women. Although 97% of illiterate people are concentrated in three key areas: South and West Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Arab State, developed nations are also facing a growing illiteracy problem. Illiteracy is the result of various factors such as difficult living conditions, including poverty or living with an illiterate family. Also, the access to proper schooling isn’t available in all the needy areas. Admittedly, illiteracy has many dangerous effects as it limits the development of individuals and nations. It also impacts many sectors of a country as its economy and policy. The media plays a significant and remarkable role in fighting this problem. The above two ads warn people against the danger of illiteracy. The first ad shows a baby who is born from illiterate parents. Across the ad, there is a big capitalized text addressed to the parents of this baby asking “What if you had to tell him that you can’t read?”. The second ad shows two hands holding the prison barriers and above the picture there is also a big capitalized text reading “L’alphabetisation brise les barrieres” which means “Literacy breaks the barriers”. The first ad is more efficient because it uses various persuasive techniques to appeal to the audience’s emotions, logic and ethics.

Both ads use several techniques such as text, design and human figure to appeal to the audience’s emotions. The colours used by the fi...

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...this number of illiterate people in this stance imprisoned behind the barriers without doing anything to help and save them. The presence of the logos of 19 sponsors and organizations at the bottom of the ad establishes the credibility of this ad. In addition, the real event with official dates increases the ad credibility.

Finally, both ads alert the society to the severe problem of illiteracy and urge us to save these oppressed illiterate people who cannot live and take their right. However, the first ad is more effective because it attempts to appeal to the audience’s emotions, logic and ethics which efficiently send the message. As the problem of illiteracy impacts the world especially our society, so there must be organizations that deal with this complicated problem with efficiency and suitability to stop the continuous cycle of this problem.