Pathos In How Can You Speak Up For Animals

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Media possesses the unique potential to manipulate society’s view of events and products in today’s culture. Images, color, font, background and other alluring advertising techniques are all employed to entice consumers. Different sources of media aspire to shape the identity of the consumer regarding the concepts they are advertising. Seeking to influence society’s identity and perception of the treatment of animals, in their advertisement “How Can You Speak Up for Animals,” People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) demonstrates the argument that consumers should not purchase clothing that is produced through the killing of innocent animals by successfully appealing to the audience’s emotions, utilizing logic to validate their claim, …show more content…

Pathos is a rhetorical element employed to construct an emotional connection between the consumer and the product or notion they are promoting. In their advertisement, PETA utilizes pathos because the topic they are advocating evokes emotion from the majority of people. Across the ad, in large, bold white text it reads, “If you wouldn’t wear your dog. . .please don’t wear any fur” (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). A large percentage of the American population own a pet of some form, with dogs being the most common. PETA acknowledges the fact that in today’s society, the majority of people would be appalled if there were clothing items on the market made of dog’s fur or skin. Their statement challenges the reader to consider the inconsolable feeling one would experience if their pet was used to create clothing. As the text stimulates emotion from the audience, the background of the ad also further harnesses pathos. The image behind the text is a man lying against a pug. Both the man and the dog portray a look of distress and concern. PETA intentionally captured the image in this manner to produce an emotional response from viewers. Not only does PETA use the message behind the text and images to intrigue the viewer, the colors used are also intended to appeal to the audience’s senses. In “Color Me Profitable,” …show more content…

Logos utilizes rationale to convince the audience of the advertiser’s argument. The text across the ad implements logos by stating, “If you wouldn’t wear your dog, please don’t wear any fur” (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). The statement compels the audience to contemplate how it is justified to place a higher value in dogs or household pets than non domesticated animals. It causes the viewer to consider why the inhumane treatment of sheep, cows, foxes, rabbits, and other animals to produce clothing is deemed acceptable. But in contrast, if dogs or any other domesticated animal were used for the same purpose, people would be outraged. The use of logos in the ad indicates how all animals should be valued the same and no animal, whether dog or cow, should be slaughtered to manufacture apparel. PETA effectively incorporates logos in the ad to alter how society views the process of animals being tortured and killed for the production of clothing. The organization seeks to change how people identify with the unethical treatment of animals by using logic to correlate the value of household pets to the value of the animals killed by the clothing industry. As PETA uses logos to convince the viewers of their argument, they also incorporate ethos to ensure

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