The Onion Rhetorical Analysis
Advertisements over the years have become a major part of modern day society and now, whether it be for the ShamWow or for a Pillow Pet, it is nearly impossible to turn on the television and not see a single “as seen on T.V.” advertisement. The people who create these advertisements use certain strategies to coerce their audience into buying the advertised product, and while many people fall for these tricks, others recognize them and are not so easily fooled. The Onion, a publication devoted to humor and satire, published a press release that contained a myriad of different satirical and linguistic strategies to mock how products are marketed to consumers. The article that The Onion released is a satirical
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This display of logos is seen as early as the very first paragraph. The phrase “no fewer than five forms of pseudoscience” is completely sarcastic because it shows that the quality of the shoe insole is based on false evidence. The mockery escalates immensely from this point on and each piece of scientific data becomes more and more ridiculous, especially because the author begins using fictitious words like “kilofrankels” and “comfortrons” to add humor and to show just how farcical television advertisements are. On top of the made-up words, the explanations behind the sciences of the insoles sound like a flimsy illuminati conspiracy theory. As an example, “the principles of Terranometry state that the Earth resonates on a very precise frequency…[and] if the frequency of one’s foot is out of alignment with the Earth, the entire body will suffer” uses language that sounds intellectual but actually has no relevant meaning towards the product. The advertiser’s reasoning reaches so far beyond a point of absurdity that it becomes believable to the general public. In addition to modern advertisements’ “data-based reasoning”, The Onion’s article attacks the ethos that advertisers attempt to create when they bring in spokespeople to testify for and endorse the advertised merchandise by speaking about
Jonathan Kozol revealed the early period’s situation of education in American schools in his article Savage Inequalities. It seems like during that period, the inequality existed everywhere and no one had the ability to change it; however, Kozol tried his best to turn around this situation and keep track of all he saw. In the article, he used rhetorical strategies effectively to describe what he saw in that situation, such as pathos, logos and ethos.
This Further Oral Activity will be presented in a T.V. show format (Based on the show “The Gruen Transfer”), with the host focusing on the false advertising of well-known health foods and drinks. This FOA will focus on the persuasive language and manipulative strategies used by businesses to influence and mislead consumers into believing false perceptions of their product, using case examples to support the evidence presented. The purpose of this FOA to inform the audience on the plethora of manipulative and persuasive language used in advertising from ‘supposedly’ healthy products, while the target audience is Australian T.V. viewers 18-50 who are interested in the influence of advertising. The context of the piece is based on today’s
For companies to portray the advantages of their products this article shows how heavily hyperbolized their products are, and uses comparisons to attract buyers. Such is portrayed through customer testimonials. For example, the the man whose back pain was relieved after using MagnaSoles. His statement in the article regarding the shoe inserts were clearly fabricated to the point where it was humorous to the readers. He said, “Why should I pay thousands of dollars to have my spine realigned with physical therapy when I can pay twenty dollars for insoles clearly endorsed by an intelligent-looking man in a white lab coat?” This statement shows how blinded and gullible customers are when presented with false advertisement. Have you ever walked through CVS or a local
The Onion’s mock press release markets a product called MagnaSoles. By formulating a mock advertisement a situation is created where The Onion can criticize modern day advertising. Furthermore, they can go as far as to highlight the lucrative statements that are made by advertisements that seduce consumers to believe in the “science” behind their product and make a purchase. The Onion uses a satirical and humorous tone compiled with made up scientific diction to highlight the manner in which consumers believe anything that is told to them and how powerful companies have become through their words whether true or false.
Within the past year, I’ve become a big fan of The Onion and it’s satirical articles. The articles in The Onion poke fun at the world that it is all around us, whether it be world news, politics, or simply people we encounter in our daily lives. It’s a way of helping us cope and with the tough world we live in, as well as reassuring us that some of the frustrating situation we are a part of are normal and the people we find annoying annoy other people as well. It succeeds in that quite well, especially if one understands the satire in the article, and if they relate to it.
“Skeletons in the Closet”, written by Clara Spotted Elk, is a well-built argument, but it can be enhanced to become immensely effective. Firstly, Elk’s position is effective in obtaining her purpose and connecting her audience to it, because she includes a broad scope and background of the problem in the first few paragraphs. She describes the amount of Indian skeletons preserved and contained by American museums, through the use of data and statistics. For instance, Elk states: “we found that 18,500 Indian remains…are unceremoniously stored in the Smithsonian’s nooks and crannies” (13-15). By using this data, the background of the argument is illustrated to assist the audience in understanding her argument. Now, by knowing this statistic, readers can connect with Elk and her assertion, since we realize that there are plenty of skeletons that
This article’s target is to raise alertness, give caution, and create comedy about the often-misleading advertisement industry. Through convincing writing techniques the onion uses exaggeration, scientific data and medical explanation, to make fun of an everyday advertisement. The writer(s) also create a methodical and noticeable satirical piece of literature.
Satire is form of comedy in which flaws in people or society are chastised in order to prompt change in the objects of criticism. Regardless of how long ago comedy itself may have existed, the concept of satire was introduced by the Roman satirists, Juvenal and Horace. The tones conveyed in their writing characterize the main modes of satire, being Horatian and Juvenalian, and are still used in satire today. Presently, two popular forms of comedy that employ satirical elements include parody news sources and comedic performances. Although satirical writing has evolved throughout history, many aspects of satire are still apparent in both the articles of parody news sources, like The Onion, and the performances of professional comedians, like
Advertisements are one of many things that Americans cannot get away from. Every American sees an average of 3,000 advertisements a day; whether it’s on the television, radio, while surfing the internet, or while driving around town. Advertisements try to get consumers to buy their products by getting their attention. Most advertisements don’t have anything to do with the product itself. Every company has a different way of getting the public’s attention, but every advertisement has the same goal - to sell the product. Every advertisement tries to appeal to the audience by using ethos, pathos, and logos, while also focusing on who their audience is and the purpose of the ad. An example of this is a Charmin commercial where there is a bear who gets excited when he gets to use the toilet paper because it is so soft.
Throughout our lives, we encounter promising advertisements from desperate companies attempting to campaign the next innovative product. The Onion's satirical article on MagnaSoles utilizes several rhetorical devices to sell its latest, groundbreaking item. By applying the MagnaSoles as a model for modern day products, The Onion humorously mocks the ridiculous promises and claims that companies offer their customers to market such "marvelous and unmatched" novelties. By presenting a sarcastic, exaggerated tone throughout the essay, we are able to dwell in the true hilarity of advertisements' impetuous pleas. The Onion uses doctors and "experts" to explain the revolutionary technology that MagnaSoles offers the public, even going as
In everyday life we are bombarded with advertisements, projects, and commercials from companies trying to sell their products. Many of these ads use rhetorical devices to “convey meaning [,] or persuade” their audiences (Purdue OWL) . Projects, such as the Dove Self-Esteem Project uses native advertising in their commercials, which refers to a brand or product being simultaneously and indirectly promoted. In this essay, I will analyze the rhetorical devices, such as ethos, pathos, logos, and kairos, as well as the fallacies corresponding to each device, that the Dove Company uses in their self-esteem project .
The ever-present issue of American debt, one that has consistently continued to trend increasingly upward, is perpetuated by the corporate businessman's predation of the common man's naivety. In the article, the satirical publication The Onion speaks to the average consumer in a humorous tone, but also in a tone that addresses the deeper issues of society. Since the beginning of man's specialized careers and market systems, he has cheated, stolen, and deceived without fail. Those who do not approach business cautiously, no matter how pure their heart, are often the victims of these crimes. Modern-day marketing and consumerism is satirized by The Onion through the use of appeals to false science, humor, and irony.
The Letter from Birmingham Jail was written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in April of 1963. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of several civil rights activists who were arrested in Birmingham Alabama, after protesting against racial injustices in Alabama. Dr. King wrote this letter in response to a statement titled A Call for Unity, which was published on Good Friday by eight of his fellow clergymen from Alabama. Dr. King uses his letter to eloquently refute the article. In the letter dr. king uses many vivid logos, ethos, and pathos to get his point across. Dr. King writes things in his letter that if any other person even dared to write the people would consider them crazy.
Their advertisement is of a rodeo bronco rider being thrown off the bronco, all the viewer can see of the rider is his back side and you can barely see his face. The rider is wearing what looks like a white long-sleeve shirt with a black protective vest, a pair of blue jeans and chaps, as well as boots and a cowboy hat, somewhat similar to the Durango boot ad. At the bottom corner of the advertisement is Ariat’s symbol and to the left of that in white western style font, “There’s nothing a few bone screws can’t fix”. I think this is telling viewers that if they put these boots on they can do anything and only end with minor repercussions that can be easily
“The average family is bombarded with 1,100 advertisements per day … people only remembered three or four of them”. Fiske’s uses an example of kids singing Razzmatazz a jingle for brand of tights at a woman in a mini skirt. This displayed to the reader that people are not mindless consumers; they modify the commodity for their use. He rejects that the audiences are helpless subjects of unconscious consumerism. In contrast to McDonald’s, Fiske’s quoted “they were using the ads for their own cheeky resistive subculture” he added. He believed that instead of being submissive they twisted the ad into their own take on popular culture (Fiske, 1989, p. 31)