Advertising

Derek Scott        [pic 1][pic 2]

WRTG 1150 Michael Zizzi

CR#4

3/12/15[pic 3]

Many of us like to splurge and have a good time on the weekend, especially with alcohol. Yet it can often be used for the wrong reasons, the consequences being fatal in some cases. In the commercial I’m analyzing, Bacardi portrays using the drink to have a good time, especially at parties. But Bacardi is often used for the wrong reasons, like treating depression and trying to get drunk. Toulmin’s Model of Argumentation, Ranks Downplay and Intensify Model, and Bacardi’s use of fallacies can point out some misconceptions and BS about this advertisement.

The commercial displays a man at a classy party setting down a drink, glancing at everyone, then walking over to the bar. He walks through groups of people on his way to get a drink of Bacardi. As the commercial continues, the groups of people change in different ways. As he approaches the bar, a drink is being poured of some Bacardi Rum. It talks about how the mojitos have been made the best ever since the very beginning. This sounds very opinionated and many people can disagree with the statement. The commercial conveys how fun you can have by drinking Bacardi, which I believe is very false. Not everyone enjoys drinking alcoholic beverages, and for some people, this can lead them in the wrong direction. Making people drink more and more in order to have a good time is not the right way to go. [pic 4]

        All alcohol brands use advertising in order to sell their product. Each company tries different methods to attract more customers to their product. Through Toulmin’s Model of Argumentation, we can see that Bacardi claims many things in their ad with no data or warrants to back it up. Bacardi claims, “ Since 1862, the best mojitos have been made the same way, Bacardi.” Right after that the commercial ends. They have no data or warrant, leaving me to think that it’s complete BS. The word “best” sounds very opinionated and vague. (Mojitos aren’t always made out of Bacardi and people use other brands to make mojitos.) Another part of that statement that seems wrong is the “1862”. I found it hard to believe mojitos have been around since 1862; and it doesn’t seem similar to any drinks around in that era. Cuba is the birthplace of the mojito, although the exact origin of this classic cocktail is the subject of debate (Teresa, 6/28/13). From this statement, it seems to be contradicting to what Bacardi is saying. There is no clear evidence or data proving mojitos where even around back in 1862! From Toulmin’s model, their statement lacks an explanation of data and warrant, making the claim flawed. 

Prof. Hugh Rank proposes an intensify/downplay schema to analyze methods of persuasion through advertisements and media. Bacardi uses association to intensify their claim about how wonderful their alcohol is. Throughout the commercial, a man walks to the front of the bar while groups of people are constantly changing throughout time. Each camera angle shows different eras of how people dressed: 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, etc. Bacardi conveys how amazing their drink has been since the 1800’s. They are showing how great of a time people can have by drinking mojitos with Bacardi’s rum. They also use composition to intensify their claim on having the best mojitos using Bacardi. It’s displayed by the man’s emotions from the beginning to end. He starts the commercial off with no smile on his face looking a bit tired, but as he walks to the bar he has more energy and very happy with a big smile on his face. By the time he gets the drink he’s ecstatic and ready to party. They are trying to show how much fun people can have drinking Bacardi and how good it tastes. While all this is going on, they are using omission and diversion to hide the fact of some serious issues while drinking Bacardi. While all the people are dancing and having a jolly time, in very fine print shows the health issues while using this product at the very bottom of the screen. They divert the viewer from reading all the harms alcohol can have on your body while showing people dancing like crazy, spinning around with multiple quick camera angles. They don’t want people to relate alcohol as bad and are trying to show all the positives from it. This can be very misleading and people need to know the health risks people are at while drinking Bacardi. What if a pregnant woman is about to have a baby, and binge drinks a couple nights and kills the baby. There are serious repercussions to drinking. People need to know the risks of drinking and shouldn’t have to put on glasses to read the fine print at the bottom of the screen.[pic 5]