The Impact of Commercials as a Determinant Factor in The Life Choices of The American Public

Advertising is used everywhere; it is a part of everyday life. They are used on billboards, cars, windows, and even on TV. Advertisements have become a grand part of American culture and plays a role in the lifestyle of consumers. Advertisements are more than just appeals, they show consumer values and yearnings for a different life style. They can imply materialism, they can be sexist and create racial stereotypes. Magazine ads are one of the most common places consumers come in contact with appeals that are the basis of advertisements. One ad from the 1970s for Cossack Vodka pictures a comic of a Barbie-like figure talking about “The Morning after…!”

There are many appeals that make up the composition of advertising. Most advertisements are made up of emotional appeals that connect with people’s deep-lying desires (540). Emotional appeals help create advertisements that are seen every day. They bring attention to the consumer and communicate a message that may cause the person to buy the product. In The 1982 article “Advertising’s Fifteen Basic Appeals,” Jib Fowles, describes the 15 different emotional appeals that Henry A. Murray consider a “full taxonomy of needs” (543). Henry A. Murray, a psychologist, gathered with many of his colleagues and studied the essential variables of personality (543). Murray’s work is the base of Fowles research about the different appeals that makeup advertising. According to Fowles, emotional appeal is used psychologically to connect with the consumer personally, making them think of all the reasons they may need the certain product. The 15 different appeals that Fowles uses to connect his research and the way advertisements are geared, are used in consumer’s everyday life. An example of an appeal that is discussed in the article, and is the most common, is found in a 1970 Cossack Vodka advertisement; the appeal for sex.

In the 1970 Cossack Vodka ad, there is a comic woman figure that resembles a Barbie doll-like figure. She has blonde hair and big bright eyes that look off as if she is in a daze. Her hair is messy but not so messy; still pretty neat. This comic character is in deep thought about last night. There is a thought bubble that says “OH, WASN’T IT FANTASTIC!?!! AND THIS MORNING I FEEL SO BEAUTIFUL, SO BEAUTIFUL!” This wording is in all capital letters and directly above the characters’ head towards the top of the page, causing attention to be drawn directly towards her. Reading the first line of the quote, “Oh, Wasn’t It Fantastic…” creates a cliff hanger that intrigues the mind to wonder what was fantastic. Most firsthand think of sex; the picture of the comic is a lot bigger than what is actually being advertised. In the bottom left hand corner of the picture there is a little saying, it reads “The Morning after…!” a play on comics, sort of like a “To Be Continued…” There is a small bottle of vodka in the bottom right hand corner of the page and next to it on the left has a saying, “The morning after should be just as beautiful as the night before. Pure Clean Cossack Vodka.” This quote relates to what the woman has said and it makes one re-think the meaning of what she said.

The need for sex is the overall basic appeal for this ad. Sex being the main appeal for this particular ad, creates a sexual innuendo used to capsulate a play on words that causes the consumer to wonder what is actually being said in the advertisement. The phrases such as, “The Morning After…!” generally reverts the mind to think of a one night stand involving intimacy. The appeal of sex is in advertising but not as much as one may think. This particular appeal is sometimes used so little because “it’s too blaring and tends to obliterate the product information” (544). In advertising too much nudity can be harmful for any ad. Explicitness will cause recall on the product, which means no money will be made for the company (544). In the Cossack Vodka ad, one would have to read in-between the lines in order to realize that there is a connection to sex. This Barbie-like character states “OH, WASN’T IT FANTASTIC!?!! AND THIS MORNING I FEEL SO BEAUTIFUL, SO BEAUTIFUL…!” the play on words contradict the advertisement. The advertisement all together is selling a bottle of Cossack Vodka but, making the reader think otherwise with the play on words. This contradicting quote basically is stating, I have awaken so beautiful but possibly with a major hangover; because yes, everyone drunk Cossack Vodka last night. Another sexual innuendo would be, “The morning after should be just as beautiful as the night before.” This phrase that sits upon the bottom of the advertisement and reads, the feeling of last night was great, let’s feel it again in the morning. The second half of this quote states “Pure Clean Cossack Vodka.” What tends to be so pure and clean about vodka? Or is the pure and cleanliness referring to the events that happened the night before? This advertisement I felt was geared towards both men and women but, women more than men. Women could look at this article and want to wake up feeling just as beautiful as the Barbie-like comic character. Women can also relate to how they may have felt the morning after they have participated in anything sexual. Men tend to drink more alcohol than women. A man may run across this ad and the first thought would be, what happened last night? Men automatically think sexually about a lot of things. So automatically men would think of sex and they could connect this thought to alcohol, while women would really sit back and ponder on what the advertisement may be really trying to say.

All advertisements are looked at in many different ways. Men and women are interested in many different types of products, and are intrigued by many different things. In an ad such as the 1970 Cossack Vodka one, gives a classic example of Sex appeal and how it would be used in the 1970’s. In society today the sex appeal would be more noticeable by certain people, more or less men. Why? Because in the twenty-first century maybe an actual female would be used for this ad and maybe an actual visual picture of what is being said; “The Morning After…!” I have learned that the usage of appeals creates a different world that people can see. The use of them in advertising creates a place of wants, needs, desires.