The primary stasis used in the SlimFast commercial is the Evaluation/Value argument. In order to convince the viewer that this product is a necessity, all of its pros are listed one after the other. What makes this argument even more effective yet one-sided is that no cons are provided. Throughout the commercial, the narrator throws out pros after pros. This makes it seem as if there are actually no cons that exist but actually they are just not being provided. This one-sided argument overwhelms the viewer with positive facts of the product. Paired with the fun music and happy people, the overall product is a positive one. With the cons not included, the viewer is convinced of the validity and usefulness of the product.
The main stasis in Metrecal's 1960's commercial is Consequence. It is also known as Cause and Effect and can be found in most commercials then and now. Metrecal's cause and effect focuses on the benefits of drinking their product. The commercial states that if you drink Metrecal for lunch, you can eat whatever you want for dinner (within reason) and still lose weight. This might be a bit of a logical fallacy, since they never say how it works or how long you need to use it before seeing results. They leave their cause and effect open ended so you can come to your own conclusions. They also do this in order to save face if someone is unhappy with their product without having to admit to giving baseless information. Another stasis that could be applied here is Evaluation. When people see the commercial and hear what it has to say, they make up their own minds on whether the product is good or bad. This often goes hand in hand with cause and effect because most effects have po...
I agree with your analysis of the stasis for this commercial. I think that the author of this commercial put emphasis on the positivity of the commercial so that those who want to slim down would be attracted to the commercial which would then possibly prompt them to purchase the product.
ReplyDeletePelumi Olufuwa
I definitely agree! This commercial does a good job of tricking its audience into believing that their product consists of only positive results. If they were to state negative aspects of the product, it would be unappealing to the audience, and therefore, no one would purchase it. This is similar to when food brands put the positive features of a product in bigger and bolder letters on a food label, while they choose to put the negative features in very small and thin letters, so consumers only focus on the positives.
ReplyDeleteI agree with how the commercial just threw out only the pros and no cons. I believe that if the company only mentions the pros, then it has something to hide. It is up to us the consumers, to decide if the product is worth purchasing, after looking at both the pros and cons.
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