Weekly_Writing_Assignment

For this assignment I have decided to analyze an alcohol commercial. As we have seen from many different television ads, ones for alcohol make drinking seem like it is a blast. Everyone in the commercial is always happy and full of energy, and they are in some type of party atmosphere. The specific ad that I am analyzing is an ad for Heineken Beer. The main man in the commercial pulls up to a party and when he arrives he is the center of attention, saying hi to everyone that he passes, almost as if he is a celebrity. He also does things like perform magic tricks, make an unrealistic basketball shot, fight a ninja, play the flute, and twirl a baton. The commercial makes it look like he can do anything! Everything that is included in this ad makes the viewer believe that they can get this same reaction if they buy and drink the product. In Lakoff’s book The Political Mind, he talks about conceptual frames. I believe this ad is using a conceptual frame. As Lakoff describes it, a conceptual frame is a cognitive structure that influences our thinking and behavior in a specific scenario. This is exactly what the ad is doing. It is influencing the viewer to go and buy the product because of the affect they believe it will have on them. The ad makes this very easy for the viewer to get in this mind set because of the setting it is in; the party atmosphere. Lakoff also explains Narratives, which he classifies into two different categories, narrative and deep narrative. This specific ad is a good example of a deep narrative because it sets certain emotions into the viewers mind unconsciously. This helps even further develop the effectiveness of the product on the consumer, making them want to buy it more. Link to commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch'v=ZcX1PTOmvO8