Masaryk university faculty of education

Appendices B: Media Literacy

KEY	ADVERTISING	WORDS
Title/Headline	Onomatopoeia	Hyperbole
Allusion	Target Audience	Persuasive
Slogan	Pun	Focus
Body Copy	Logo	Metaphor
Alliteration	Celebrity Endorsement	Repetition

Definitions taken from Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary:

• 
  a line of words printed in large letters as the title of a story in a newspaper, or the main points of the news that are broadcast on television or radio
  
• 
  something that is said or written that intentionally makes you think of a particular thing or person
  
• 
  a short easily remembered phrase, especially one used to advertise an idea or a product
  
• 
  written text which is to be printed, or text which is intended to help with the sale of a product
  
• 
  the use, especially in poetry, of the same sound or sounds, especially consonants, at the beginning of several words that are close together:
  
• 
  'Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascal ran'
  
• 
  the creation and use of words which include sounds that are similar to the noises that the words refer to
  
• 
  a person or a particular group of people at whom something is directed, or for whom it is intended
  
• 
  an amusing use of a word or phrase which has several meanings or which sounds like another word: "What's black and white and red (= read) all over?" "A newspaper."
  
• 
  a design or symbol used by a company to advertise its products
  
• 
  to appear in an advertisement, saying that you use and like a particular product
  
• 
  a way of speaking or writing that makes someone or something sound bigger, better, more, etc. than they are
  
• 
  making you want to do or believe a particular thing
  
• 
  the main or central point of something, especially of attention or interest
  
• 
  an expression which describes a person or object in a literary way by referring to something that is considered to possess similar characteristics to the person or object you are trying to describe
  
• 
  when you repeat something
  

1. 
   You can start writing your advert analysis by giving it an introduction assessing its general background:
   

• 
  What is advertising?
  
• 
  Why do we advertise?
  
• 
  Where are we exposed to advertising?
  
• 
  Does advertising affect us in our everyday life? If yes, how?
  
• 
  Where did you find the piece of advertising you are going to write about? (men’s or women’s magazine, year of publication)
  
• 
  Why did you choose it? Did it appeal to you somehow?
  
• 
  Who do you think is the target audience?
  

2. 
   In the next step, you should turn to considering the visual (illustration, logo, colours, and possible connotations) and verbal (headline, body copy, and slogan) messages of the advert.
   

• 
  Is it appealing?
  
• 
  How do you feel looking at it?
  
• 
  Dou you find the advertisement persuasive? If yes, how?-What is employed to persuade the reader to buy the product.
  

You might try to look for the following terms: alliteration, pun, hyperbole, metaphor, repetition. You might wish to consider aspects such as target audience, focus, celebrity endorsement, the story of the advert and any other things which come into your mind.

3. 
   Conclusion: At this point you should give a brief summary of the most important features of the advert.
   

• 
  Which features were the most effective?
  
• 
  Would you buy the product advertised?
  

• 
  What is the product you are going to advertise?
  
• 
  What about its name?
  
• 
  Where is it going to be published?
  
• 
  Who is the target audience?
  
• 
  What is the message of your advertisement?
  
• 
  Is there any story in your advertisement? What about a main character?
  
• 
  What are the usual constituents of an advert? (headline, body copy, slogan, logo) Will you use all of them?
  
• 
  What illustration will you employ? (drawing, photo, picture-collage, etc.)
  
• 
  What colours will you use?
  
• 
  Will you create any logo for your brand?
  
• 
  What language devices will you employ? (alliteration, pun, onomatopoeia, hyperbole, metaphor, etc)