Any formatting issues are likely my fault, as I may not have cleaned up the format when I transferred the project over here.
ARTIFACT ANALYSIS: ADVERTISEMENT
[image no longer available]Source Info: Slim Fast, Cosmopolitan Magazine, September 2013
Rhetorical Analysis
Audience
The audience of this ad are women in their late teens to women in their 50’s. This ad was found in Cosmopolitan magazine so it that also narrows down the audience to readers of that particular magazine which means women who are most likely concerned with their image and how they portray themselves to others since a lot of Cosmo articles are on topics like that. The target audience is important because it shows that the ad is geared to self-conscious women who care about what others think about them. This makes the audience more susceptible to ads like this one because the readers see it as an opportunity to take control of their body image.
Producer
The producer of this ad is Slim Fast. Slim Fast is a company that makes protein shakes designed to replace meals and help women lose weight. This influences the way readers view the ad because they know that Slim Fast has a history of making products primarily for women so they assume this product must be geared towards women who need to lose a little weight. Without really analyzing the ad the reader automatically assumes that the product is a tool to help them look better based on the background of the producer/company.
Purpose
The purpose of this ad is to sell protein shakes. The audience knows that this is the purpose of the ad so they are able to view the image through the lens that it is supposed to persuade them of something so they are able to think more critically about it and not fall for subtle messages.
Critical Analysis
First Impact
On first impression this ad doesn’t seem to have anything wrong with it. It portrays a healthy woman who is proud of her confidence and her body. It also speaks to the gender norm that women are all self-conscious of their weight and want to be skinny. It plays into the idea that “what women really want” is to be skinny. This ad convinces the audience that it is normal for women to be skinny and that all women should want to be thin and slender.
Deeper Impact
The main message of this ad is the idea that women need to have a good body in order to have confidence. It shows the two as being linked and that having a good body image is essential to feeling confident about yourself. The ad suggests that having a good butt and being confident are related and that in order to feel good about themselves a women needs to have a “good” body. This suggests that women shouldn’t be confident if they don’t meet societies expectations for pretty.
An alternative interpretation of this ad is that women like to show off their bodies, which is a false assumption because not all women think that way. Even if a woman has a nice ass it does not mean she should show it off. This ad suggests that women like to show their bodies and use them as a status symbol for confidence and success. This might be true for some women but not for everyone and the image contributes to the gender norm that women should behave this way. It is also important to notice that out of all the body parts the producer could have chosen to use as their example they used the butt. This obviously is a sexualized body part and objectifies the women more than if they were to have chosen the stomach. The choice of butt suggests that the women are hoping to be more confident around men where as the example of a flat stomach would have appealed more to women and their confidence with each other.
ARTIFACT ANALYSIS: MOVIE
Source Info: Summer Magic, 1963, Walt Disney
Rhetorical Analysis
Audience:
This movie has a very wide audience because it is a Disney movie and Disney is usually enjoyed by people of all ages. One could assume that it is targeted most at young women and girls but it would be ignorant to believe that this movie did not reach a much larger audience including men. This is important because this means that not only did this movie influence the behavior of young girls at the time but it also contributed to men’s view of how a woman should act. In addition it is important to keep in mind that most Disney movies are pretty timeless. While this movie may be old it still has an impact on the generations to follow it. I watched this movie in my childhood and I’m sure many others have seen it as well.
Producer:
The producer of this movie is Disney. Disney is a well-respected company known for producing movies targeted at children but enjoyed by all. Disney has a lot of experience producing similar artifacts and would definitely be considered a professional and a success in the field of film. Disney movies have a reputation of being appropriate portraying a “good” message. This affects the influence of this movie on its audience because the viewers respect the ideas being put forth by Disney and do not question them much. If Disney says a woman should act a certain way then people take that to be truth and aren’t as critical of the view like they might be if the movie was produced by a less popular company.
Purpose:
The purpose of this movie is to entertain. Because of this the movie has a large sphere of influence and people aren’t expecting it to persuade them of anything so they are more susceptible for believing in the social norms and ideas that the movie puts forward.
Critical analysis
Initial Impact
This link is from the scene in Summer Magic where the little girl is being taught how to get boys to like her. At first glance it seems like a sweet scene about a young girl who is ready for the first time to start liking boys and find her first love. The older girls are talking about femininity and what a woman needs to do in order to be considered feminine and have men like her. This scene puts forth the idea that it is absolutely necessary for a girl to be feminine in order to be considered socially acceptable and to be attractive to men.
Deeper Impact
While on the surface level this scene discusses being feminine and womanly to get a man’s attention, it also brings to light much deeper beliefs about the role of men and women in a relationship. Instead of just suggesting that women need to be girly and accentuate their female attributes it also suggests that women need to be subservient to men. They need to speak quietly, laugh at his jokes, and know their place in society if they are to get a boyfriend.
This scene also brings up the idea that women shouldn’t be themselves. In this clip the older girl tells the younger one to never be yourself and to instead be the ideal image of femininity that society expects of you. As a little girl watching this movie you pick up on the advice that is being given and you apply it to your own life. I remember watching this as a kid and thinking that I needed to be more of a girly girl if I wanted to get boys to like me, even if I’d rather wear shorts than a dress. For an audience watching this scene, even if they don’t fully take this advice into account, girls take bits and pieces and apply it to their own life. They may not fully hide themselves but they will make an effort to have their own vision of self be more in line with what society wants it to be.
Lastly, this scene also portrays the message to men that women are supposed to be beneath them and act a certain way. It allows men to believe that they are superior to women and its ok to expect women to change themselves and to be their idea of an ideal woman.
ARTIFACT ANALYSIS: SONG LYRICS
(see lyrics below)
Source Info: Keith Urban. A Little Bit of Everything. Hit Records, 2013. CD.
RHETORICAL ANALYSIS
Target Audience
The target audience is country music fans, especially young women. It is important that the target audience is girls because if it was directed towards guys it would change the way the song is viewed because guys have different perspectives and expectations of what is appropriate behavior and rhetoric for each gender. Guys usually don’t take offense to lyrics that position women as subservient to them where as girls usually pick up on those comments and see them as a bad thing.
Author/Producer
Keith Urban is responsible for producing this artifact. He has lot of experience producing artifacts like this because he has produced dozens of songs with similar plot lines and subjects. His background is important because country artists usually have different values and way of portraying those values than artists of different genres. In addition, Keith Urban is well respected in the country genre, and as a musician in general, so his music has a large influence and song lyrics are not as criticized since his career is well established.
Purpose
The purpose of this song is for entertainment. If the purpose was to educate it would be less effective. Messages that are subtle influence us more because we don’t have a chance to put our guard up against them, but when material is meant to be educational we look at it with a more critical eye.
Critical ANALYSIS
Initial impact
The initial impact of this song to me was that it was a sweet song about how Keith Urban wants to find the perfect girl. He doesn’t want a lot but he wants a girl who is a mix of everything. This song also has initial assumptions about gender roles in society. He mentions wanting a girl that will cook for him but will also dance sexy on tables. This conveys the idea that it is the woman’s job to cook and do the housework but in our society she is also expected to be sexy for her man. This song leads the audience to believe it’s the normal gender role for the woman to be the homemaker.
Deeper Impact
One of the deeper messages about this song is that society has not changed as much as we believe as far as familial roles between men and women. Women are still expected to be the homemakers and cook for the men. My generation prides itself in women being more independent and the men taking on a lot of the housework but at the end of the day a lot of people still expect those duties to fall to the women. In addition, Keith Urban sings “I do what I want when I want, and she’ll do it with me.” This is essentially saying “I’m going to do whatever I want and she has no choice but to do what I say” This conveys the idea that women are subservient to men and that the men are supposed to be in control in the relationships. Overall this song portrays conventional gender roles in addition to newer views of women being expected to show their sexuality.
Another way that this song could potentially be interpreted is that Keith Urban doesn’t want just one girl. He want “a little bit of everything” in the sense that he wants multiple women with different characteristics and not just one women for the rest of his life. He doesn’t want too much of one girl but instead wants a little bit of a lot of girls. I know this could be considered a stretch but it is an interesting perspective to acknowledge.
LYRICS
“Little Bit Of Everything”- Keith Urban
I wish I could take a cab down to the creek
And hang a disco ball from an old oak tree
Smoke and drink once in a while
Somehow it’d be good for me
I want a cool chick that’ll cook for me
But’ll dance on the bar in her tan bare feet
And do what I want when I want and she’ll do it with me
I don’t need too much of nothing
I just wanna sing a little chill song
Get my groove on
Pour something strong
Down in my drink
Oh, I know
That I don’t need a whole lot of anything
I just want a little bit of everything
Na na na na, na na na na
I just want a little bit of everything
Na na na na, na na na na
Now I don’t need a garage full of cars
But I’ll take a whole box of Cuban cigars
And I’ll smoke ‘em nice and slow
Like they were good for me
Don’t need a ranch or a big piece of land
But I like to get a little bit of dirt on my hands
A big ole couch in a big ole room
Still feels lonely when it’s just you
Yes it does
I don’t need too much of nothing
I just wanna sing a little chill song
Get my groove on
Pour something strong
Down in my drink
Oh, I know
That I don’t need a whole lot of anything
I just want a little bit of everything
Na na na na, na na na na
A little bit of everything
Under the sun
So, when I kick back basking in it
I’ll be OK with what I’ve done
Still having fun
Cause I don’t need too much of nothing
I just wanna sing a little chill song
Get my groove on
Pour something strong
Down in my drink
Oh, I know
That I don’t need a whole lot of anything
I just want a little bit of everything
Na na na na, na na na na
I just want a little bit of everything
Na na na na, na na na na
I just want a little bit of everything
Yeah yea yea
Whoa, whoa, oh yeah