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Most people agree the greatest friend in life is your dog. Almost every household owns a dog and considers them to be a part of the family. They get a dog expecting to enjoy their company through the long journey of life. In the Chevy commercial, 'Maddie', it tells a story about a little girl whose best friend is a dog. Maddie goes everywhere the girl does all throughout her life. Over the whole commercial, you see them both bond from day one till the end of Maddie's life.
Maddie is there for all the important times in her life. At the end of the commercial, it says, 'A best friend for life's journey' with a Chevy car in the background followed by the Chevy symbol to show that Chevy is reliable for a lifetime of journeys. This commercial persuades consumers to buy a Chevy because it appeals to the audience through means of ethos, pathos, and logos.
The appeal generated through the rhetoric consists of the rhetorical triangle.
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“ She followed all my directions. It was really easy to contact her and respond very fast as well. ”
Ethos in modern language is credibility, pathos is emotion and logos is logic. The fact that Chevy Maddie is a strong commercial is depended on the Aristotelian appeal of ethos (credibility) more than any other appeal as Chevy is from Chevrolet, a reliable automobile company. Pathos (emotion) is appealed and targeted by bringing the dog as a companion to life and emotional appeal thus generated as a pet are considered to be faithful. In fact, a logical argument is provided in the form of connection and approximation between the faithful credibility of dog and Chevy (Assignment # 2: Rhetorical Analysis of Chevy AD Commercial).
The rhetorical needs appeal of brand recognition and appeal that allows the people to remain cling to the brand they are already familiar with. The companionship is generated through the dog that is slowly and indirectly evading the psyche of the viewer and connected to the glimpses of Chevy by important connections, two of them are faithfulness and companionship. The dog and Chevy are both connected to the pathos because two insubstantial emotions both positive arose (Commercials, 2).
The connection is established through the screenplay and the fluctuation between indoor and outdoor thence based on pathos. The targeted audience is already aware of the Chevrolet brand and love and affection is introduced again in this ad through animal love. The other dimension sought is, it would be rhetorical to see ad through the eyes of a person whose logic is disrupted, it would again make strong claims as the emotion pathos is supreme and thought-provoking.
When the commercial first appears, it shows an older woman crying while petting her bright coated golden retriever. As calm, relaxed music plays in the background, the short clips are her life from the time Maddie died till the time she first picked her out. The next scene Maddie is sleeping peacefully on the sofa while the same younger version of the women is gently rubbing her fur. After that Maddie is walking in the bright sunshine with the young owner during a nice fall day. Maddie is playing in the leaves and enjoying the walk. After that Maddie is moving into an apartment with the women just a little younger. Following that scene, Maddie is taking pictures with her owner as the young women graduates.
After that Maddie is shown comforting her owner in a teenage appearance through a breakup and through a new boyfriend. Next, Maddie is in the back of a Chevy while the teenage owner is learning how to drive. The teenager is shown at an age of about 5 during her birthday while she is blowing out candles hugging and squeezing Maddie. They build forts and share fantastic heartwarming moments together. Next, the little girl is shown picking out Maddie for the first time as a puppy. The final scene is the little girl walking away holding little Maddie in her arms, getting into a Chevy. The words, 'A best friend for life's journey', along with the Chevy symbol is shown on the screen (2014 Chevy Commercial - Maddie).
This commercial's biggest appeal is pathos. The commercial displays comforting scenes about a girl and her dog bonded for life. It shows adventure, happiness, love, and excitement. A viewer's attention is instantly caught by all the emotional dog scenes. Maddie and the little girl's adorable relationship make the commercial stand out. At the end of the commercial, it shows the little girl picking put Maddie from a large group of dogs to show she's special. The strongest use of pathos in the whole commercial is the very beginning. Maddie is sitting on the table while the older women gently rub her, and kisses her just like the first time they met as she is putting her to sleep. Chevy uses great examples of pathos to persuade people to buy their car.
Even though Chevy uses great examples of pathos in their commercial, they incorporate convincing examples of ethos as well. Chevy was originally founded in 1911 and has been winning over consumers ever since. At the time of Chevy being founded 270 American automotive brands existed. Now only 4 brands remain today and Chevy is one of them. Because Chevy is a trusted brand it automatically stands out better than the rest and resonates as credible. Allowing viewers to see the car following the little girl and her journey with Maddie makes the car seem even more reliable. Another example of ethos is the audience Chevy is targeting. Chevy is targeting families owning dogs which make up 69,926,000 citizens in the United States Chevy uses scenes that will capture the idea of a lovely and dependable family. For example, the pretty walks in the park, the adorable little birthday party, teaching her how to drive. Chevy's great credibility and appeal to the viewer make this commercial a great example of using credibility for persuasion.
Chevy shows great use of logos as well. Chevy portrays to be a car that will last you a lifetime. When choosing a car to buy, Chevy is the way to go. The words at the end tell you that it will last for a life time's journey. One scene showed the teenage girl learning how to drive in the same car that is shown at the end of the commercial when she's little and picking out Maggie. Having the car in all these scenes is portraying Chevy to be a lifetime lasting car. Chevy shows that it's the best car to have for all journeys and travels. It shows how happy it came to make a family as well. The use of logos shows the audience that Chevy is the car to choose for a lasting lifelong car.
Basically, Chevy does a great job of advertising the car to family and dog owners through pathos, logos, and ethos. Sensitive viewers will be informed of the great product by the adorable relationship between Maggie and her owner. The lovable but informative commercial makes Chevy reliable and easy to comprehend. The car being able to grow with the little girl shows how reliable it is for families. This commercial represents Chevy's lifelong commitment and dedication to providing reliable vehicles.
Most Reliable Friend for People. (2021, Sep 09). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/most-reliable-friend-for-people-essay
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