The paper looks at 3 different commercials and analyzes fantasy vs. reality.

Essay by lmrdivaCollege, UndergraduateA+, October 2003

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Sitting down and watching television today is more than just enjoying ones favorite program. Commercials are a huge part of today's television programming. Seldom can we sit down and watch a show on television without interruptions of commercials trying to persuade us to buy something or send some company our money. The people behind the production of commercials use glamorous objects to appeal to the consumers and, in turn, to provoke them to buy their product. Like a commentator said in The Ad and the Ego, "Advertisements usually have the dominating power to persuade consumers into believing that happiness can be bought, that there are instant solutions to complex problems, and that their products can meet our deepest human needs." In order to sell Kraft salad dressing, Mountain Dew, and M&M's, advertisers use their dominating power instead to help mold the perceptions of their viewers, making them believe that summer, youthfulness, and power can be bought.

The Kraftsalad dressing commercial is a prime example of a fantasy. After watching it, one might believe that by putting Kraft on a salad, or even fruit, that it will help in livening it up, causing it to take on human-like characteristics. But in reality Kraft is just another plain salad dressing. The commercial begins with an unrealistic scene of the beach, with fruits and vegetables posing as scenery and people. Once the Kraft dressing is poured across the scenery, the images begin to come to life. The vegetables and the fruit begin surfing, playing the guitar, and just seem to be having a good old time. Not only does Kraft use personification to make the commercial more like a fantasy, but they also engaged in metaphors between the salad and summer to make a connection to the product. The...