Learning from Another Writer: Student Analysis of an Advertisement: Rachel Steinhaus, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit”

Because visual images surround us, you may be asked to respond to them and to analyze them, concentrating on persuasive, cultural, historical, sociological, or other qualities. Rachel Steinhaus analyzed a television commercial to investigate how advertisements persuade us to buy.

Rachel Steinhaus Student Analysis of an Advertisement

“Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit”

1

The television commercial for the 2008 Cadillac CTS, featuring the star Kate Walsh, epitomizes a car advertisement that focuses not on the vehicle itself, but on the ideas that the company wants to associate with its product. Rather than focusing on the power and features of the car, the commercial emphasizes the ideas of sex, social status, freedom, and Americanism, wrapping the car in a shroud of social contradictions and ideals. Viewers are enticed to see the car as more than a means of transportation. This other image of the car as a sexual object is what resonates most clearly with viewers as it illustrates how the ad manipulates their emotions and ideas in order to sell the product.

2

This commercial begins with the word Cadillac scrawled across a view of a city with the lights creating long stretches across the screen, as though the viewer is in a car traveling quickly down the street. This effect, the illusion of fast motion, is maintained throughout the commercial. Kate Walsh, star of the television shows Private Practice and Grey’s Anatomy, then lists a number of the car’s optional features, from a pop-up navigation system to sunroofs and 40G hard drives, saying that those opportunities are not what are important “in today’s luxury game” (Cadillac). The ad continues to show different aspects of the car as Kate Walsh reveals what she presumably believes is the most important quality in a car: “When you turn your car on, does it return the favor?” (Cadillac). A few more images show the sleek car driving through the city and a tunnel, and then the name of the car, the phrase “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit,” and the Cadillac logo appear on the screen sequentially.

3

The most prominent aspect of this ad is its focus on the automobile as a sex symbol, which is most blatantly expressed by the line in the commercial, “When you turn it on, does it return the favor?” (Cadillac). This colloquial phrase clearly sends the message that cars that are not sexy are inferior to the 2008 CTS. The phrase also personifies the vehicle itself, giving it the capability to turn someone on, which is generally a human action. This use of personification fits with the idea presented in “The New Citroen,” where Barthes describes the automobile as “humanized art” (89). The car may be a product with a particular function, but it is designed to look appealing while also having human qualities that allow people to be more emotionally attached to their car than the average product.

4

Kate Walsh reinforces the sexual ideas connected to the car in this commercial. Her attire, a dress and heels, is clearly chosen to provide sex appeal. The camera shots, angled to show her looking over the steering wheel as she delivers the end of the line and to show her foot as she hits the accelerator in her strappy heels, objectify her as a source of sex appeal (Garfield). Her celebrity status also influences the viewer’s idea of what it would mean to own the car. Although the car’s available features are casually listed, making Cadillac appear modest about its technology and luxury embellishments, Kate Walsh places the focus on the prospective owner’s status. Simply attaching the name of a celebrity to a car is enough to raise interest for some viewers as they imagine themselves owning something that a rich and successful star also enjoys. The combination of Walsh’s stardom and her sex appeal becomes the main focus of this advertisement.

5

In addition to these strong sexual and status connotations, the commercial emphasizes the idea that this car is a solid American product. The tagline at the end of the commercial, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit” (Cadillac) is a reference to the well-known line of the Declaration of Independence, automatically connecting the Cadillac CTS to patriotism. Even without finishing the phrase, this added plug connects supporting one’s country to buying an American-made Cadillac 2008 CTS. The ad assumes that the typical American viewer will automatically insert the words “of happiness” to complete the phrase and also connect buying a CTS with furthering their own “pursuit of happiness.” The context of the phrase within the Declaration of Independence is also important because it describes our inalienable rights, therefore connecting the thought that buying this car is the right of an American.

6

The open-ended phrase, however, also lends itself to interpretation as a literal statement, alluding to the idea that the Cadillac CTS will give one the freedom to pursue whatever one wishes. In a physical sense, the driver can use the CTS horsepower to pursue other, “lesser” cars. On the other hand, the emotional message is that the driver can pursue different dreams and lifestyles because of the reputation and self-image that the CTS affords. This second interpretation relates well to the celebrity power that Kate Walsh brings to the ad.

7

The freedom to follow one’s dreams goes hand in hand with the freedom of the road that this advertisement conveys. As Walsh goes speeding down a tunnel, nothing inhibits her progress. However, Böhm and the other authors of “Impossibilities of Automobility” see things in a much more realistic light. Both the congestion created by the infrastructure required to support automobiles and our reliance on cars make driving far from pleasurable, according to the article. Driving is often marked by frustration and danger, rather than absolute freedom. Cadillac’s commercial, however, ignores these facts, instead showing off speed by the blurred lights as the car flies by and giving Kate Walsh the freedom to go wherever she wishes.

8

Cadillac’s commercial promotes the 2008 CTS without much focus on the car’s actual features. Instead, the ad uses appeals to sex, celebrity, freedom, and Americanism. Cadillac is proud to attach its name to a car that could mean so much to the life of the viewer, and the Cadillac logo appears in the commercial no less than six times. Even this constant repetition of the brand name takes away from the car itself, as its name, CTS, is mentioned only once. Despite a lack of focus on the actual vehicle, the advertiser assumes that our culture responds well to the appeals to sex, status, freedom, and patriotism that the automobile industry chooses to show in ads like this one.

Works Cited

Barthes, Roland. “The New Citroen.” Mythologies. Trans. Annette Lavers. 1957. New York: Hill-Farrar, 2001. 88–90. Print.

Böhm, Steffen, Campbell Jones, Chris Land, and Matthew Paterson. “Impossibilities of Automobility.” Against Automobility. Ed. Böhm, Jones, Land, and Paterson. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2006. 1–16. Print.

Cadillac. Advertisement. Web. 8 Mar. 2009. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkEw1rsBUak.

Garfield, Bob. “Taking Cadillac from Stodgy to Sexy: Kate Walsh.” Advertising Age 1 Oct. 2007. Web. 8 Mar. 2009.

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