Chapter Chronology

Quiz for Visualizing History: “Advertising in a Consumer Age”

Choose the best answer to each question.

Question

1. The most prominent feature of the Estey Organ Company advertisement from 1885 was the aerial view of its industrial operations in Brattleboro, Vermont, and the phrase “Most Extensive in the World.” What was the company aiming to convey in this ad?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is C. The advertisement features the impressively large and prosperous factory operation to convey that it is a solid and reputable company. It aims to suggest that there is a high demand for Estey organs because they are good products, and that the company can continue to turn them out as demand rises.
Incorrect. The correct answer is C. The advertisement features the impressively large and prosperous factory operation to convey that it is a solid and reputable company. It aims to suggest that there is a high demand for Estey organs because they are good products, and that the company can continue to turn them out as demand rises.

Question

2. The three men in the lower-right corner of the Estey Organ Company advertisement are the company’s founder, Jason Estey, his son Julius, and son-in-law Levi Fuller. Why did the company add their images to the advertisement?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is D. The images of the owners were included in the advertisement to demonstrate that the owners of the factory responsible for producing Estey organs were respectable, trustworthy, and distinguished men.
Incorrect. The correct answer is D. The images of the owners were included in the advertisement to demonstrate that the owners of the factory responsible for producing Estey organs were respectable, trustworthy, and distinguished men.

Question

3. The most prominent feature in the Lucky Strike cigarette advertisement from 1929 is the woman wearing a bathing suit and her shadow. The Lucky Strike Company chose this image to accompany the text to suggest that

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is B. The text and the image together suggest that, by smoking Lucky Strikes rather than eating, a young woman could maintain her girlish figure as she aged.
Incorrect. The correct answer is B. The text and the image together suggest that, by smoking Lucky Strikes rather than eating, a young woman could maintain her girlish figure as she aged.

Question

4. The Estey Organ Company advertisement was promoting organ sales by linking them to the possibility that families play and listen to music in their homes. The Lucky Strike advertisement, on the other hand, was promoting cigarette sales by linking them to

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is A. The Lucky Strike advertisement is promoting cigarettes by linking smoking this particular brand to health and beauty. It is emphasizing the alleged effect of smoking, not just the product itself.
Incorrect. The correct answer is A. The Lucky Strike advertisement is promoting cigarettes by linking smoking this particular brand to health and beauty. It is emphasizing the alleged effect of smoking, not just the product itself.

Question

5. Only forty-four years passed between the publication of the Estey Organ Company advertisement and the Lucky Strike advertisement, but the two images used very different methods for promoting their products. The evolution in advertising evident in the differences between these two ads illustrates the development of which major twentieth-century American phenomenon?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is B. These two images illustrate the evolution of the advertising industry that took place alongside the development of American consumer culture. They reveal how advertising shifted from emphasizing production to manipulating the meaning of consumption.
Incorrect. The correct answer is B. These two images illustrate the evolution of the advertising industry that took place alongside the development of American consumer culture. They reveal how advertising shifted from emphasizing production to manipulating the meaning of consumption.