Write a 5 page analytical paper. You should come up with a kind of unifying idea or theory regarding an ad or series of ads. The best way to do this is to either pick a genre of ad and talk about the significance of the generic conventions, or to pick one kind or brand of ad (vodka, Gatorade, Toms) and decode the kinds of strategies they deploy. Consider the following:
Investigate a pertinent problem as it is related to advertisement. We’ve covered a lot of ground in this class so far; what kind of questions are you left with? What would you like to spend some time thinking about and answering?
Look to multiple primary sources to help you “read” this problem. What do these texts help you to understand? Is there a type or genre of ad that is particularly interesting to you? A product? A company?
Synthesize your readings of different texts and formulate an analysis of your chosen texts. What’s your theory on how all this works? Are these texts selling a lifestyle? An image? How? Why would that matter? And how does that image intersect with their product?
Process:
Don’t do any formal research on this. It’ll just get you off track and take up valuable time. Your texts are your sources; your job is to read them well. What does all of this add up to?
Specificity will help you, not hurt you. Many people have chosen and will choose Nike, Apple, Coca Cola, &c. Choosing to investigate a smaller market will give you more to say about the particulars of their ads—smaller meal, more easily digested.
Ask specific questions. Think about this as though the ads are answering your questions through their use of music, color, movement, dialogue, sound, imagery, genre, placement, frequency, medium, and audience.
Shoot for something like 3-4 ads total. Three is ideal—you can triangulate them—but 4 is the upper limit of what’s possible in 5 pages.
Present a main point (thesis) early on. Too many analytical papers save the good stuff for the end. Hit your reader over the head with it immediately, then spend the rest of the paper backing yourself up.
It might be useful to think about your major and your studies if you’re stuck. What kinds of products exist in your field? Pharmaceutical companies have a particular strategy, as do engineering firms. What do those look like? What might that mean?
