Rhetorical Analysis

                                                     

This ad is posted on a website called "The gun zone". It is a website that encourages the second amendment, the right to bear arms. The ad is delivered to the target audience bluntly and with a small paragraph about homeowners owning handguns to cease burglaries and home invasions, making the image very effective to the audience.

The ad is broken into two equal sections with a white background. On the top half of the image is a phone and the buttons 911 with the statement, "Dialing takes seconds." The bottom half of the image is a woman holding a gun, with the words, "Fight back!" The woman appears to be in her thirties with short brown hair holding a small black gun. The woman's expression is serious and she looks like she means business, in perfect stance to shoot if necessary. In both the top and bottom half of the image the image and the words are opposite to each other. Directly in the center of the image, splitting the top and bottom halves, it reads, "Waiting for help may take the rest of your life." The expression in the middle of the image is of white lettering with a black background, opposite of the top and bottom halves lettering, making it stick out to the reader more. The phrase, "Fight back!" is larger than the rest of the text in the ad. It is meant to stand out more. The words and images function together well. The upper and lower halves can coexist without the middle image and they both could stand alone. No part of the ad looks like it does not fit together properly.The important objects in the ad are the phone, the 911 buttons and the woman with the gun,
The setting is left to the readers imagination. The information conveyed in the ad using words is that dialing 911 will only take you seconds, but waiting for the help can cost you your life. The "Fight back!" at the bottom reiterates the woman holding the gun. The ad is supporting the second amendment to bear arms, it is telling the reader to defend themselves, specifically with a handgun. There are no experts or testimonials given, the wording and the woman are enough to properly convey the intended message to the audience. The tone used is one of essence. Time is essential to your survival, and knowing how to properly handle the handgun will likely save your life.

The message of the ad is that waiting for help can be detrimental, and the solution is to learn to defend yourself, and, "Fight back!"The target audience seems to be women, however this ad is applicable to everyone. An appropriate place for the ad is Shooting Times, Handguns, Guns & Amo or any gun magazine. The ad seems logical to the emotions and values for that target audience because if they are reading a gun magazine they are very likely to support the second amendment to bear arms, and likely already do. The design of the ad suggests to the reader how to view and understand the message.
I would not make any changes to the ad, i think it works perfectly just the way it is.

The ad is effective because of the various phrases strategically placed with the corresponding images. The other reason the ad is effective because the phrase, "Waiting could take the rest of your life", is very real and I believe it would hit home with the audience. I would not make any changes to the ad, i think it works perfectly just the way it is.