Assignment: Aveeno Shampoo Advertisement
Your assignment is to perform a semiotic analysis of the ad you choose. It is important that you understand that this is not an opinion paper, and while it is acceptable to state your emotional reaction to the ad, that is not true semiotic analysis. What you need to do is attempt to decipher what particular images the advertisement is employing, how they are deployed in the ad, why the advertiser might have chosen them, and who is the desired audience.
This is a formal semiotic analysis, so you must break down the symbols that compose the advertisement and determine what those signs stand in for, what associations they carry with them, and what distinctions are made. Pay particular attention to the positive associations the ad attempts to construct, and how its subject is differentiated from other, similar products. Look at both images and any text or 'copy' the ad includes. You should also try to contextualize your analysis. Consider whether this ad is part of a campaign. How is it similar to or different from other ads for the same kind of products? What is the history of the product? Has its use, meaning or social role changed over the past decades? It can also be very helpful to consider what magazine you found the ad in. Who reads the magazine, what is its target audience, and why would the advertisers consider it an appropriate vehicle for selling their product?
Your paper should include:
1. Denotation: What are the images the advertisement uses? Be specific and descriptive. Break down the individual signs and analyze them both independently and in relation to other signs.
2. Connotation: How are the images used, and how do they associate the product with other desires? Remember to look at the way the ad 'commodifies' desires and associates the product with wants and needs that are not necessarily logically related to it.
3. Ideology: Why do these associations work? Consider what cultural values, cultural myths and beliefs the ad invokes in order to make its point. What does this ad say about our culture and possible trends?
4. Demographics: Who is the intended audience and why? What does it tell us about race, gender, sexuality, class, region, nation, ethnicity or any other socio-political concerns?