Logical Fallacies in the World of Advertisement and YouTube Phenomenon Essay

Logical Fallacies in the World of Advertisement and YouTube Phenomenon - Essay Example Advertisement is a birth child of the free market economy although it is not focused in promoting free market. For instance, the advertisers are focused into trying to manipulate consumers so that they buy products or a way of life (Martin, 16). A look at the book Amusing Ourselves To Death by N. Postman gives a clear glimpse of the role and the impact of advertisement in the society today. The people have a tendency of medicating themselves into attaining happiness or bliss; as a result, they sacrifice their rights voluntarily. Aspects of television's entertainment represent a way by which the rights of the consumers for entertainment. This is a similar approach in the area of print media such as the magazines. The issues of politics, as well as religion, can be easily diluted depending on how the advertisement messaged is packaged. This essay paper is an analysis of a particular advertisement in semiotic terms. Therefore, this essay intends to show many ways that advertising works, as well as the extent the impacts of advertisement on the audience and the society. The Lancome advertisement This is an advertisement taken from the Marie Claire magazine. In addition, this advert has appeared in several other magazines. From a reader’s perspective, what catches the eyes of most readers is the ugliness of the model that underwent a makeup (Martin, 22). The image is unattractive but for most people, the choice of color is very fascinating. This advertisement covers a sprawling three pages of the magazine. The image on the first page is of a model who has red hair; this image covers almost the whole page. The female model is a woman although she is quite challenging to guess (Alperstein, 18). The reason for this is that mostly with modeling a 25 year old lady can be made to look like a 25 year old. The model is wearing a hat which is of a blue-turquoise-green. She has a scarf which has shiny palettes and a spiky shape. The background where the model is being photographed is very light colored with rose and peach tones which are dominating the blurring background shapes. The woman seems to move forward, her posture is very dynamic (Alperstein, 21). The following pages which are double ones show the similar model in a dark blue-green make-up (Alperstein, 34). Her picture covers the whole of the left page while on the right page sit indicates a dark blue rose and there is a picture of the cosmetic product which is being advertised (Martin, 31). The advert also gives the web-site address for the product (Martin, 29). By showing information in parts of different elements, the advertisement incorporates fallacies as it is not exclusive on what it is really standing for. In undertaking a semiotic analysis of the advert discussed above, this essay paper intends to apply a framework that was proposed by Chandler, as well as by focusing on the important signifies and what they signify. There are a number of various signifiers that could be easily identified from a critical analysis of the main one obviously being the woman dressed up as an insect. The signified -the mental concept the woman represents is 'change'. Of course, the woman as she is depicted in the photograph also stands for conventional norms of female beauty in the form of a somewhat fragile creature. The woman depicted on the

Effect of changing government on Russian citizens before and after the Research Paper

Effect of changing government on Russian citizens before and after the fall of the Soviet Union - Research Paper Example In 1991 the people of Russia gained their electoral rights. However at what cost that right came is an important question. Reasons for choosing Soviet Union Every country during its transformation process undergoes economic turmoil. Russia had been a country that had experienced transformation of its political, economic, and social scenario several times in history. However the collapse of the Soviet Union had been a unique phenomenon. We want to study the effects of such collapse on the economic condition of the people. However unavailability of reliable data makes us do a both qualitative and quantitative study. (Ra’anan) Background: the fall of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formed in the aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. During that time the Joseph Stalin had exhibited his despotic rules. From 1953-64 Nikita Krushchev tried out her reforms but failed to make many changes. The reforms were not necessarily in the direction of liberalization. During this p eriod the atrocities of the police was relaxed and the townsmen achieved a comparatively higher standard of living. The peasants were controlled by the state through the collective farms. They were the focus of much of the states concern, though that did not help their condition very much. The intellectual and the cultural life at the time of Khrushchev also performed fairly well. The educated and the civil society n the 1960s for the first time could express their desires. They expressed a desire to free themselves from the omnipresence of the state and gain individual autonomy. The rule of Kruschev saw the prevalence of oligarchy. His successor Brezchnev heightened the process becoming the chief oligarch within the ruling class. (Ra’anan, 77) From 1964 to 1982 Soviet Union saw an improvement in the material standards of their lives. However the state presence in the public life of the people was resumed. Censorship and the control of police came back. The ideologies of the parties found fewer takers from the common people. The detachment was aggravated by the growing corruption within the ranks of the party. As agriculture got less and less attention from the government investment in heavy industries and military kept rising. The non-Russian people had a growing discontent over several issues. After 1985 the controls of the state were taken over by a new group of leaders. They were the young leaders within the party. The dynamic leader Mikhail Gorbachev represented this pragmatic group of leaders. These people believed in reforms. They received an opposition within the ranks of their own party. The reformist policies of the group were in contrast to the hardliners. Gorbachev wanted to rejuvenate the country’s economy and political scenario through a series of reforms and turned to the intelligentsia for support. The former rule of control was relaxed and expression of ideas was relaxed. This led to a number of problems for the government as the civil society searched answers for the abuses of the previous governments. Under pressure the party moved towards a more pluralistic policy and constitutional government. In spite of all the changes and reforms undertaken by the government, the Gorbachev rule ceased to exist. The central institution was ruined and the people belonging to minor communities raised their voice in nationalist sentiment. The final demise came about in 1991. (Keep, 2-3)