Today in Rhetoric and Civic Life, we watched several speeches and brainstormed various analytical words. And as usual, we watched an example of rhetoric at work. But today's example is unique in that I instantly recognized it even though I had seen only once before. It was the Google commercial that aired during Super Bowl XLIV. The advertisement is only 52 seconds but in that short span of time, the commercial manages to create something memorable.
The very first moment of the commercial is a piano key played to the pulse of a flashing cursor. It seems so subtle yet it has an incredible effect. The simultaneous flash of the cursor and the piano note makes an audio and visual connection. It causes the viewer to unintentionally focus on the music because of the initial steady pulse. So as the viewer is listening to the commercial, the music begins to the affect how you view the commercial. The music starts of slowly but still keeps its initial steady beat. Gradually the music builds toward a climax and then tapers off as the commercial concludes. The visuals of the commercial are intensified by the music as the search bar seems to be telling a story. Each entry identifies with stages of a love story that build to marriage. By effectively controlling the viewer/listener's ear, Google makes the commercial more memorable.
Visuals omitted from the commercial also serve a purpose. Throughout the entire commercial, the only indicators of a love story occurring are the search bar entries and the voices in the commercial background. There is no depiction of a young student wooing a fair, French girl. Instead, the relationship between these two lovers is mostly left to the imagination of the viewer. It allows the viewer to insert themselves into the story making it more personal and memorable at the same time. (I remember the first time I saw the commercial, I said to myself, "Sign me up for studying in France!") Though at first it seems cliche, the universal nature of the story is what makes it so identifiable with the viewer.
I really liked your analysis of how the music connected to and strengthened the commercial. Even though the sound was only a simple piano note, it easily catches your attention in the beginning and seemed to match the appearance of the search bar perfectly.
ReplyDeleteI also liked how this commercial told a story in a new way. Even though it used words and not visuals, it still managed to move the audience.
Like you, despite seeing this commercial only once or twice some time ago, I remembered it. As soon as I saw the beginning of the ad yesterday, I got excited; I think it is a really great commercial! As you point out, my favorite part of the ad is how the actual love story is left up to the imagination of the viewer. It makes you think of all the possibilities life has to offer, and what a surprisingly strong role Google has come to play in all our lives. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteI agree with your analysis. I think that the music really did it for the commercial. It's subtle, yet has an overwhelming impact toward the pathos and emotion of the commercial as a whole. Even more generally, the commercial itself was very subtle, like you said, with its only visual as the Google search engine. For an ad that had so much of an impact to the audience with its only visual being a search engine, and nothing besides a single musical score, the ad effectively conveys how important Google is in everyday life.
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