1984 Ethos Pathos Logos

1288 Words3 Pages

Thirty-two years ago Apple released its first commercial during the Super Bowl. The ad contains multiple references, including its title, from George Orwell's dystopian novel “1984”. The idea was conceived by Brent Thomas and Steve Hayden who decided on the brilliant tagline “Why 1984 won’t be like 1984”. The famous Ridley Scott directed the ad while actress, model, singer, and athlete Anya Major played the lead role. Apple’s “1984” has several instances in which one can observe the use of the three appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos. “1984” uses Aristotle’s three appeals to endorse the new Macintosh and put Apple on the market. More specifically, the use of ethos is blatantly obvious in the ad. Ethos is needed for advertising to be taken …show more content…

Many components can be categorized with credibility. Starting with the obvious fact of the ad being part of the Super Bowl, something which will always bring great credibility to the company advertising. Getting a spot in the Super Bowl can be considered a breakthrough accomplishment. The thought of the commercial not making it to the screen lingered, but was just a passing feeling. Apart from being a super bowl ad, the fact Apple referenced from a largely known book adds credibility. Other than referencing from a widely known book, it is not uncommon for “1984” to be compared to the film “The Wizard of Oz”. While many comparisons can be made to the movie, one in particular stands out. Inside of Stein’s “Quarterly Journal of Speech” the statement “When the running woman is fully shown in full shot she can be seen to be wearing red shoes, and the fully saturated colors of the Apple logo lighting up the screen after it shattered tells us that we are not in Kansas anymore” (Stein, 17). Being compared to such a famous movie adds credibility. The comparison Stein is trying to point out is obvious. The screen shattering is symbolic for the change the Macintosh can make, like being in a new place. Apple took a chance with not showing a single example of the Macintosh. Instead the point to get

Open Document