Subway commercial

This is a paper I had to write so its a little formal.

            Today a common theme used for advertising food is health.  For example, most of Subway’s commercials are built around the fact it has less fat than the “burger and fries” meal that most fast food chains offer.  In one particular Subway commercial two people are shown ordering “blubber and “thunder thighs” in a drive-through window.  This commercial tries to say that there is a price to pay for the convenience of fast food and Subway is much healthier choice.

            This subway commercial begins with a couple at a drive through window, and they begin to order things like love handles, a double chin, blubber, thunder thighs, and a “badonkadonk butt.”  Then a voice-over asks, “When you order greasy fast-food, what are you really getting?”  The commercial then shows close ups of food from Subway, as the announcer says Subway’s new Fresh Fit meals offer healthier sides and drinks, that it fits the American Heart Association’s approach to a better lifestyle.

            Pathos plays the biggest role in this commercial, because of all of the negativity associated with being overweight.  The customers in the commercial don’t simply order fat; they order a double chin, love handles, and thunder thighs, which conjure mental images or unattractive people.  Though the audience might find humor in the commercial at first, they remember the times that they have ordered fast food and say to themselves, “Well I don’t want to be fat.”  People don’t want to be overweight, and many are even afraid to be fat or to be considered unattractive, and if people feel that they are making a healthy choice or doing the right thing when they eat at Subway, then it’s likely that they are going to eat there more often.

            The logos in the advertisement is also fairly strong. The main point of the commercial is “If you eat greasy fast food, then you will gain weight, and therefore be unattractive and unhealthy.”  The commercial may only jokingly suggest that eating at a fast food restaurant once is like ordering love handles, but it is actually trying to convince its audience that it will give them love handles eventually, and that by simply switching to Subway, they won’t.  While they logic itself might not be strong, the commercial does a good job of delivering this message to the audience.

            Ethos appears in the commercial, but only for a brief moment.  The announcer mentions that Subway’s new Fresh Fit meals fits into the American Heart Association’s approach to a healthy lifestyle.  The audience can be assured that when Subway says their meals are healthy, they actually have a respected organization to confirm this.

            In Subway’s commercial, they use pathos, ethos, and logos to show that their meals are healthier than traditional fast food.  Almost no focus is put on taste or price; they only say that Subway is the healthy alternative to greasy fast food.