Visual Rhetoric Presentation

Emily Huizenga

What is the purpose of the image?

What is the purpose of the image?

The purpose of the image is to shock parents into putting children in cribs at night rather than in the parents' own bed. If a child sleeps in an adult bed he can suffocate, so the city of Milwaukee made this advertisement to warn against this danger.

If the camera were zoomed out more, what else might we see? How would this change the ad?

If the camera were zoomed out more, what else might we see? How would this change the ad?

We might be able to see the parents of the child and the rest of the room. Because we do not know in what sort of environment the child lives, it broadens the audience to affect more people than it could otherwise.

How does taking away the words at the top affect the ad?

How does taking away the words at the top affect the ad?

Without the explanation, we can no longer figure out what the picture is advertising. The words give clarification to why the baby is sleeping beside a knife. Without the explanation, it just looks like someone was trying to hurt the baby somehow.

What is the logical appeal of this ad?

What is the logical appeal of this ad?

It is obviously dangerous to sleep beside a knife, especially for a baby, so it must be as dangerous for a baby to sleep with his parents in an adult bed.

What is the ethical appeal of this ad?

What is the ethical appeal of this ad?

The bottom right hand corner of this advertisement gives credit for the ad to the city of Milwaukee, so we know this is a credible source. We also can acknowledge that it is morally wrong to harm babies, making this ad ethically sound.

What is the emotional appeal of this ad?

What is the emotional appeal of this ad?

When first looking at this picture, one feels shocked that a baby is sleeping peacefully beside a knife. It is a distressing and disturbing picture that is very effective in calling parents to action to get cribs for their infant children.

This is the other ad in Milwaukee's collection. Does changing the baby's race make any difference on the ad?

This is the other ad in Milwaukee's collection. Does changing the baby's race make any difference on the ad?

Yes, because it gives the ad a smaller audience by narrowing it down to African-Americans. Conversely, the other picture narrows the audience to Caucasians, so it is perhaps a good thing that both ads exist.

Works Cited

Malloy, Brian. Knife, 2. Nov. 2011. Milwaukee, WI. Adsoftheworld. Web. 20 Nov. 2011.

Malloy, Brian. Knife, 1. Nov. 2011. Milwaukee, WI.Adsoftheworld. Web. 20 Nov. 2011.