Erika Arrojado Professor Lori Bedell 12 October 2012 Why is the art of persuasion so important?

Why do companies spend millions of dollars on advertisements? The answer is this: the art of persuasion, namely rhetoric, has the power to move people, to affect change. A two by three inch clip in a magazine could convince someone to purchase a can of Coca-Cola. A 30 second sound bite on the radio could influence a person to switch insurance companies. With a strong rhetorical strategy, a persons behavior or opinion could very well change. This becomes especially important when it comes to presidential campaigns. Every presidential poster, every advertisement in print, every campaign commercial each has an impact on voters. These commercials are not simply trying to gain more revenue for a company. They are trying to persuade an entire nation to choose the right future. Consequently, presidential campaigns demand strong and effective rhetoric. In the 2008 presidential elections in which democrat Barack Obama and republican John McCain were running, the Democratic National Committee produced a commercial entitled Better Off. In this short commercial, the Democratic Party successfully wins votes by effectively employing logical structure, condescending presentation of character, and complex emotional appeal. With the intention of presenting a case of needed change, this commercial illustrates the current dilemma that the state of American welfare is declining. At the time of this 2008 campaign, the nation had just entered a period of economic recession in December of the previous year (Gross). Americans also struggled with other matters, such as high health care costs, rising gas prices, and increasing unemployment rates (The Living Room Candidate). In addition, based on a CNN article, more and more people were becoming increasingly unhappy with President George W. Bush because of his unwavering involvement in the war in Iraq

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(Steinhauser). These issues certainly played a role in the voters opinions and subsequently in the rhetoric of the campaign as well. The premise that the narrator of the commercial presents is that America is in need of change. Subsequently, the proposition that this advertisement is making is that McCain will not bring the change that the country needs, which is why voters should vote for Barack Obama instead. In order for the commercial to illustrate that, it presents McCains response to how Americans were fairing presently compared to the past. The structure of this presentation is such that after each of McCains claims, a statistic would appear that invalidated that specific claim; each assertion was proceeded with a counter argument. Through this juxtaposition, McCain is proven to be false on every account. It practically and logically follows that McCain cannot be trusted as leader because of either his inability to recognize the struggle of American citizens or his disposition to present dishonest information. Furthermore, these false claims tap into some commonplaces of the American public, which allows the logos of this structure to be more evident. For example, there is the idea that all Americans should have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; Americans should be able to make a living and support themselves. McCain believes that the American public is achieving this, but the commercial logically proves that instead, people are losing jobs and the cost of living is increasing. When viewers realize that the commonplaces they once held are in jeopardy, they will more readily accept the premise that things will not be better off with McCain as president. Not only does the logical proof present McCain as a flawed leader, but so does the ethical proof. This commercial only uses one character for rhetorical persuasion and that character is John McCain. Here, as was mentioned before, he is portrayed as a deceitful candidate. Outside of this commercial, McCain held a respectable reputation. An online political article agreed that he

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was known as an independent Maverick and a war hero, after being a war prisoner in the Vietnam War (Saad). By shedding a more negative light on this proclaimed hero, this commercial succeeds in diminishing his credibility. In addition to his lies, his evident unawareness of Americans current struggle also takes away from his credibility as a leader. A voter is not going to choose a candidate that does not care for the people. After the evidence has revealed McCains untruthful and insensible side, he no longer has the ethos to support his character. This in turn boosts Barack Obamas credibility as the better candidate. Aside from the use of character, this commercial also employs the use of time as a means of rhetorical strategy. The opening of the commercial has a journalist asking McCain if Americans are better off than they were 8 years ago? (Better Off). This specific timeline was chosen for a reason. The eight years preceding the 2008 election belonged to the administration of President Bush. Towards the end of his presidency, Bush was becoming more unpopular and statistics showed that McCain voted with Bush about 90 percent of the time, as stated in the Washington Post (Baker & Abramowitz). By connecting McCain to Bush and his 8 years of presidency, the commercial further dismantles McCains credibility. Because of this association, the American citizens that were tired and frustrated with the Bush administration would also feel antipathy toward McCain. With McCains weakened ethos, Obama becomes the more credible choice. Finally, pathos also plays a part in the rhetorical strategies of this commercial. The average American would be emotionally affected by the facts given to invalidate McCain. Those who know what it is like to be unemployed would feel sympathy upon discovering that employment has gone up. Those who own personal vehicles would be angered to find that they are paying much more for gasoline. Already, the audience is stirred, but the emotional appeal is then further enhanced through the delivery of information. A point to make about the delivery is

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that the facts are given with increasing severity. The statistics in the beginning Household Income Down $1000 and Unemployment Up are hard to accept of course but neither really present a considerably critical issue. On the other end, the final statistics Gas Prices Up 200% and 1.8 Million Jobs Lost demand more urgent attention because the large numerical values are more alarming. With the facts established in this way, the viewers emotions grow as the severity of the facts grows. That, combined with the somber music and the dramatic zoom on McCains face, results in a much more effective use of pathos. The final question that the narrator poses to the viewer is, Do you feel better off? (Better Off). Here, the narrator is asking the audience to assess their own emotions on what has just been presented and decide how they feel about the exigence. Instead of simply appealing to the audiences emotions, the narrator is now directly accessing them with this question. Its time for the voter to make a decision. Briefly put, this presidential campaign commercial successfully utilizes logical, ethical, and pathetic proofs to persuade viewer to accept the proposition that Barack Obama is the better choice. The pragmatic structure of the commercial allows the audience to logically see where McCain is at fault. The portrayal of his character and the connection made to the Bush administration succeed in reducing his credibility. Lastly, by delivering the information with increasing gravity, the commercial evokes sympathy and frustration among its viewers. Presidential campaigns require strong rhetoric if they want any success in the election. Thus, it can be said that this commercial accomplished this task for by the end of the election, Barack Obama was seated in the White House.

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Works Cited
Baker, Peter, and Michael Abramowitz. History and Necessity Unite Bush, McCain. The Washington Post. The Washington Post Company, 9 Feb. 2008. Web. 4 Oct. 2012. Better Off. Commercial. The Living Room Candidate. 26 April 2008. Web. 4 Oct. 2012. Gross, Daniel. The Recession is Over? The Daily Beast. The Newsweek, 13 July 2009. Web. 4 Oct. 2012. Saad, Lydia. McCain Widely Recognized as a War Hero. Gallup Politics. Gallup Inc., 28 April 2008. Web. 4 Oct. 2012. Steinhauser, Paul. Poll: Bushs Popularity Hits New Low. CNN Politics. Cable News Network, 19 March 2008. Web. 4 Oct. 2012.