Marie Heller La101H, Sec. 14 Feb.

26th, 2012 Rhetorical Analysis Final Draft The Ad Your Ad Should Be Like Hello audience. Look at your TV, now back to me, now back at the TV, now back to me. Sadly, not all commercials can be as manly as the one were about to discuss, but if they stopped using ladies ad techniques and copied the Old Spice format, they could seem like theyre persuasive. Whats that over there? Back to me. I have itits a rhetorical analysis of that commercial you love. Anything is possible when a commercial focuses on manliness and not the ladies. This series of commercials for Old Spice body wash, while directly addressed to women, are chock full of references to traditional masculine embodiment and ideals. The Smell Like a Man, Man commercial campaign relies heavily on its depiction of idealized masculinity to persuade viewers to purchase Old Spice Red Zone body wash, but also mocks its own depiction for laughs, further endearing the viewer to the brand. Old Spice represents the perfect male immediately through their choice of actor, using his appearance and behavior as the grounds for building his ethos as a Real Man. In the context of a commercial, producers very deliberately select actors to represent their brand. The Old Spice Man, an actor whose real name is Isaiah Mustafa, was quite obviously chosen because he is traditionally attractive. He has broad shoulders, defined abs, and a rugged, bearded face. The ads idea of traditional masculinity centers around physical attractiveness made even manlier by five oclock shadow and defined muscles that indicate strength. Mustafa further builds his ethos

as the epitome of Old Spice manliness through his posture and behavior. Throughout the entire thirty second commercial, he never once breaks eye contact with the camera, completely breaking the fourth wall. His monologue begins with very commanding imperatives, directing the ladies where to look: Look at your man, now back to me, back to your man, back to me. He has strong posture, with his shoulders confidently back and a slight smile on his face. His tone of voice is very beguiling and deep. This suave and self-assured demeanor mimics the ideal alpha male attitude when speaking to women, and thus it establishes his credibility as a desirable man. What is initially most eye-catching about the ad is the way it acknowledges the ridiculousness of its own depiction of idealized masculinity by making the commercial itself over-the-top. An oyster appears out of nowhere holding the tickets instead of pearls, and then the tickets magically turn into a fountain of diamonds, from which Old Spice body wash majestically arises. All of these effects serve as a tongue-in-cheek recognition of how technically unachievable the portrayed man is. Mustafa also says Look now, the tickets are now diamonds! in a very grandiose tone of voice, indicating a recognition of how very over-thetop the humor in the ad is (Old Spice). Finally, the non-sequitur surprise ending Im on a horse further adds to the general ridiculousness and humor of the commercial, serving to endear the brand name and commercial series to the viewers. The Im on a horse ending also conjures up images of prince charming gallantly sweeping in on a white steed to whisk off the female viewer to a romantic hide-away. There is also a distinct sensuality about the white stallion, making the statement Im on a horse, seem like the final trump card in the series of persuasive reasons why Mustafa is so manly. Much like chronic shirtlessness, the presence of horses and horseback riding in romance novels adds an aspect of sensuality and sexiness to the commercial.

By cheekily noting its own ridiculous standards, the commercial produces genuine laughter from the viewers, which helped make the ad go viral and convinced people to purchase their product. The commercial shows incredible awareness of its rhetorical audience; Old Spice Man addresses women directly while simultaneously appealing to male viewers as an ideal version of themselves. First, the commercial is directly addressed to its female viewers. Its common knowledge that it is usually women who do the shopping for everyone in the householdnot just the groceries, but also clothing and hygienic products. Thus, the commercial speaks to women, who are more likely to make the decision to purchase Old Spice body wash for their husbands, boyfriends, or sons. The ad makes those women want a man like Isaiah Mustafa who will buy them two tickets to that thing [they] love, give her diamonds, and take her on romantic getaways to the beach in his boat. What is most intriguing about the monologue is that he says he has two tickets to that thing you love, which is funny because of its vagueness (Old Spice). It could be just a generalization; the writers realize that not all women want two tickets to the orchestra, or a sports game, or a certain band, and account for that with the vague language. Yet the idealized man might not particularly care what it is that his woman loveshe can provide her tickets to it and that will make her love him and think he is attractive. Secondly, this portrayal of masculinity is also in line with what most male viewers believe women want. Theyre not really sure what their significant others want, they dont really listen when she talks, so the tickets are just to that thing you love. Men dont need to know what she likes, just have money! This latter idea is reinforced by the following lines, Whats that? The tickets are now diamonds (Old Spice). Diamonds come pouring out of his hand,

from which a bottle of Old Spice body wash arises, hearkening back to the old saying that diamonds are a girls best friend. According to this commercial, the idealized man that women want owns a yacht, buys her tickets to whatever she wants, and showers her in diamondsa very materialistic perspective on what women want from a man. Additionally, the commercial pokes fun at some of the typical fantasies women have of men. Although he starts out in a bathroom by a shower, where being shirtless makes sense, he remains so throughout the entire commercial. After the shower scene breaks away, a perfectly folded shirt falls over his shoulders when he says, Where are you? Youre on a boat (Old Spice). When he ends the commercial on the horse, he is still completely shirtless and wearing a pair of white pants. All of these details poke fun at the ritzy, yacht-owning mysterious man with a fashion sense that so frequently appears in female fantasies and romance novels. While the ladies are the ones being addressed here, Isaiah is supposed to attract them and make them want their man to, at the very least, smell like him; simultaneously, he appeals to men as a sympathetic, ideal, and humorous figure. The character of Old Spice Man, though he speaks to females, is actually appealing to all of its rhetorical audience. In the end, this Old Spice campaign utilizes the idea of an ideal man that plays on the male stereotype of female-fantasized masculinity to persuade viewers to purchase the product in order to achieve a bit of perfect manliness. However, the commercial also shows an awareness of the silliness of its own depiction and plays it up for laughs using props and a non-sequitur ending. Considering that other commercials have followed suit, such as Dos Equiss Most Interesting Man in the World commercial series and the Dr. Pepper 10 ad Its not for women, it is relevant to note that this type of masculine commercial is proliferating. What makes the analysis of the ideology supporting these commercials so difficult is the uncertainty generated by

the humoris Old Spice Man really sexist, or is he subverting and mocking sexism? The tongue-in-cheek tone of these commercial campaigns makes it a challenge to determine whether they are playing on gender roles for laughs or subtly reinforcing them. Perhaps a more important question to ponder is: what about the parts we arent hearing? What is implied about femininity through portrayals of masculinity? Although Old Spices use of masculinity is funny and tongue-in-cheek, what does that stereotype in turn say about women and idealized femininity?

Works Cited Old Spice: The Man Your Man Could Smell Like. Perf. Isaiah Mustafa. YouTube. OldSpice, 4 Feb. 2010. Web. 19 Feb. 2012.