Semiotic Analysis of a Print Media Text
In April 2008, British magazine Gentleman’s Quarterly (GQ) published a magazine advert for the promotion of a new fragrance by “Davidoff” called “Adventure” that featured movie star Ewan McGregor. GQ magazine, is a monthly lifestyle publication which features many articles on high-end men’s fashion, and successful business people and celebrities as a guide to a sophisticated lifestyle. The target audience for GQ magazine are men who aspire to be successful between the ages of 20-40.
I shall be deconstructing the advert for “Davidoff” “Adventure”, which is a print media text, by using various tools to carry out a semiotic analysis.
By using a photographic sign which denotes Ewan McGregor, a successful movie actor, gives the fragrance kudos which enables it to be successfully marketed towards busy men that have the desire to achieve success. The preferred reading of the text is that by purchasing the fragrance you will be buying into the ideological lifestyle of escapism where you can leave all your day-to-day stresses behind you and set out on an exciting care free journey visiting and experiencing many places and environments. This supports the myth that men under pressure need to “get-away-from-it-all” and by getting on a motorbike and riding into the distance you are getting further away from anything that may be troubling you back home.
The producers of the text have used a syntagmatic choice to feature Ewan McGregor after his two successful TV series; Long Way Round in 2004 in which Ewan McGregor motorcycled from London to New York covering 20,000-miles crossing 12 countries and 19 time zones in 155 days and the follow-up Long Way Down in 2007, in which saw his journey from Scotland to Cape Town, through Europe and Africa in 85 days. By using this syntagm it helps to anchor the products meaning. This is because Ewan McGregor, as well as his TV series which was an adventure, is also a famous actor that is well known for his roles in the ‘Star Wars’ saga that depicts his character in dangerous escapades and in adventurous situations. Therefore, it gives anchorage to the product that the fragrance itself is a connotation of an “adventure”. The binary opposition of men and women includes two sets of competing ideologies which show men as adventurous, almost primitive ‘cave-men like’ versus the civilised ‘stay-at-home’ domesticated ‘cave-woman’. The connotations of this opposition favours the man because if a woman were to be used in the advert the socialised stereotypical myth assumes women lack a sense of adventure and like to stay in the safety of their homely environment where they feel secure in their current surroundings.
The attire of the actor denotes that of an old fashioned aviator which has connotations with travel and journey and “flying high” to which successful men ideologically aim for. The producers of the text have made a syntagmatic choice from the clothing paradigm to present a casual look as someone who is on a care free journey would wear. The iconic sign denotes the actor wearing jeans, t-shirts and a scarf which would be worn when you would like to feel relaxed. The clothing signifies a go-with-the-flow, laid-back and a calm appearance. The syntagamatic choice of the casual look signifies that the fragrance is a scent for the gentleman who wants to ‘get-away-from-it-all’. A binary opposition that help support this preferred reading of the text is that the setting is during the day as opposed to night. A night time setting would have connotations towards relaxation, eating and sleeping. Also, if the setting was at night it would make the excitement of the dangerous adventure riding through the mountains into an off-putting extreme danger and a risk of life. The picturesque landscape that helps make the appeal of an exciting adventure would not be possible at night as it would be dark and it would be hard to see the beauty of the journey.
The lighting of the text signifies that it is early in the day and anchoring this is the fresh clean clothing could signify that the actor is about to set of on another day of his journey. This gives the reader of the text the ideology that the actor is continuing on his expedition and therefore selling the mythical lifestyle the reader of this text aspire to. This also gives the audience the impression that the fragrance is a day time, any purpose, fragrance.
The icon of the mountains which are signified by a photographic sign has connotations to danger and risk but also of the thrill of challenges and exploration. The preferred reading of this text is that a mountainous atmosphere is fresh, calming and relaxing and the height and scale of a mountain, where they often break through the clouds, is another connotation to tranquillity and stillness anchoring the text to the reader to escape away from their existing busy lifestyle. However, it could be argued with an oppositional reading that mountains are fraught with danger with the risk of injury or even death. Therefore making the oppositional reader of the text sceptical about the “adventure” that using this fragrance may bring.
The text uses a sign of a motorbike. The signifier of this is a photographic image which gives us the signified representation of freedom, the exposure to the elements and the exhilaration of the open road. Motorbikes also have the capabilities of going anywhere, more so than other modes of transport, which is perfect for the scene that the advert is set in. By using a binary opposition of a car for example would mean being encased and entrapped but also safe and secure, therefore not being free and adventurous which is paramount for the preferred reading.
There appears to be two anchors in the text. Both are denoted by signs consisting of written text. The first is the word “Adventure” which is also the name of the fragrance has connotations of travel, challenges and escapism which the target audience both enjoy and seek. By using the anchorage of “Adventure” also tells us that this too is the genre of the text. The second are the signs, again signified by written text, are the words “featuring Ewan McGregor”. This links the celebrity to the product, therefore making the fragrance credible. Ewan McGregor is promoting the fragrance off the back of his travel TV series and adding to the fact that he also is a film star, including Star Wars – a popular series of films amongst the target audience of this advert – makes the fragrance appealing. The producers have also made a play on using the written text in the style of a movie poster, again to link the celebrity to the product.
The producers of the text have made the syntagmatic choice to place the written text “Adventure” on the top right of the image above the photographic sign of the mountains to give connotations of the mythical socialisation that we should reach for the sky which gives anchorage to the reader that this fragrance is used by successful people and by using this fragrance you too can become successful. Also by placing the written text “Ewan McGregor” in a slightly smaller font and over the mountains gives two connotations. Firstly, Ewan McGregor would be a small element in comparison to the vastness of a mountainous landscape and this is reflected in the size of the text. Also, by placing the text over the mountains gives connotations that he will be going on his “adventure” through the mountains.
By making the syntagmatic choice of placing the written text “Davidoff Adventure” above, and in a larger font size, to the written text “Ewan McGregor” helps anchor the product to the reader that the fragrance is “bigger” than the celebrity endorsing it. At the end of the day the producers of the text are selling a fragrance to their target audience and not Ewan McGregor.
Adverts for fragrances often use the convention of using a photographic sign of a morphological bottle. In this instance this has been used to denote a hip flask which often accompanies an explorer on his “adventure” to bring refreshment and revitalisation on his journey. This gives the audience the ideology that this fragrance will refresh you and provides you with a boost which will enable you to continue with your endeavours as you progress on your journey.
The text has also used a doubling technique to take the audience back to the product. By using the chrome elements of the motorcycle and by using a grey coloured top gives the audience the association as Ewan McGregor as the rider of the bike, which match the colour of the top of the bottle bring the reader of the text back to the product.
The conclusions I have reached is print media use a variety of techniques to associate the reader of the text to the product and brand. If this advert were to be placed in a family orientated magazine it is clear that it would appeal to men for which it is aimed at as women are familiar with “Davidoff” as it has an expansive female range of perfumes. The text can be read in a number of ways which is dependant upon the individual reader of the text cultural and moral beliefs. Each person will have a different interpretation as our individual context makes us what we are. Different audiences will read the text different and this is very true in years to come as how the text is read will differentiate over time specific codes.
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