ACTIVITY: Find and Advertisement Online + Present Findings to Class.

*Individually, find your own advertisement to analyse. Use the concepts and
headings from the slides as the basis for your analysis. You will present your
findings to a small group.
*Look For: An advertisement that is mostly image-based.
*Remember: There is no right answer - depends on personal view. Make an
educated guess, but use evidence to support your idea.
Assessment:
Criterion 2: communicate ideas and information
Criterion 4: use evidence to support sociological and psychological viewpoints.

In your chosen advertisement, look for the Signifier and Signified in each of the following
categories:
1. Cultural knowledge How do previous cultural understandings (through movies,
books, TV, personal experience etc.) help you get this advertisement?

2. Colour What emotions do you associate with the colours used? How do they help
give the advertisement a certain feel.

3. Context Where was this advertisement located and who is most likely to would
read it?

4. People What do the people in the image tell us (facial expressions, poses,
hairstyles, age, ethnicity, sex, relationship to each other)? Do they carry meaning
(e.g. celebrities, stereotypes)?

5. Themes Is there a story or mood shown (humour, jealousy, relaxation, tension,

relaxation, simplicity)? Why is this important?

6. Sociological attitudes and assumptions does this advertisement promote

gender, beauty or sexual stereotypes, or other social norms in order to sell its
product? How?

7. Are there any potential negative outcomes for selling the product in this way?
e.g. what effect might the use of gender sterotypes, promoting sex, using
unrealistic body image have?

8. Overall, is this advert effective for selling products? - Why/Why not?