Illuminating the Illusion Essay

Jay Chiat, and expert in the advertising field, looked at advertising differently than those in the advertising business today. He launched the Energizer Bunny and Apple commercials. Not only that, he started a new age of advertising during the Super Bowl. Chiat was an amazing advertiser; however, he reached a point in 1997 where he desired to leave the marketing industry. He no longer agreed with the ideals of the advertising world. In Chiat’s essay, â€Å"Illusions are Forever,† he uncovers the true ideals of the marketing industry. His essay discusses how the lies in advertising â€Å"lie in the situations, values, beliefs, and cultural norms used to sell a message.†(212) Through this essay, Chiat uses strong, vivacious words to create an image of the true face of advertising. In the same manner, he includes examples and descriptions that embellish that image and grab the attention of the reader. Amidst all of this, Chiat composes his essay in a manner that allows for a clear, insightful message to come across. Chiat is indeed bitter of advertising, but that does not affect his message. He remains conversational throughout the course of the essay. The technique that Chiat uses throughout his writing is superb, and he does an excellent job of getting his message across. Chiat uses strong, vivid word choice throughout his essay to give his readers a precise image of the schemes used by today’s advertisers. Chiat’s words â€Å"unrelenting†(213) and â€Å"24-hour-a-day drumbeat†(213) allow his readers to imagine how advertisers are constantly hammering their ideas into the heads of the viewers. Words such as â€Å"robs us†(213) allow Chiat to make the point that advertisers rob Americans of their view of life, replacing it instead with an â€Å"illusion†. Chiat also uses â€Å"seductive†(214) to give his readers a further understanding of what advertisers are seeking. Chiat is using words such as â€Å"seductive†(214) to enlighten consumers to the idea that advertisers twist their lies in a fashion that is seemingly pleasing to the eyes but is still made up of lies. Chiat’s words are critical of advertisers and how they do not truly care about their consumer. Chiat, nonetheless, does not blind his reader to the essay’s purpose by getting lost in the emotional rhetoric. Chiat’s writing is filled with informative and detailed rhetorical modes that greatly add to the impact of his argument. Unlike many writers who seem to get lost in their descriptions of a topic, Chiat includes examples, definitions and descriptions while still shining light upon the advertising backdrop. One instance of this occurs when Chiat uses the example of the wedding ring from DeBaers, Chiat uses this example to help the readers visualize how the advertisers seek to infiltrate the minds of their consumers. Following this example, Chiat then defines â€Å"unmediated†(213) as â€Å"without media†(213). Chiat defines â€Å"unmediated†(213), a word that most take lightly, in an effort to give his readers a clear understanding of the strategies used by advertisers. A few paragraphs later, Chiat proceeds to describe internet advertising. Chiat gives a clear image to his readers on how internet advertisers drag adults in with their â€Å"authoritative-looking†(213) websites. Chiat’s placement of these examples, definitions and descriptions is excellent. He places them in positions that not only increase the flow of the writing but also pique the interests of his readers. Adding the rhetorical modes previously mentioned is very important for writers such as Chiat because there are points in writing where the pace of the writing dies down. Chiat places these modes in marvelous positions that keep up the pace of the article as it moves along. Along with descriptive words and examples, organization of ideas is also critical when writing an essay, and Chiat’s layout of paragraphs is very logical, and in turn deductive, in other words, the reasoning follows the thesis. Chiat opens up his essay with a bit of background on advertising in order to strengthen the thesis that follows. His thesis is clear and to the point. Because his thesis is mentioned in the beginning of the essay, and the reasoning behind his essay follows in each of the body paragraphs, Chiat’s essay follows this deductive style. Chiat then uses this combination to capture the reader’s attention and make them want to read more with each following paragraph. Chiat pulls the reader along not only with his strong words but also by arranging his ideas in a fashion that allows for a constant pace. In the same manner, each of the points that Chiat makes relates back to the thesis. The readers are not led up to an  apparent climax only to find another exposition; Chiat’s points are clear and flow beautifully. He includes good transitions that allow the writing to have the feel of a constant flow and not have abrupt stops in the middle of the writing where a change in direction occurs. Chiat has a great understanding of how to organize his thoughts, and he demonstrates that in his writing. Besides simply writing in a way that is pleasing to the eyes, Chiat also keeps a good tone throughout the course of the writing. This allows him to keep his readers from turning to other writings. The tone throughout his essay is bitter, but Chiat remains conversational at the same time. The descriptions of the different advertisers are definitely negative; Chiat makes it clear that he does not agree with advertisers. In the concluding paragraph of his essay, Chiat challenges us to find our own personal truth rather than the apparitional truth presented to us by advertisers. In a similar manner, Chiat says in his final paragraph that people should ignore the vision of life offered by advertisers. Amidst all of this negativity, Chiat’s writing maintains a conversational feel. Chiat involves his readers directly by asking them questions, having them imagine images, etc†¦ Chiat may have held a bitter tone over the course of the essay, and though in many cases writers using a bitter tone in their writing drive away their readers with their immense negativity, Chiat does not overpower his readers with his negative thoughts and descriptions. In fact, Chiat’s calm yet bitter tone allows his readers to better embrace his feelings. Chiat uses strong word choice and rhetorical modes, clear organization, and an inviting tone to strengthen his essay on the schemes behind advertising. These different components throughout his essay enable his readers to gain a broad understanding of Chiat’s different poins and the lies surrounding them every day. Chiat uses his great understanding of these different devices to uphold a steady pace and a smooth flow. Chiat’s â€Å"Illusions are Forever† is a well spoken essay. It captures the interests of its readers, it is very informative, and it is a very relaxed read for a negative view of advertising.