In Apple’s 1984 ad, there is a great deal of rhetoric you are experiencing and being subjected to that you would not notice had you not taken the time to analyze it. At first glance you think, the video is only a minute long. How could there be all of these elements of a good rhetoric, in depth, in one minute? Well to start, exigence. The urgent need or demand; it is the circumstance or condition that invites a response. In other words, exigence is the problem. The problem that is being presented in this commercial is the drones that they have portrayed people to be becoming. Perhaps due to competitors like Microsoft, everything is bland and uniform, everyone has the same sort of experience. The ad directors created a situation so dismal that anyone would feel a need to quell it.
The Audience is those who are the ‘intended or unintended’ recipients of the rhetorical message. The audience should be able to respond to the ‘exigence’. They are there to address the specified problem. The audience in this particular instance were the viewers for the superbowl of that year. These people were deemed to be the target audience for this product. Based on studies or statistics these people are most likely to identify with this message or the exigence and want to change it. However most importantly, these people have the ability to change it by buying their products. The audience determines the type of language used or the formality of the message, whatever is appropriate.
The constraints of the rhetorical message are the things that ‘modify the exigence’. Constraints control how we view the rhetoric, how it is presented. In the 1984 ad, it is limited to a one minute commercial during the superbowl. There is a lot of artistry and tact involved in delivering a powerful and effective message in one minute. The time allotted affects the use of the ethos/pathos/logos. The subject of this ad would be the mac computers trying to change the world, or the way it is portrayed to be headed. There are many elements of rhetoric tried into the exigence. The audience are the ones who can address the problem, and the purpose explains the significance of the problem. In other words, what does the exigence want me to do. The purpose is a sort of call of action by being a patron of Macintosh. You have to ask, what do they want me to believe after seeing this? That Macintosh will change the world, even save it from uniform monotony. The purpose is exigence taken to the next step. It is the problem and the purpose of the problem.
The argument is the most persuasive element, argument from reason. It appeals to our intellectual side. The argument here is that Mac is the way of the future and it is the right choice, and you know it. It is not my personal beliefs but it seems that the reason we should believe or act on this argument is that it is trying to convey that ‘this is your future if you allow society to continue as it is today. This is what Microsoft and other competitors look like. Macintosh is individuality, it is choice, it is color, it is breaking the mold.With respect to Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, the Ethos is the credibility as Macintosh. We have a certain amount of respect for commercials aired during the superbowl because of their notoriety and their cost. Mac must be a huge up and comer to have this air time. The Pathos is the emotional appeal. The fear, the worry the inspiration the passion. The ad shows an epic woman in color single handedly smashing the screen that the mindless colorless drones are plugged into. This drives people. Pathos is especially effective if the message must be delivered in a short period of time, like in this commercial. It is more pathos than anything else, not that it is entirely lacking any of the three. Logos tends to flatter your intelligence and appeals to it in a way that says ‘you are not dumb enough to become one of these people. You are better than these drones. You can change the world. You can be different. That’s why we are showing this to you. That’s why this appeals to you.’ Kairos is another ancient greek word meaning the right time or the opportune moment. Airing this one minute ad during the superbowl is clearly the Kairos. The superbowl is one of if not the most viewed event on television in America. The audience could not be greater, the emotions could not be higher.