Antioch
Valerie Bumgardner

I chose an advertisement from Poets & Writers magazine.  Unfortunately, this magazine is the only literature in my house with advertisements.  Poets & Writers is a literary publication so the advertisements are extremely honest and to the point.  Most of the ads were trying to push for literary submissions or enrollment in Master of Fine Arts at various universities.  The ad I chose was one of the only full-page advertisements and it was for Antioch University in Los Angeles.   

This advertisement is in black and white with basic graphics.  No pictures are used, only words to describe.  This layout attracts the logos because the ad is very pragmatic and is obviously trying to aid in your MFA search.  They describe the different programs that the university offers in creative writing with a no-nonsense approach.  This approach then appeals to the ethos.  The people looking at this magazine are obviously educated and they see themselves as smart consumers.  The lack of graphics and color make the ad very “sincere” and “direct” which helps foster the feeling of academia. This ad does not focus in on the pathos, preferring to stay more to the point. 

This ad would score a 3 on overall appeal.  I flipped through the pages twice before I ever noticed it.  I thought it was the heading to an article.  Everything in this journal looks the same and if the advertiser wanted it to stand out, there are some basic things they could have done.  (i.e. simplified.)  As for getting the information across, they were successful.  I know all kinds of random creative writing facts about Antioch University.