Thinking About: Deconstructing a Print Ad

The ad I choose to deconstruct is one selling the Dodge Caravan. This ad has the phrase “What Idiot Coined The Phrase Stay At Home Mom?” written on it. I understand what they are implying by this phrase, but why they had to use the word IDIOT! The advertisers are trying to say that if a mom owns a Dodge Caravan they do not have to stay at home with their kids, but they can be out of the home enjoying themselves. I think they are also saying that moms, not dads drive minivans. What about the fathers who stay at home with the children? I know several of my friends who had their dad at home with them while their mom worked. My father is a teacher so he stayed at home with my sister and I during the summer months while my mom worked. Can’t fathers buy a Dodge Caravan or even drive a minivan? This ad proves that society only thinks that women can be “stay at home moms,” drive minivans, and take care of the children.

The mom in this ad is a very attractive white woman who is wearing a little bit of make-up, is dressed in a well fitting black shirt, and has a calm look on her face. I also see this ad saying that a family is “perfect” with two kids, a boy and a girl of course. The children are well dressed and are enjoying eating ice cream. The daughter is sitting on her mom’s lap so I see this as her being younger than her brother and likes to be close to her. The mom and children are calm and it looks like the little boy is talking to the mom. The children are enjoying their ice cream and somehow they do not have any ice cream on their faces or on their clothes. I know when I eat ice cream, I always manage to get some on my face and sometimes on my clothes. Once again, this ad shows that a “perfect” family is one with a boy and a girl, a mom who does not work but stays at home with the children, and one needs to dress well even when eating ice cream.

Are the advertisers afraid to show the Dodge Caravan closer up because it might truly show how a mom uses a minivan. My mom had a minivan and no matter how hard she tried to keep it clean it was always dirty. When my sister and I were little, the inside had car seats, snacks, diaper bags, cups of juice, strollers, and toys. My mom was always prepared for any situation and always tried to keep us entertained while she drove. Our minivan was like our second home because we were in it quite often.

I do not understand how this ad would sell the Dodge Caravan. Don’t you think the emphasis should be on the Caravan and not on the mom and children? This shows how the advertiser used words to get attention. The minivan is off in the distant but because of the words being used, one is forced to think about how a minivan will help stay at home moms get out. I honestly didn’t think about the Dodge Caravan being featured in this ad but sat there reading the words and not liking the word “Idiot.”

Advertisements are trying to sell a product and are going to do it in the best way the advertisers know how. Usually this means focusing on what is most popular, or in the case of these ads what is the most well known. I think that these ads are good examples of how society plays a major role in the style and messages portrayed in ads.