Rhetorical/ Visual Analysis Essay
Woicker 1
Student Woicker
Professor Gallego
English 1302
8 February 2016
The Addiction
According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, 40 million people
light up a cigarette to calm their daily craving; that’s 40 million people knowingly deteriorating
their body with each drag. As the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United
States, smoking is no phantom to millions. The “cigarette epidemic” has become so alarming that
fighting the fixation to ultimately save people’s lives has become necessary. Many
advertisements are created to encourage smokers to quit the habit, but very few are effective in
doing so. The CDC created an advertisement that features a former avid smoker, and the battles
she is forced to fight every day because of her notorious addiction, in attempt to convince
millions to stop buying into the deadly custom. Although it is extremely difficult to quit
smoking, I claim that Terrie’s commercial convinces people to give up smoking through its use
of ethos, logos, and pathos.
In CDC’s commercial featuring Terrie, ethos is used to convince the audience by having
a long-time, credible smoker be the spokesperson. In the commercial, Terrie shows her daily
morning routine, containing things that smoking has forced her to have to do. Terrie has to put a
wig on, teeth in, and put in a hands-free device that covers a hole in her throat she got from
smoking to be able to talk. Since she has smoked for multiple years, she now has to go through
unnecessary and inconvenient steps to make her life feel like normal after the harm she has done
to her body. Current smokers might see Terrie’s situation and be fearful that these consequences
Woicker 2
might inflict their lives, which could convince them to stop smoking. If the spokesperson were
someone who did not actually smoke, the commercial would be much less convincing and
effective because viewers would not be able to see a first-hand experience. The credibility that is
built off of having a long-time smoker as the author constructs a more powerful commercial, as
well as shows ethos.
In comparison to CDC’s commercial, the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA,
released a commercial of a girl buying cigarettes. In the commercial, the girl is young, beautiful,
in shape, and has a flawless complexion. It is very evident to the audience that the girl has
probably never smoked anything in her entire life. Although the point of the commercial is
extremely important to many, it lacks an influential component because of the speaker. Since she
is seemingly perfect on the outside, it is hard for current smokers to connect to her situation and
be convinced to stop smoking, thus the purpose of the commercial ultimately failing. From its
lack of effectiveness, this shows that ethos and the credibility of the speaker is vital when trying
to persuade an audience because if the viewers cannot relate, they will not react.
Near the end of the commercial, logos is used in a simple yet effective factual statement.
After viewing the routine of what could be the current viewers normality in a couple years if they
submit themselves to smoking, they are faced with the harsh truth. In the commercial, one of the
last things the viewer sees is the statement, “smoking causes immediate damage to your body.”
Although allegedly mild, the straightforward saying forces the audience to reflect on the harmful
decision they are making every time they light up. Having the raucous, factual reality that
damage is immediately inflicted upon the body every time a cigarette is inhaled become apparent
is an influential dynamic in the commercial, which is an effective tool in convincing the audience
Woicker 3
to quit the habit. The factual statement is a powerful use of logos that aids in persuading people
to abandon cigarettes.
In the advertisement, Terrie shares her shocking and despairing everyday routine that
creates an emotional response within the viewer, showing pathos. Terrie shares her compelling
daily regimen that includes steps many people could not dream of doing. Just to feel normal,
Terrie must put in teeth, a wig, and a hands-free device to speak, all of which are now necessary
because her smoking habit caused severe deterioration in her body. Watching a woman go
through these unthinkable steps makes the viewer feel extremely somber and sorry for what she
has to go through, eliciting an emotional response. The audience is faced with an emotional
reaction that sends a jarring reality pulsing through each of their veins: this could be their future
one-day. Simple things every person takes for granted such as having teeth, hair and being able
to speak without an aid, is something the audience becomes abruptly aware of, and suddenly
forms a fear of losing. Pathos is effectively formed from the infliction of heartbreaking emotions
within the viewers after seeing Terrie’s unnerving daily routine that could ultimately encourage
and convince them to stop smoking.
Terrie’s advertisement effectively convinces viewers to consider the health and safety of
their body and stop smoking. Being a long-time smoker, as well as having a compelling,
traumatic story, Terrie’s experience inspires many to kick the habit that once seemed impossible
to stop. According to the American Cancer Society, across America, the average success rate of
quitting smoking without aid is only about 4% to 7% (ACS). Terrie’s story could raise that rate
because of her impactful story. When people see the struggles of a woman that has participated
in their same vice, they realize that her current lifestyle could potentially develop into their
future, a shocking realization that only becomes apparent when they are faced head on with the
Woicker 4
problem. Terrie’s commercial shines a much-needed light on the epidemic of smoking, thus
spreading the information that the habit is extremely dangerous and harmful to the body. The
American society has been bombarded with other advertisements by cigarette and tobacco
companies that attempt to convince consumers to buy their product, while neglecting the harm
that their products actually do to the human body. Commercials like Terrie’s are vital to the
health of millions. Instead of being influenced by uncaring companies, viewers can finally
understand and visualize their future from Terrie’s struggle if they continue with the deadly
custom. Smoking is an addictive epidemic that needs an army to destroy, but if one person is
able to quit, that’s one person’s health and life that has improved, one person’s story that can
become a motivation towards others to stop, thus moving towards a world without cigarettes.
Addiction is a serious issue in America that doesn’t seem to draw much attention, but will affect
us for generations.
Woicker 5
Works Cited
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “CDC: Tips From Former Smoker.” Advertisement.
YouTube. YouTube, 15 Mar. 2012. Web. 1 Feb. 2016.
"Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults in the United States." Smoking and Tobacco Use.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 8 Dec. 2015. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
Food and Drug Administration. “Skin.” Advertisement. YouTube. YouTube, 2014. Web. 1 Feb.
2016.
“Guide To Quitting Smoking.” Stay Healthy. American Cancer Society, 06 Feb. 2014. Web. 9
Feb. 2016.