CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2. 1. The Power of Language
Thompson in his article said that language has immense power, and its impact depends entirely on how we wield it. Because words are so often used automatically and unconsciously, we have learned to treat them tightly. By becoming more aware of the impact and power of language, we can make more conscious, insightful choices about how we express ourselves and how we interpret others (https://experiencelife.com/article/the-power-of-language/).
In addition, Antony said that The power of Words refers to the most powerful thing that man possesses, that he may use to influence others, either for good or for evil (http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/words.html).
According to Wikipedia,The Power of Language is a measure of one‟s ability to communicate effectively in a given language, specifically one that is not native to the speaker. Language Power consists of two key components:
1) an ability to speak and be understood,
2) an ability to listen and understand.
In addition Young and Fitzgerald (2006:2) said that the power of language focusses on how power in society is realized through language, specifically on the role of language in producing and maintaining powerful relations.
Fairclough (1989:4) said that the contribution of language power is particularly of how language contributes to the domination of some people by others. The power of language means how language affects people in certain things. Language used in daily life will have its own influences and effects. Language has a powerful influence over people and their behavior. The choice of language to convey specific messages with the intention of influencing people is vitally important.
Fairclough (1989:43) said that there are two aspects of the power/language relationship that is power in discourse and power behind discourse.
2.1.1 Power in Discourse
The section on power in discourse is concerned with as a place where relations of power are actually exercised and enacted. There are three relation of power, they are power in „face-to-face‟ spoken discourse, power in „cross-cultural‟ discourse and hidden power
a. Power in „Face-to-face‟ Spoken Discourse
The exercise of power in a type of „face-to-face‟ discourse where participants
controlling and constraining the contributions of non-powerful participants. It is useful to distinguish broadly between theree types of such constraints-constraints on
1. Contents, on what is said or done;
2. Relations, the social relations people enter into in discourse; 3. Subjects, or the subject positions people can occupy.
b. Power in „Cross-Cultural‟ Encounter
The exercise of power in „cross-cultural‟ discourse is done where participants
belong to different ethnic groupings. There are unequal participants in discourse where the non-powerful people have cultural and linguistic background different from those of the powerful people. The existence of ethnic groupings will influence power in discourse itself. For instance in „gatekeeping encounters‟ – encounters such as a job interview in which a „gatekeeper‟ who generally belongs to the societally
dominant cultural grouping controls an encounter which determines whether someone gets a job, or gets acces to some other valued objective.
c. Hidden Power
Hidden power is exercised in mass media. Mass media can be television, radio, film, newspaper, internet and so on. Mass-media discourse is interesting because the nature of the power relations enacted in it is often not clear, and there are reasons for seeing it as involving hidden relations of power.
adapt to its diverse sections. The power being exercised here is the power of disguise power. It is a form of the power to costraint content : to favour certain interpretations and „wording of events‟. It is a form hidden power, for the favoured interpretations
and wordings are those of power holder in our society.
2.1.2 Power Behind Discourse
The idea of power behind discourse is that the whole social order of discourse is put together and held together as a hidden effect of power. The power behind discourse is related to action. Action is normally controlled by our mind; and if one can influence other‟s mind are typically influenced by text and talk, discourse may
thus indirectly control people‟s action.
2. 2. Advertisement
2. 2. 1. The Defenition of Advertisement
At the root of the word „advertisement‟ is the Latin verb „advertere‟, means „to turn towards‟. It means that advertisement is a way to get an attention. Goddart (1989:6) said,“While it is undoubtedly true that adverts are texts that do their best to
get our attention, to make us turn towards them, we would not want to say tahat everything we pay attention to is an advert.”
Mandel (1984:3) defines advertising as any paid form of nonpersonal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor. That is the messages may appear in an advertisement. Every advertisement will have a message that need to convey to the readers.
Burke (1980:4,6) said that advertising surrounds us during all our waking hours. Every advertisement is intended to persuade the consumer to take some positive form of action favorable to the advertiser. Advertisement is a sales message, directed at a mass audience, that seeks through persuasion to sell goods, services, or ideas on behalf of the paying sponsor.
2. 2. 2. The function of advertisement
Eventhough each advertisement or campaign tries to accomplish goals to its sponsor, advertising perform three basic functions.
1. Provide product and brand information. Although many advertisements are devoid if information, providing consumers with relevant information will aid, decision making is still the main function of advertising. The information given depends on the needed information might simply include price and outlet location.
2. Provides incentives to take action. In most instances, consumers are reluctant to change established behavior. Even they are somewhat dissatisfied with the current product is deemed difficult. Advertisement provides the consumers with the reason to switch brand by presenting reason through copy or graphics. Convenience, high quality, low price, warranties, or a celebrity endorsers are all possible.
2. 2. 3. The Principles of Advertisement
An advertisement is way in getting consumer. Getting consumer‟s attention is
a crucial thing in advertising. According to Jefkins (1996 : 241) language in advertisement should be able in catching AIDCA formula :
1. Attention
Attention is a first formula that should be gotten by an advertisement. In this case, advertisement should use language that invite the readers to pay attention to an advertisement itself. The use of language and other factors will play their role in this formula. How an advertisement is written to get reader‟s attention.
2. Interest
Interest is one of formulas that should be gotten by an advertisement. In this case, after getting consumer‟s attention, the next thing that should be gotten is
interest. When a consumer has paid their attention into an advertisement, they are expected to have an interest as the next level of advertisement‟s goal.
3. Desire
The readers of an advertisement are expected not only to have an interest, but also they have to be convinced to have a desire to have the product itself. An advertisement should convince the reader to believe in spending their money to buy the things advertised. In this case, the readers should have a strong reason to buy the products advertised
4. Conviction
advertisement should have facts that convince the reader to buy the products advertised.
5. Action
The final thing that an advertisement wants to get is consumer‟s action, that is when a consumer has an action to use or buy the things advertised.
2. 3. Language in Advertisement
Language has a powerful influence over people and their behavior. This is especially true in the fields of marketing and advertising. The choice of language to convey specific messages with the intention of influencing people is vitally important.
Language in advertisement should be persuasive. Sometimes, we do not really pay attention to each advertisement around us. As Goddart (1998 : 5) said that advertising is so familiar to modern readers that it may seem odd to ask what an advertisement is. Although advertising is all around us – perhaps because it is all arond us – we do not often pause to think its nature as a form of discourse, as a system of language use whereby, on a daily basis, huge numbers of readers have fleeting „conversation‟ with the writers of countless texts.
Paying attention to Goddart‟s statement, we can conclude that sometimes
Goddart (1998:4) said, “At the same time, for adverts to work, they must use our commonly shared resources of language in ways that affect us and mean something to us”.
Language has a powerful influence over people and their behavior. This is especially true in the fields of marketing and advertising. The choice of language to convey specific messages with the intention of influencing people is vitally important. Language used in advertising has a very great impact on the consumer that helps people to identify a product and remember it. The language of advertising is, of course, normally very positive and emphasizes why one product stands out in comparison with another. Eventhough sometimes language in advertisement is not always correct because it sometimes has not a clear proof. For example, an advertisement for a detergent may say "It gets clothes whiter", but whiter than what? In this case, we can see how a language in advertisement is able to attract people without having any proof.
Luntz said that the great enemy of clear language is the language of insincerity. Language can exploit and manipulate. And finally language has power to say one thing or appear to say something but really says the opposite or in fact, nothing at all (http://kimolynyk.ca/language%20of%20advertising.pdf).
Connected to Fairclough statement that the power of language can be seen from its content or what it is said, in this opportunitythe writer analyze the power of language by discussing the content of advertisement itself. To discuss the content of the advertisement the writer analyze language features used in advertisement itself. By analysing the language features used, it can be found the content of the advertisement and power in the advertisement.
2. 3. 1 Language Features
According to Jefkins (1985 : 227) there are ten language features should be used in advertisement, namely short sentence, simple sentence, cliches (buzz words), favorable words, imperative sentence, interrogative sentence, repetition, alliteration, punctuation, and abbrevation.
2. 3. 1. 1 Short Sentence
Based on Hou Weirui in English Rhetorical (1986:77) there are two kinds of sentence according to the number of words in a sentence. Short sentences are sentences that contain 10 words or vewer is considered as a short sentence, and sentences that contain far more than 20, say around 30 and more are considered long. Short sentences are usually emphatic and clear and thus they are easy to remember. Very short sentences often pack a powerful punch. Short sentences owe much of its power and brevity that more words would detract.
As the aim of advertisement at attracting the reader‟s attention and informing them a certain product, and long sentences will drain the reader interest in reading a text, a simple and short sentences are preferred in advertisement.
When a short sentence is at the beginning or at the end of a paragraph, it will be extremely powerful and most emphatic. Generally, short sentences have simplicity and directness that make the meaning easy to understand. They have briskness and drive that carry the reader along.
Short sentences are really important in an advertisement. It has function in cacthing the reader‟s attention. Using long sentences, the reader may have forgotten
the end by the time that speaker or writer has reached the final few words that they are going to say or write, eventhough the readers may be paying particular attention, but the existence of long sentences make the sentence uninteresting.
Instead of using long sentences, short sentence makes the raeders get the whole thing in one go. The sentences used are easy to remember, easy to understand, and more powerful in communicating the ideas.
The examples are as the following. 1) Clark Restaurant has been opened.
Come and Enjoy your favourite foods 2) Clarck Restaurant
Enjoy the Paradise Culiner
2. 3. 1.2 Simple sentence
According to Zhu Linghong in his journal entitled “The Linguistic Features of English Advertising”, the frequent use of simple sentences can help to reduce the
difficulty of larck Rethe text. Meanwhile, simple sentences convey a mood of action. Moreover, a succesion of simple sentences can make the advertisement powerful. All these are in harmony with the goal of advertisement- to persuade readers to buy the product
(https://www.academia.edu/8682797/THE_LINGUISTIC_FEATURES_OF_ENGLI SH_ADVERTISING).
Simple sentences are group of words that forms a complete thought. Simple sentences in communications are generally easy to understand, as they are to the point. Actually, if we concentrate on part of sentence (Subject, predicate, and complement) there are 3 kinds of sentences, they are :
1. Simple sentence
A simple sentence has the most basic elements that make it a sentence : a subject, a verb, a complete thought.
I.e : Joe waited for the train.
Joe is subject, and waited is verb 2. Compound Sentences
A compound sentence refers to a sentence made of two independent clauses (or complete sentences) connected to one another with a coordinating conjuntions such as for, and, nor, but, or, yet, andso.
The sentence consists of two clauses, “Joe waited for the train” is the first clause, “but the train was late” is the second clause.
3. Complex sentences
A complex sentence is made up of an independent clause and one or more dependent connected to it. A dependent clause is similar to an independent clause, or complete sentence, but it lack of one of the elements that would make it a complete sentence.
Dependent clauses begin with subordinating conjunctions,they are : After make the reader confused. So, in this case the use of simple sentence will influence the effectiveness of an advertisement.
2. 3. 1.3 Cliches (buzz words)
of word “free” in an advertisement will have a big power in influencing the attention of the readers.
For example :
BUY ONE GET ONE FREE.
The existence of word “free” gives a power in advertisement. The other famous buzz word which is so famous in advertisement is “sale”. Nowadays the existence of words “sale” in advertisement has a power, especially for woman. For
example :
SALE 50 % ALL ITEMS.
Nowadays, the word “sale” has a big power in attracting people‟s attention,
especially for woman. In this case the use of buzz words is one of important thing in advertisement.
2.3.1.4 Favorable Words
Favorable words are words which give a happy outcome. Favorable words in advertisement are in adjective forms. Favorable words describe a fact. For example :
View from bedroom window.
In this sentence the writer starts the sentence with word “view”. Actually the sentence could not speak much. These words is not favorable. Compare it with the sentences below.
1. The magnificent view from the bedroom windows.
2. You can enjoy this magnificent view from your bedroom window.
3. You can enjoy this magnificent view of the mighty Matteborn from your
bedroom.
“magnificent”. But when we come to the second sentence, the sentence becomes
scompleted by having “you can enjoy” in the beginning of sentence. Yet, it does not speak well. So, the sentence can be changed with the sentence 3. Having some favorable words makes the sentence more powerful. The existence of “magnificent”, “mighty” creates favorable sentence and makes the sentence become powerful in
persuading the readers.
Here are some favorable words which are commonly used in advertisement : Splendid
Favorable words can be used in a form of generalization in order to create an emotional word such as the following.
Economical
These words do not give detailed expalanation, however these words can help giving a positive image, creating a good willing, and strengthening the reader‟s
beliefs.
2.3.1.5 Imperative Sentence
Young and Fitzgerald (2006 : 104) said that discourse analysis research on advertising has revealed that interrogatives and imperatives play important roles in persuading you – the reader – to take time to read the ad and buy the product advertised.
In this case the existence of imperatives has a power in persuading the reader which is expected end in the readers willing to buy the product advertised. Look at the example below.
There will only 20 tickets for special price.
Grab it fast!
The use of imperative makes the advertisement more powerful. The word “grab” asks the reader to have an action.
Here are some examples of the use of imperative sentence combined with cliches words :
1. Send today for your free sample, and try the new flavour. 2. Fill in and cut the coupon, and post it today.
3. Hear the surf, smell the flowers, taste the wine and enjoy yourself. 4. Call in and buy on now. the writer who writes the advertisement itself. But the point is the use of imperative is a big consideration in an advertisement as it gives power in advertisement advertised.
2.3.1.6 Interrogative Sentence
written by Linne Young and Fitzgerald that the use of imperatives and interrogatives plays an important role in persuading the readers in advertisements.
According to Zhu Linghong in his journal The Linguistic Features of English Advertising, Interrogatives are questions primarily used to seek information or specific point. The interrogative sentences seems more powerful in persuading
people to carry out the desiredaction
(https://www.academia.edu/8682797/THE_LINGUISTIC_FEATURES_OF_ENGLI SH_ADVERTISING).
The existence of interrogative word makes the sentence become powerful in persuading the reader. A simple example is given below.
Need a car for holiday?
The use of interrogative word here seems to offer a solution towards the readers. When the readers read the sentence, they suddenly involved in the advertisement. As the sentence given above, when the advertisement is offered with “need a car for holiday?”, automatically the reader who is looking for a car for
holiday will be directly attracted by the interrogative itself. As a result, the reader will pay attention to the advertisement itself.
2.3.1.7 Alliteration
which has from earliest times been concerned with specific techniques for effective communication. Alliteration also serves as a linguistic rhetorical device more commonly used in persuasive public speaking. Rhetoric is broadly defined as the "Art of Persuasion", which has from earliest times been concerned with specific techniques for effective communication. Its significance as a rhetorical device is that it adds a textural complexity to a speech, making it more engaging, moving, and memorable. The use of alliteration in a speech captivates a person's auditory senses that assists in creating a mood for the speaker. The use of a repeating sound or letter forces an audience‟s attention because of their distinct and noticeable nature. The
auditory senses, hearing and listening, seem to perk up and pay attention with the constant sounds of alliteration. It also evokes emotion which is key in persuading an audience.
The use of alliteration in advertisement has also the same aim in making the sentence become memorable. Sometimes, in advertisement alliteration is also called slogan or jargoun. When an advertisement uses an alliteration it will help the readers to remember the advertisement so the advertisement becomes powerful.
Look at the example below :
Eat well, Live well.
There is a repetition of words in this sentence. The repetition creates a memorable advertisement by the existence of alliteration above.
1. „Players please‟ 2. „Mars are marvellous‟ 3. „Let the train take the starin‟ 4. „Three Nuns, none micer‟ 5. „Don‟t be vague, ask for Haig 6. „Go well, go Shell‟
2. 3 .1.8 Repetition
Repetition is used in advertising as a way to keep a brand or product in the forefront of consumer's minds. Repetition can build brand familiarity, but it can also lead to consumer fatigue, where consumers become so tired of an ad that they tune out or actively avoid the product. Therefore, to be effective, repetition must occur in the right proportion, as too much repetition may be counter-productive as an advertising strategy.
According to Briiliant Independent Consultant, there are three functions of repetition. They are credibility, establish brand familarity, and the first thought.
1.1. Credibility
Repetition in advertisements can really enhance credibility. Have you ever noticed that when someone wants you to believe that something is true they use someone well known or respected? If it is a child trying to convince another child or something they may say, “Well Mom told me that, so it is true.” Mom has gained her credibility with that child.
Maybe, but more likely it is because she is there, she tells the child this or that on a regular basis, and they see and hear her over and over. The same is true for in advertisements. When a potential customer sees and hears you and your brand over and over, and on a regular basis, you begin to establish credibility with them. Then when they purchase a product, and it is what the writer said in repetition advertisement, then you cement your credibility in.
1.2. Brand Familarity
This is much the same as credibility. However, the importance of repetition in advertising is familiarizing people with the products. Repeating is a common way of giving an impression towards the advertisement. When you repeat in your ads, the readers learn. The more someone sees your brand (because of repetition), the more familiar they become with it, and the more likely they are to take notice at the store, or online, or whatever, and buy it.
1.3. First Thought
If you offer a product or service you want people to want you, it means that by using repetition, you expect the readers give their first thought toward advertisement itself.
2. 3. 1.9 Punctuation
For examples:
1) Save the children, now. 2) Save the children. Now !
If we compare the two sentences, in the first sentence, there is no exclamation mark. But when we look in the second sentence, the existence of exclamation mark (!) gives power in that sentence. The readers feel as if they were being forced to have an action soon.
2. 3. 1.10 Abbreviation
The writing of advertisement needs good words in order to make it good. But sometimes the use of abbreviation seems good in order to cacth people‟s attention. Some abbreviations as the following.
„don‟t, „couldn‟t, „wouldn‟t, „won‟t,
„you‟d, „what‟s, „that
In some occasion, we can find the lost of some letters such as “and” become “n”. For example, „Pick ‟n Choose‟, „Fish ‟n Chips.‟ The only aim of this way is to
2. 4. Relevant Studies
In doing an analysis it is better to look upon another work that is relevant to this study. The first reference that has discussed about language power is a thesis by Bonnie Jo Bustrum. He discussed about Language and Power in ESL class. This thesis becomes a reference to this analysis as it helps giving understanding how power affects activities in a class. In his thesis, Bustrum explained how language influences the activities in class. Bustrum in his thesis explained that language has a power in influencing each student in ESL Class in which there are unequal participants in that class. The teacher holds a power in leading the class, and asksthe students to do some things.The teacher as powerful participant holds power to control non-powerful participants, the students. The teacher has power to ask the student in doing activities, such as reading a text, dividing the class into groups, and another activities. In this case, the teacher uses language as the grammatical forms. For example, the teacher used imperative words to ask the students to do activities. In this case the power is exercised by using „face-to-face‟ discourse in which the
position of participants affects the power of language. The thesis helps the readers in understanding the effects of participant‟s position in influencing the power of
language.
understanding the effects of culture into language power. This thesis helps the reader in understanding the relation of power in „cross-cultural‟ discourse, in which there
are unequal participants where the non-powerful people have cultural and linguistic background different from those of the powerful people.
