The thesis at hand puts a special emphasis on the use of persuasive language in online native advertisements from The New York Times. After careful examination, the corpus will be compiled of three native advertisements from the field of technology, by the sponsors Intel, Dropbox and Slack. The limitation to these native advertisements and persuasive linguistic devices and techniques was necessary with regard to the scope of this thesis. As no linguistic analysis of native advertisements could be found, there also was no reference to follow. Therefore, the thesis at hand lays the foundation for further research in this area. The aim is to conduct a corpus-based Critical Discourse Analysis in order to investigate and answer two main questions:
1. Do online native advertisements make use of the same persuasion methods as previously researched for other advertising types?
2. What are the most prominent persuasive linguistic devices and techniques in the online native advertisements from The New York Times?
In addition to the CDA, the corpus-based approach is expected to provide quantitative evidence of the existence of discourse and to identify repetitive linguistic patterns of persuasive language use in native advertising.
The thesis will be structured as follows. First, the theoretical framework provides general information about the functions and characteristics of advertising, while further focusing on native advertisement and the language of advertising. It continues with explaining the concept of persuasive language on the basis of ethos, logos and pathos and introduces some powerful persuasive techniques in advertisement. Further, linguistic devices of persuasive language on the phonetic, lexical, morphological and syntactic level will be defined. Additionally, the concept of Critical Discourse Analysis will be explained in detail, as the thesis at hand follows the CDA framework of Fairclough. The data collection method and data analysis procedure will be outlined in Chapter 3. This is followed by an analysis of three online native advertisements from the publisher The New York Times. After the analysis, the results will be presented and evaluated in order to assess the hypothesis. Finally, the conclusion provides a summary of the findings and suggests further research opportunities.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Theoretical Framework
- Advertising
- Native Advertising Format
- Objectives and Functions of Advertising as Form of Communication
- Defining Advertising Language
- Factors Influencing the Language of Advertising
- Language of Persuasion
- Modes of Persuasion: Ethos, logos, pathos
- Persuasion Techniques in Advertising Language
- Linguistic Devices of Persuasive Language
- Phonetic level
- Lexical and morphological level
- Syntactic level
- Critical Discourse Analysis
- Key elements of Critical Discourse Analysis
- Fairclough's Critical Discourse Analysis
- Hypothesis
- Advertising
- Methodology
- Data Collection Method
- Data Analysis Procedure
- Analysis
- Ethos, logos and pathos
- Textual Analysis
- Discourse Analysis
- Social Practice Analysis
- Results and Discussion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This master's thesis aims to explore the persuasive language used in online native advertising, particularly focusing on advertisements from The New York Times. The study investigates whether the same persuasion techniques observed in traditional advertising are employed in this digital format. The analysis focuses on identifying and analyzing the dominant persuasive linguistic devices and techniques used in these advertisements.
- The use of persuasive language in online native advertising
- The comparison of persuasive language techniques in online native advertising and other forms of advertising
- The identification and analysis of dominant persuasive linguistic devices and techniques in online native advertising
- The application of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to interpret the social practices underlying the use of persuasive language in online native advertising
- The impact of online native advertising on consumer behavior and the role of persuasion in shaping this impact
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The thesis starts by introducing the concept of advertising and its evolution, particularly highlighting the rise of online native advertising. This is followed by a detailed explanation of the language of persuasion, including its theoretical foundations and the persuasive techniques employed in advertising. The chapter then delves into the linguistic devices of persuasive language, focusing on the phonetic, lexical, morphological, and syntactic levels. It further explains the principles of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), emphasizing Fairclough's framework, which will be applied throughout the analysis. Finally, the hypothesis is presented, outlining the main research questions.
Chapter 3 focuses on the methodology, detailing the data collection method and data analysis procedure used for the study. This chapter serves as a guide for the subsequent analysis.
Chapter 4 presents the core analysis of the study. It begins by examining the presence and application of ethos, logos, and pathos in the selected native advertisements. This is followed by a comprehensive textual analysis, exploring the linguistic features and persuasive techniques used. The discourse analysis delves deeper into the underlying messages and social practices reflected in the advertisements. Finally, the social practice analysis critically discusses the broader implications and social context of online native advertising.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The thesis explores the concept of online native advertising and its use of persuasive language. This includes a thorough investigation of the persuasive linguistic devices and techniques employed within this format. The analysis is conducted through a critical discourse analysis framework, focusing on key elements like ethos, logos, pathos, and the identification of repetitive linguistic patterns. The study is expected to contribute to the understanding of online native advertising as a communication tool and its role in shaping consumer behavior.
- Quote paper
- Seda Evirgen (Author), 2020, The Language of Persuasion in Advertising. A Corpus-based Critical Discourse Analysis, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1010699
