Rhetoric

Word Choice: Writer relies on connotative language to convey meaning of campaign. Writer keeps text and words to a minimum in order to maintain the attention of the audience. Words are simple and straight forward, not convoluted and delivering a deep profound revelation. Inferring from the words used, the speaker’s attitude is advocating against a product and urging others to do the same.

Content: This visual and its creators intend to raise the viewer’s awareness about child labor and build up a resistance to end it. The phrase “Just Don’t Do It” and the symbol make a bold statement against Nike, accusing them of the evils of enslaving children for industrial production of goods. The visual triggers association with attacks on the virtues of innocence, righteousness, and liberty. These elements provoke the audience into fervor through their guilt. They lead a comfortable lifestyle in exchange for the future of others in third-country countries. We shamefully and unceremoniously enjoy the fruits of their labor and therefore we are responsible. The perpetual advancement of child labor had been our fault. Yet, we hold the key to stopping it and that is our voices as consumers.

Design: Regarding the composition of the piece, this visual medium draws eyes first to the crimson scar on the boy’s foot. And this isn’t any average boy mind you; it’s a child who knows the true meaning of fatigue, sorrow, and anguish. The vivid check mark seared into the foot—the distinctive Nike symbol— leaves the impression that the youth had been branded like cattle. It’s easily the most eye-catching because of its position, color, and atmosphere of first-world conditions. The boy in shackles is in the foreground while the background depicts deplorable conditions, all the way to enhance the message that is placed right to the left of the boy. The majority of the composition employs colors that are grey and brown—grungy and earthy colors— to magnify the bare existence the child had to...