Advertisements: They are deceptions directly placed with the intention to be engraved in our minds. Planted like a seed to constantly grow into a reoccurring reminder of product or idea, self-regulating like a broken record. All judgments aside, ads are meant to direct thought in a certain way, mainly for the positive benefit of a product. They are a rhetorical device in action using all three styles logos, pathos, and ethos, to aim your belief of the idea or product presented in the “right” direction. Whatever our view of the existence of ads’ is now irrelevant, because they are ubiquitous in all aspects of our culture in the past century.
Among these advertisements, Gatorade, a sports drink aimed at all athletes of all ages, has launched an intensive campaign through our history. This company has become a household name in America and has snuck its way into popular culture. In specific they have become fused as a necessity to rehydrate a tired athlete. In one Gatorade advertisement in particular, an intricate and creative use of rhetoric is highlighted. It begins with a very old song playing in the background called “Evolve” by Kevin Quinn. The essence of the lyrics are “if you want a revolution, the only solution evolve.” The manipulation comes when we realize that aside from the directive to transition from drinking water as a source of rehydration to Gatorade, that the commercial targets factors like race and gender, as if Gatorade was active fighting for equality, and was with us on the journey to our evolution as not only athletes but as a society. The ad implies that the only way you can evolve is with Gatorade in your system, to change “the system”.
Athletes both professional and amateur have always looked for ways to enhance their performance on the field, diamond, or court. Many of us, being the fans of these athletes admire them as heroes, role models and inspirations. We idolize them so much sometimes that we will follow their trends in the hopes of one day achieving their superstar status. We will wear the shoes they wear, buy the gloves and pads they use, and in this case, drink their Gatorade. Gatorade takes charge of this in the emotional attachment (pathos) of their advertisements by showing the “best of the best” drinking their product, and then performing to unbelievable levels of athletic superiority, which makes the people who idolize them easily, pushed into buying Gatorade.
Beyond the aspect of fans’ attachment to certain players, Gatorade targets an emotional attachment and seeks a bond between the customers making the product part of a tradition, preventing its extinction. This ad specifically targets the change of the country from white superiority in the time of segregation to an integrated society where both black and white athletes prevail. The tide of change that we experienced triggers a deep emotional reaction that is shown after the words “we started a revolution” roll in the commercial. Following this line a clip of Muhammad Ali is shown, one the most recognizable athletes during the civil rights movement. He refused to join the war in Vietnam in 1966, a key point in American history, and therefore the viewer makes the connection between Gatorade and making a significant and positive change, as the music implies. Before the “Gatorade Revolution” the players were all white, “they balled on peach baskets”, “Rackets were wooden” and water was hydration. Since then the world has evolved, where there are black athletes, female athletes and hydration has changed for the better with Gatorade instead of water.
Without many words, this is a pathos driven commercial. Furthermore an image that is engraved in our minds is the “Gatorade shower”. Credited to Chicago Bears lineman Dan Hampton, Steve McMichael and Mike Singletary in 1984, the Gatorade shower has become as not just a prank on the coach, but a tradition recognized by the entire country. (Ethan) With this connection, if any doubt comes to the viewers mind after the claim of Gatorade starting a revolution, the symbolism of the Gatorade shower reminds them of a familiar image that has always been with them, and solidifies the claim they are making.
Simplicity of replenishment used to be a quick sip of water but Gatorade has turned it into a 30 million dollar campaign for the G series. A 3 part system of Prime a carb-delivering drink to be consumed before the workout, Perform: a low-calorie drink quencher that provides electrolytes and is a repackaged version of G2, and Recover, which is packed with protein to build muscles post-workout. ("Launch PR") This is the evolution Gatorade is really aiming you towards behind the mirage that they had something to do with the evolution of the United States. The evolution of their product is not just one drink anymore, and the “best of the best” don’t just drink one Gatorade but 3 parts of Gatorade and you now need “Prime, Perform, and Recover “to be one of the best. You must “evolve” as Gatorade did and like their commercial and advertisements have shown, they are not only evolving within themselves as a company or drink. They are stressing the point of convincing us that they have evolved with us as a country.
The desire to go out and play is something we all share and have shared since we were children. As we grow older, the sincerity and purpose has been tampered with by a seductive scheme of marketing wizards who want you to live like the athletes, buy what the athletes buy and ultimately drink what the athletes drink. This ultimate goal is going to be shown to us at all angles in endless combinations to link Gatorade with the consumer, as a product we simply cannot go without. The champion coaches shower in it, the athletes drink it, and so should we. They started a revolution and we were a part of it and always will be part of it as long as Gatorade is by our side and getting us to take money out of our wallets.
