Do Bad Things Never

In this BMW ad, a car company does its best to create awareness for a problem that is near impossible to stop. The obvious appeal in the image is pathos. One look at ad and the viewer knows that something is not right because of the prosthetic leg that centers the poster. The creator of the ad purposely put the text next to the prosthetic leg in a vertical manner, because it forces the reader to look the leg from top to bottom. Automatically the reader has to accept the reality and feel sympathy for the victim. Although it is not stated that the person in the ad is a victim was effected by a drunk driver it can easily be inferred.

Ethos is also used to convey the message of the add. Drunk driving is probably one of the most unacceptable crimes. Because first it is easily preventable by not getting behind the wheel while drunk and the victims of drunk driving fatalities are usually innocent victims that were at the wrong place at the wrong time. If a person has good enough character they would not be expected to drink and drive so those that question the dangers of drinking and driving have to look their consequences straight in the eye. Another use of ethos is the subtle yet very visible BMW logo at the bottom of page. BMW is know worldwide for the engineering of their cars and the work put into the design. For all car companies customer safety is a priority, but this add is basically saying that, "our cars are as safe as can be but if you choose to drink and drive any car can turn into a deadly weapon." To find the logos in this ad look no further than the text. BMW uses their association with cars to create the metaphor, comparing car parts to human limbs. People know that if they had a kidney or any internal transplant, they could easily hide it but if they were to lose a leg their outside appearance would be permanently altered. Through logic a person knows there is no way to place a real leg on a person who has lost a leg, so to prevent this event from ever happening they conclude that they should drink and drive. If one has lost a loved one to a drunk driver this ad really hits home, because they know that their is no part that can bring a human life back.