Thursday 19 May 2011

Truth In Advertising

It is very important to be truthful when advertising. If you are not, then people wil be misled into buying or doing something they didn't really want or understand.
Many of the Canada West posters (including mine) made immigrants think that Canada West was an easy place to live. The immigrants would come, thinking they could start a farm quickly and get rich, only to come to Canada and nearly starve to death in the harsh winters.
It was unfair for the Canadian government to bring in immigrants by misleading them into thinking that settling in Canada was easy.
Immigrants would have been better prepared if they were warned about the cold winters and hot, dry summers, the hail, the soddies, and many other things. Less people would have come to the prairies, but at least then they would know what they were getting into.

My Poster

On my immigration to Canada West poster, I used elements of colour, images and symbols, slogans, and textual information. The words "Canada West" are in large, bright red letters. They stand out on the page, and catch the viewer's attention.
I coloured the sky bright blue, to show good weather.
The grass is very green. This also makes the viewer think of good weather for growing things, because the grass looks very healthy. If it was brown and dry, it would make it seem like it never rains in the prairies.
The wheat is sparkly and golden, because it makes the farm look very prosperous. It looks like the wheat is always good and easy to grow.
This poster also makes use of images in advertising. The cows in the foreground are fat. There is plenty of grass for them to eat. There is also a calf, a symbol which shows that the prairies are a good place to build up a farm with lots of animals.
The houses are fairly close together, so the viewer thinks that there is a community of people near by.
The train going over the hill also illustrates civilization and culture in the prairies, as well as easy access to Canada East.
The slogan "Canada West: Living Your Dream" portrays the prairies as a place where all your dreams will come true; you will be rich within a year or two, you will have a big family, lots of friends, and a beautiful home.
In the bottom corner is "160 Acres Free!" which advertises a farm absolutely for free- 160 acres of land!
This poster is an advertisement for Canada West- but is this really what Canada West was like?

Monday 9 May 2011

Analysis- Slogans and Textual Information

On this poster is the slogan "Canada- The New Homeland"
Slogans are used to capture the viewer's attention and promise something about whatever is being advertised. This slogan, "The New Homeland," promises to be a good place to raise a family; a home. It promises that Canada will be as good, or better, than Britain.
There is not much other information on this poster.