📘 Part 3: Advertising and persuasion

This episode's vocabulary

Raise awareness (phrasal verb) – to make people conscious of a problem or issue. → Advertisements are designed to raise awareness about new products.

Cave to the pressure (phrasal verb) – to give in or agree to something you previously opposed because of persuasion or force. → Parents often cave to the pressure from their children and buy them the toy.

Agent of [someone] (noun phrase) – a person or thing that acts on behalf of another. → Advertising turns children into agents of advertisers.

Carrot and stick approach (idiom) – a method of persuasion using a combination of rewards (the carrot) and punishments (the stick). → Many parents use a carrot and stick approach to encourage good behaviour.

Hold sway over (phrasal verb) – to have great power or influence over someone or something. → Parents usually hold more sway over their children's actions than teachers do.

Irrelevant (adjective) – not connected with or relevant to something. → That's not to say that teachers are totally irrelevant; they just have relatively less influence.

Discourage (verb) – to prevent or try to prevent something from happening by making it difficult or by showing disapproval. → They will punish bad behavior to discourage it.

Toing and froing (noun) – a constant movement backward and forward; a lengthy and unproductive discussion. → I'm sure there's a lot of toing and froing before a parent actually buys the product.

Draw attention to (phrasal verb) – to make someone notice something. → Advertising might draw their attention to alternative options for things.

Give in (phrasal verb) – to finally agree to what someone wants after refusing for a period of time. → The children kept asking until their parents gave in.

Questions and Answers

Maria: How do advertisements persuade people?

Rory: I think the main ways are usually just raising awareness about how products might improve someone's life and maybe also by making them fear what will happen if they don't buy them, which is a bit sad, but it seems to work very well with a lot of people.

Maria: What impact does advertising have on children and their parents?

Rory: Well, when it comes to the kids, it seems like it just makes them go on at their parents about the products until they cave to the pressure and buy the thing, or things. So it turns children into agents of advertisers, which is also very disappointing. As for the parents, it might draw their attention to alternative options for things. But it could just as well frighten them into thinking that if they don't have the item, their children will suffer in some way.

Maria: What advice should young people follow?

Rory: Well, ideally, good advice. Though how that looks probably varies from culture to culture. In mine, it usually includes things like working hard, respecting people, and following rules. These usually go a long way to keeping them out of trouble.

Maria: What are some good ways to persuade children?

Rory: I don't know, really. I'm not a parent. But it seems most parents follow the sort of carrot and stick approach. So they'll offer rewards for good behavior and encourage it to happen more, and they will punish bad behavior to discourage it.

Maria: Who do children listen to more, their parents or their teachers?

Rory: I imagine their parents, since they spend the most time with them, and so they probably hold more sway over their actions. That's not to say that teachers are totally irrelevant, they just have relatively less influence.

Maria: What do parents often persuade children to do?

Rory: Well, ideally, the right thing, though, again, what the right things look like is obviously open to interpretation. It could be following the household rules or various instructions, or simply just not doing something annoying.

Maria: Thank you, Rory, for your answers.