A study of smirnoff`s advertisements.

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A STUDY OF SMIRNOFF’S ADVERTISEMENTS
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
For the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters

By
SISKA AMALIA
Student number: 064214035

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA
2012

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A STUDY OF SMIRNOFF’S ADVERTISEMENTS
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
For the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters

By
SISKA AMALIA
Student number: 064214035

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
2012
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This thesis is dedicated to
My beloved Mother and Father
My sisters and brother
My Family and Friends

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First of all, I would like to thank God for all the blessing and guidance so that
I can finally finish this thesis.
My gratitude goes to my advisor, Dr. Fr. B. Alip, M.Pd, M.A., for his support
and valuable suggestions to finish my thesis. I also would like to thank my coadvisor, Dra. B. Ria Lestari, M.S., for the valuable suggestions so that I can improve
my writing. I would like to thank so much to Bu Anna and Cie Linda for their time,
support, and valuable suggestions to finish my thesis.
My gratitude also goes to my lovely family for their support and patience. I
dedicate this thesis for my amazing mom; I love you my angel. I also dedicate this
thesis for my lovely father. I would like to thank him for his love, support, and
patience. This thesis is also dedicated to my lovely sisters; Susan and Nanda, and my
lovely brother, Niko.
My deepest appreciation also goes to my amazing friends Media Hutabarat

and Ratri Sarwaningtyas for supporting me to finish this thesis. I would like to thank
them so much for their amazing understanding. I also would like to thank to my
lovely friends Handoko Setyo, Gentur Utomo, Puspita Maharani, Gabriella
Nugraheni, Zi, and Eni for their support, time, and help.

Siska Amalia

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LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN
PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma:
Nama

: Siska Amalia
Nomor Mahasiswa : 064214035
Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan
Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:
A STUDY OF SMIRNOFF’S ADVERTISEMENTS
beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan
kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan
dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data,
mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di Internet atau media
lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun
memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai
penulis.
Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.
Dibuat di Yogyakarta
Pada tanggal: 07 NOVEMBER 2012
Yang menyatakan,

Siska Amalia

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SURAT PERNYATAAN KEASLIAN KARYA
Saya yang bertanda tangan dibawah ini menyatakan dengan sesungguhnya bahwa
skripsi yang saya tulis ini tidak memuat karya atau bagian karya orang lain, kecuali
yang telah disebutkan dalam kutipan dan daftar pustaka sebagaimana layaknya karya
ilmiah

Yogyakarta, 07 November 2012
Penulis,

Siska Amalia

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ........................................................................................................... i
APPROVAL PAGE ................................................................................................ ii
ACCEPTANCE PAGE .......................................................................................... iii
DEDICATION PAGE............................................................................................ iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................... v
LEMBAR PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI ............................................................. vi
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN KEASLIAN KARYA...............................................vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................... viii
ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................ x
ABSTRAK ............................................................................................................... xi
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ........................................................................... 1

A. Background of the Study ......................................................................... 1
B. Problem Formulation ............................................................................... 4
C. Objectives of the Study ............................................................................ 4
E. Definition of Terms .................................................................................. 5
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW ............................................................ 6
A. Review of Related Studies ....................................................................... 6
B. Review of Related Theories ..................................................................... 7
1. Theories of Stylistics and Language of Advertising ......................... 7
a. Graphology..................................................................................... 8
b. Alliteration ..................................................................................... 9
c. Grammar ........................................................................................ 9
d. Ellipsis ......................................................................................... 10
e. Rhyme .......................................................................................... 10
f. Vocabulary ................................................................................... 11
2. Theory of Image’s Denotative and Connotative meaning ............... 11
a. Denotation and connotation ......................................................... 12
b. Barthes’ Views on Image’s Denotation and Connotation ............ 14
i. Image Message......................................................................... 15
ii. Connotation Procedure............................................................ 15
a). Trick Effects...................................................................... 15

b). Pose ................................................................................... 16
c). Objects .............................................................................. 16
d). Photogenia ........................................................................ 17
e). Aestheticism ...................................................................... 17
f). Syntax ................................................................................ 18
iii. Text and Image ...................................................................... 18

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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY ..................................................................... 20
A. Object of the Study ................................................................................ 20
B. Approach of the Study ........................................................................... 21
C. Method of the Study ............................................................................... 21

CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS AND RESULTS .................................................... 23
A. Stylistic Analysis of Smirnoff’s Advertisement .................................... 23
1. Everything Else Tastes Like Water ................................................. 24
2. Extraordinary Purity in Every Drop ................................................ 26
3. Real Temptation .............................................................................. 26
4. Clearly Sharp. Clearly Smirnoff ...................................................... 27
5. Haven’t Tried Smirnoff? Where in the World Have You Been ...... 28
6. Friends are Worth Smirnoff ............................................................. 29
7. Be Whoever You Want ................................................................... 29
8. I’ve Spread My Wings Since I discovered Smirnoff ....................... 30
9. Not Too Sweet and Not Too Tart .................................................... 31
10. Invigorating Refreshing Taste ....................................................... 32
B. Interpretation of the Denotation and Connotation of Smirnoff’s
Advertising Images ................................................................................ 33
1. Everything Else Tastes Like Water ................................................. 35
2. Extraordinary Purity in Every Drop ................................................ 36
3. Real Temptation .............................................................................. 38
4. Clearly Sharp. Clearly Smirnoff ...................................................... 41
5. Haven’t Tried Smirnoff? Where in the World Have You Been ...... 42
6. Friends are Worth Smirnoff ............................................................. 44
7. Be Whoever You Want ................................................................... 46
8. I’ve Spread My Wings Since I discovered Smirnoff ....................... 48
9. Not Too Sweet and Not Too Tart .................................................... 50
10. Invigorating Refreshing Taste ....................................................... 51
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION ............................................................................ 54
BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................ 58

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ABSTRACT
SISKA AMALIA. A Study of Smirnoff’s Advertisements. Yogyakarta: Department
of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2012.
This thesis was conducted to investigate how Smirnoff’s advertisement signs
deliver certain denotative and connotative meanings to the audience. To facilitate this
purpose, ten Smirnoff’s advertisement images along with the texts have been already
chosen to analyze.
This thesis covers two problems. The first is to analyze the language styles
used in Smirnoff’s advertisements. The second is devoted to study the connotation
interpretation of the advertisement texts (slogans) and visual objects found in
Smirnoff’s advertisements. The purpose of this study is to help the readers understand
the Smirnoff advertisements’ texts and images stylistically and find the denotative
and connotative meanings delivered.
To answer the problems, the researcher applied the following method of
study; the first was data collection and the second was data analysis. In collecting the
data, the researcher applied a random sampling technique. The data were taken from
internet sources and chosen based on some different categories. After the data were
collected, the researcher then analyzed the data. The first analysis dealt with stylistic
application in the Smirnoff’s advertisements and the second was the interpretation of
the denotative and connotative meanings delivered by the texts and visual objects in
the advertisements.
After some analysis was done, the researcher arrived at certain findings. The
first finding was that Smirnoff advertisements employ certain stylistic devices such as
vocabulary (diction), grammar (sentence, clause, phrase, word, morpheme), ellipsis,
rhyme, alliteration, and graphology all of which to attract the audience. The second
finding was that Smirnoff’s advertisements’ texts and visual objects create certain
meanings and effects to the audience. It is also found that the texts and visual objects
are inseparable parts which create precise connotative meanings to the audience.

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ABSTRAK
SISKA AMALIA. A Study of Smirnoff’s Advertisements. Yogyakarta: Jurusan
Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2012.
Skripsi ini ditujukan untuk meneliti bagaimana tanda-tanda di dalam iklan
Smirnoff menyampaikan makna denotatif dan konotatif kepada pembaca. Untuk
mendukung penelitian ini, sepuluh iklan Smirnoff berupa gambar dan teks dipilih
untuk diteliti.
Skripsi ini mencakup dua pokok masalah. Masalah yang pertama ditujukan
untuk meneliti penggunaan gaya bahasa di dalam iklan Smirnoff. Masalah yang
kedua ditujukan untuk mempelajari interpretasi makna konotatif teks iklan (slogan)
dan objek visual yang ditemukan pada iklan Smirnoff. Tujuan dari penelitian ini
adalah untuk membantu pembaca memahami teks dan objek visual iklan Smirnoff
dari segi gaya bahasa dan mencari makna denotatif dan konotatif yang disampaikan.
Untuk menjawab kedua masalah tersebut, peneliti menerapkan beberapa
metode khusus. Metode yang pertama adalah pengumpulan data dan yang kedua
adalah pengolahan data. Dalam mengumpulkan data, peneliti menerapkan teknik
pemilihan data acak. Data tersebut diambil dari beberapa sumber di internet dan
dipilih berdasarkan beberapa kategori. Setelah data terkumpul dan dipilih, peneliti
kemudian mengolah data tersebut. Penelitian pertama berkaitan dengan penerapan
gaya bahasa di dalam iklan Smirnoff dan yang kedua adalah interpretasi makna
denotatif dan konotatif yang disampaikan oleh teks dan objek visual di dalam iklan
Smirnoff.
Setelah beberapa tahap penelitian dilakukan, peneliti menggunakan beberapa
metode. Temuan yang pertama adalah bahwa iklan Smirnoff menggunakan beberapa
skema stilistika seperti kosakata (pilihan kata), tata bahasa (kalimat, klausa, frase,
kata, morfem), elipsis, rima, aliterasi, dan grafologi yang kesemuanya adalah untuk
menarik perhatian pembaca. Temuan yang kedua adalah bahwa teks dan obyek visual
dalam iklan Smirnoff menciptakan makna dan pengaruh tertentu kepada pembaca.
Ditemukan pula teks dan obyek visual dari iklan tersebut adalah dua bagian yang
tidak dapat dipisahkan dalam menciptakan makna konotatif yang tepat kepada
pembaca.
.

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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
As human beings, we cannot live without others. In this case,
communication is needed to build conversation. To be able to communicate with
others we need a tool. Language is the tool and it plays important role to
communicate with other people. “When you know a language, you can speak and
be understood by others who know that language” (Joseph Bram, 1955: 4). By
knowing the language in a society, we can have communication with the people
who also know the language. The existence of language eases people to share
what they feel such as happiness, sadness, regret, excitement and many more. In
other words, language also can be the tool to express somebody’s feeling.
There are so many kinds of languages that we can find in the world. One
of the most popular languages is English. English is the most common language in
this world. “English is the world’s most important language” (Quirk et.al).
According to David Crystal in his book English as a Global Language, “English
is now represented in every continent, and in islands of three major oceansAtlantic (St Helena), Indian (Seychelles) and Pacific (in many islands, such as Fiji
and Hawaii)” (2003: 29). In other words English is a global language that spreads
all over the world. English is the bridge to communicate when two people or more
come from different places and speak different languages. English is spoken by so
many people and so many countries worldwide including Indonesia. In Indonesia,
English is used as a foreign language. In Indonesia, English is not used as the
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daily conversation. English exists in advertisements, magazines, television,
commercials, books and mass media. The language that is used in advertisement
is different from the daily language.
Since advertisement language is to promote an advertised product,
therefore, it must be attractive and persuasive. According to Warren J. Keegan in
his book Global Marketing Management, advertisement is “defined as any
sponsored paid communication placed in mass medium vehicle” (1994:554).
Through advertisement in mass media, the company communicates the products
to the public. Starting from this context, it is assumed that language plays as the
predominant means of communication in advertisements. The language in
advertisement has to be managed in an attractive way that can make people easily
remember the advertisement. “The message strategy is determined by what and
how the company wants to communicate” (Bovée and Arens, 1986: 255).
Language that is used must be able to deliver the message of the company to the
publ i c .
In relation to the language used in advertisements, we can find it in
magazine, internet, television, posters, billboard and many more. There are so
many products that are being advertised, one of them is beverage advertisement.
There are many kinds of beverage advertisements that we can find today.
The beverage advertisement is commonly targeted for adult above 18. It is due to
the law that only people above 18 are permitted to drink beverage. One of the
most popular beverage brands worldwide is Smirnoff. Smirnoff is a vodka brand

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that is very popular worldwide. In January 26th, 2005, Smirnoff won the
competition held by New York Times. According to New York Times, ‘After the
21 vodkas were sipped and the results compiled, the Smirnoff was our handsdown favorite’. Smirnoff was successfully won the competition from the 20 brand
competitors. In Indonesia, Smirnoff is very limited. We can find the Smirnoff
Vodka in night clubs and the Smirnoff Ice can be found in some convenience
stores.
The writer is interested in Smirnoff’s advertisement because the
advertisements are very unique. It can attract people’s curiosity by the implied
meaning of the advertisement. Smirnoff’s advertisement uses visual object and
written text. The writer deems that visual object and the written text of Smirnoff’s
advertisement have a strong relationship. The visual object of the advertisement
supports the written text and vice versa. Both are very important to help the
people to catch the implied meaning of the advertisement. From the information,
the Smirnoff advertisements are offered to the readers who are segmented in a
particular social class. In this case, the people who are in a particular social class
can be referred as young generation that love to have fun in night club and also
‘party’ and these people consider their activity as a lifestyle.
In this thesis, the writer analyze the language style and the implied
meaning through the written text and the visual object of Smirnoff’s
advertisements. The writer believes that stylistics is a suitable approach that can
be used to analyze the advertisement. According to Peter Verdonk in Stylistics, he

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stated that “stylistics is concerned with the study of style in language” (2002:3).
Due to the concern of stylistics in language style, it is suitable to be used in this
thesis to analyze the Smirnoff’s Advertisement. According to Paul Simpson in
Stylistics: A resource book for students,“to do stylistics is to explore language,
and, more specifically, to explore creativity in language use” (2004: 3). Talking
about advertisement, it needs creativity in language to present good advertisement
to the public. By using stylistics, the writer is able to explore the creativity in
language use of the advertisement.
The focus of this study is to reveal whether the elements of texts and
images in Smirnoff’s advertisements together construct new meanings and
produce the information of the products that are being advertised. This study is
expected to give more explanation and understanding of language style and
contextual interpretations used in Smirnoff’s advertisements.

B. Problem Formulation
To guide the writer in analyzing Smirnoff’s advertisement, these are the
two problems formulation used in this analysis:
1. What language styles are used in Smirnoff’s advertisement?
2. What are the contextual interpretations used in written texts and the
visual objects found in Smirnoff’s advertisement?

C. Objective of the Study

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This thesis is to reveal the important relationship between the written text
and the visual object of Smirnoff’s advertisement. Besides, the other goal of this
thesis is to unravel the problems formulation. The other objective is to reveal the
language styles are used in Smirnoff’s advertisements. It is also to reveal the
textual and inter textual of the text in Smirnoff’s advertisement.

D. Definition of Terms
To avoid ambiguity in this thesis, the writer has listed some terms related
to the analysis.
1. Stylistics
According to Peter Verdonk in Stylistics, “stylistics, the study of
style, can be defined as the analysis of distinctive expression in
language and the description of its purpose and effect” (2002:4)

2. Advertisement
According to Thomas C. O’Guinn, Chris T.Allen, and Richard J.
Semenik

in

Advertising

and

Integrated

Brand

Promotion,

“advertisement refers to a specific message that someone or some
organization has placed to persuade an audience” (2003:11)

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CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW

A. Review of Related Studies
In this part, the writer will review the previous study done by Felix
Suparno entitled A Study of Language and Sign in TIME Magazine’s Front
Covers Issued in January to December 2006: Stylistic-Semiotic Approach. In the
study, Felix Suparno analyzed the relation between the text and the virtual image
of the Time’s Magazine front cover.
The relation between the text of the headline and the image are important
things in Time Magazine. The text of the headline contains some vocabulary
choices or diction. The language that is used is different from another Magazine.
The text is very brave and short.
Felix Suparno stated that the covers of Time Magazine are a pack of signs.
The elements of the cover of Time Magazine may become the signs for the
readers to know what the magazine is about.
In his study, Felix Suparno analyzed the cover of Time Magazine by using
stylistics and semiotics. The stylistics is used to analyze the text and then the
semiotics is used to interpret the virtual image. In his study, he stated that the
language that is used in Time Magazine’s front cover contains some elements that
can attract reader’s attention.
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Felix Suparno also stated that, stylistically, TIME’s headlines deliver
certain vocabulary choices (diction). It is found that TIME employs a common or
colloquial language in its headline (even one of them used informal language).
Obviously, this method is used to give a sense of clarity to the readers so that the
readers will be able to grasp the meaning of the headline ((Suparno, 2003:70). The
use of such languages is clearly used to attract people to buy the copies of the
magazine. The combination of language and images used in the headline is the
key to attract readers more. Advertisements, at the same level, employ language
and images to attract and persuade people.
Nevertheless, the study of this thesis is not the same as the related study
reviewed above. However, there is one point emphasized to show the importance
of studying styles of language because advertisements also use language to attract
and persuade people. This study will investigate the use of language and how
written texts and visual objects produce meanings. This thesis will use Smirnoff’s
advertisement as the object of the study.
B. Review of Related Theories
1. Theories of Stylistics and Language of Advertising
Stylistics is the study of style, the analysis of distinctive expression in
language, and the description of its purpose and effect (Verdonk, 2002:4). Its aim
is to show how the linguistic features of literary work such as grammatical
structures of sentence can convey the meaning and give certain effects toward the
reader. The phrase ‘literary work’ here does not mean that stylistics deals only

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with literature. It belongs to prose, political speeches, and so on, including
advertisements.
Language in advertisements is very unique. It is different from the daily
language and daily conversation. Unlike reading a headline of a newspaper,
reading an advertisement needs deeper understanding. It means that we have to
read it in detail. We might find advertisement everywhere and the language used
for each advertisement is different. The language on television would be different
from the language of written text. ‘Written advertisements have to compete with
each other and with all sorts of other texts in our richly literate culture’ (Goddard,
2002:9).
To do text analysis under stylistic approach means to examine language
within academic matter. It is actually imperative that language is stylistically
viewed. However, stylistic exploration enriches our way of thinking and
understanding language (Simpson, 2004:3).
There are some main styles especially in the language used by advertisers
in advertising products. Each example within the styles below deals with Angela
Goddard’s The Language of Advertising:
a. Graphology
Graphology is one of the stylistic features associated with the visual
aspects of the texts (Goddard, 2002:16). This style is used in advertisements to get
readers’ attention because in this style it includes the layout and images. For
example, car advertisements are giving the picture of the car with its details in a

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good layout. The aim of this is to make readers understand about the advertised
product’s details so that they will have clear information about the product.
b. Alliteration
Alliteration is when the initial sound is duplicated in following words.
For example:
Sila sings some songs beautifully
This method gives certain effects to the reader. According to Verdonk,
alliteration is not only pleasing our ears but also drawing the attention and giving
long memorability sense to the readers (2002:14).
c. Grammar
Grammar is the rules and conventions for the way structures are combined.
Grammatical units are arranged on the basis of their size (Simpson, 2004:10).
SENTENCE

CLAUSE

PHRASE

WORD

MORPHEME

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The downward arrows indicate the largest to the smallest rank scale. The
variation of structures tends to be more highly valued. In the advertisements, the
use of grammar is important in order to reduce the reader’s confusion.
d. Ellipsis
Ellipsis is the omission of part of structures (Goddard, 2002: 109). In faceto face interactions, ellipsis is used for reasons of economy and can often create a
sense of informality, for example:
‘Ready?’
‘Two minutes’
The elliptic elements are ‘Are you’ and ‘I will be ready in’.
If the elements are included, they will be:
‘(Are you) ready?’
‘(I will be ready in) two minutes.’
The ellipsis creates a casual and informal effect. Advertising language
attempts to reproduce the elliptical nature of spoken language in order to establish
closeness with the reader.
e. Rhyme
Rhyme occurs when words or syllables end in the same sound.
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The children are singing, running, and laughing.
The word ‘singing’, ‘running’, and ‘laughing’ have the rhyme with the same
ending /Iŋ/.
f. Vocabulary
It is very important, in textual analysis, to consider the choice of words
used in advertisements, for a number of reasons: they are often strongly connected
with the product’s ‘proposed unique selling’ (quality) and they also tend to be
markers of what is thought important at the time (Goddard, 2002:73). They
indicate some things to emphasize and compare.
Example:
‘newer’ is used, rather than ‘new’
‘more satisfying’ is used, rather than ‘satisfying’
At some points, this also has to do with lexis used to demonstrate some
interesting differences or similarities (Goddard, 2002:107).
Example:
‘a bit trim’ is used, rather than ‘a bit of a trim’

2. Theory of Image’s Denotative and Connotative Meaning
Today in the 21st century, with the advancements in technology such as the
internet, cell phones, and media, thousands of photographic images are exposed

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each day with easy access. Whether people consciously or unconsciously see the
wide array of them in our daily lives on magazines, newspapers, television, or
advertisements on cars, buses, and even airplanes, they live in a world consumed
by aesthetic beauty. When an image captures and intrigues our eye, it expresses
cultural values and ideologies that one may not see directly.
According to Longman: Dictionary of Contemporary English, meaning is
the idea of a word, sign, and expression represents. While in term of ideas,
meaning is the thoughts that someone wants other people to understand from what
they say, do, write, etc. The definition gives an understanding that it is not only
words that have meaning but also expressions and signs. On the other hand, there
is also an understanding that meaning is delivered through many ways, whether it
is through spoken language, written language, acts, or visual objects, such as:
images (paintings, photographs, etc), statues, installations, acts, and many others.
They can be easily and literally perceived by people, but it may also be contextual
as it is intended to be. This brings us to the terms of denotation and connotation
from which meaning develops into both of them.
a. Denotation and Connotation
In semantics, denotative meaning is often assumed as the central factor of
communication and can be shown to be integral to the essential functioning of
language in a way that other types of meaning are not (Lyons, 1995: 76).
Denotation represents something as what it is. For example, when somebody says
‘dog’, the word refers to a kind of animal called ‘dog’. In other words, denotation
is pure meaning of a word found in dictionaries. While connotative meaning is the

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communicative value an expression has by virtue of what it refers to, over and
above its purely conceptual context (Lyons, 1995: 79). This is in line with
Hawkes stating that connotation is the use of language to mean something other
than what it is said (1977:33). It implies that the meaning of connotation cannot
be grasped literally because it is formed in cultural unit. For example, when
someone refers someone else as a “dog” it may contextually means that someone
else “is like a dog” or “acts like a dog”, but he is not the dog itself.
In the view of semiotics, denotation and connotation are terms describing
the relationship between the signifier and its signified, and an analytic distinction
is

made

between

two

types

of

signifieds:

a denotative signified

a nd

a connotative signified. Meaning includes both denotation and connotation.
Denotation functions as signifier of connotation. The signifiers of connotation
(connotators) are made of signs (signifiers and signified united) of the denoted
system (Barthes, 1964: 91). Based on the view of semiotics, several denoted signs
can be grouped together to form a single connotator. This implies that connotation
is a second-order of signification which uses the denotative sign (signifier and
signified) as its signifier and attaches to it an additional signified. In this
framework, connotation is a sign which derives from the signifier of a denotative
sign. Therefore, denotation leads to a chain of connotations. This tends to suggest
that denotation is an underlying and primary meaning; a notion which many other
commentators have challenged.

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sr = signifier, sd = signified
Figure 1.1 Chains of Denotation and Connotation

The first order of signification is that of denotation. At this level, there is a
sign consisting of a signifier and a signified. Connotation is a second-order of
signification which uses the denotative sign (signifier and signified) as its signifier
and attaches to it an additional signified. However, Barthes later gave priority to
connotation. He noted that it was no longer easy to separate the signifier from the
signified, the ideological from the 'literal' (Barthes 1977: 166).
b. Barthes’ Views on Image’s Denotation and Connotation
i. Image Message
In The Photographic Message, one point emphasized by Barthes is that the
press photograph is a message and messages are composed through denotation
and connotation (1977: 15). As mentioned in the previous section, denotation is
the literal meaning or reference of a sign, whereas connotation is the meanings
suggested or implied by a sign. Thus, an image by itself without a sign or code
appears to be purely denotative. However, Barthes (1977: 17) then noted that each
of those messages develops in an immediate and obvious way a supplementary
message, in analogical to the content itself (scene, object, landscape), that is then
called the style of reproduction. The second meaning, which its signifier is a
certain treatment of the image (result of the action of the creator) and signified,

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refers to a certain culture of the society receiving the message. It can be concluded
that an image compromises two messages, i.e. a denoted massage and a connoted
message, which the manner in which the society to a certain extent communicates
what it thinks of it.
ii. Connotation Procedures
Barthes notes that an image creator can add a meaning different than that
of the cultural meaning. Barthes’ theory of the photographic message discusses
the communication capacities and intricacies of photographs as “an object
endowed with structural autonomy” (Barthes, 1977: 15). In modern society
photographs are more readily capable of being manipulated to express a desired or
connoted message through the use of what Barthes calls connotative procedures
(1977: 20). Therefore, it can be concluded that images, for example in
advertisements, tends to be manipulated to represent their connoted messages to
attract readers or consumers as it is widely understood that advertisements are
created to influence readers to finally decided to consume or use the products
advertised. Through the techniques mentioned in connotative procedures offered
by Barthes, an image creator can improve and strengthen the messages intended to
deliver. It is very important to give a glance at Barthes’ six connotation
procedures as mentioned below:
a) Trick Effects
The methodological interest of trick effects is that they intervene without
warning in the plane of denotation; they utilize the special credibility of the
photograph in order to pass off as merely denoted a message which is reality

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heavily connoted; in no other treatment does the connotation assume so
completely the ‘objective mask of denotation. Naturally, signification is only
possible to the extent that there is a stock of signs, the beginning of a code. Trick
effects can change the overall meaning of an image.
Trick effects can be crude or they can be minor, for example, when the
saturation color is changed, when the horizon is straightened, or when just a bit
contrast is added to the final image. Nowadays, when the image editing
technology is very sophisticated, it is very possible to change or edit every single
part of an image by employing a photo editing software. Therefore, trick effects
become the main procedure used by a lot of image creators.
b) Pose
Obviously a person’s or an object’s pose can change the meaning of a
shot, particularly on the connotative level. If a pose is directed of appeared in
specific manner, it can give a deep impression. For example, a pose of a smiling
person gives different impression with a pose of a crying person. Pose then, or in
more general term is called composition, is a connotation procedure. It is one of
the elements that can be used for inducing a specific set of meanings in a
photographic message.
c) Objects
Special importance must be accorded to what can be called the posing of
objects, where the meaning comes from the object photographed which is possibly
arranged in front of the camera or because the person responsible for lay-out

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chooses a photograph of this or that object. The interest lies in the fact that the
objects are accepted inducers of association of ideas. For example, a picture of
flowing clean water represents purity and freshness.
The connotation of objects captured somehow emerge from all signifying
units which are nevertheless ‘captured’ as though the scenes are immediate and
spontaneous or, in other words, without signification.
d) Photogenia
In photogenia, the connoted message is the image itself, ‘embellished’
(which is to say in general sublimed) by techniques of lighting, exposure, and
printing (Barthes, 1977: 23). It means by using different light sources, exposure
techniques, and printing, the connotation of an image can be directed and
controlled. In photogenia, the materials used to capture or create an image are
chosen to give a different result. For example, whether to use digital or non-digital
capturing tools, the kind of the camera, lenses, software, etc. In short, photogenia
is how to treat an image or photograph in the process of creation so that it can
construct a connotative meaning intended.
e) Aestheticism
When photography turns painting, composition or visual substance treated
with deliberation in its very material “texture”, it is either so as to signify itself as
“art” (which was the case with the “pictorialism” of the beginning of the century)
or to impose a general more subtle and complex signifier than would be possible
with other connotation procedures (Barthes, 1977: 24). There is an understanding

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that aestheticism also plays a role in photography such as in painting. In another
point of view, the term “photography” refers to the role of photography that
sometimes can represent painting, which is full of art.
f) Syntax
Barthes simply states that when more than one image is involved, there
emerges a new connotative level based on the series or cluster of images (Barthes,
1977:24). Series or clusters of pictures are nowadays very common. Newspaper or
magazine articles and advertisements are obvious examples where more than one
images are often used. An advertising campaign, most of the time, uses more than
one picture. Multiple pictures can provoke a lot of connotations.
iii. Text and Image
Texts often found accompanied images such as in magazine covers as
headlines, in advertisements, in pamphlets, etc. Barthes then works further on the
impact of accompanying text on photograph. Although the connotative procedures
amplify various social messages, the text of the photo connotes even further
messages. There are three points remarked by Barthes:
a) The text constitutes a parasitic message designed to connote the image, to
‘quicken’ it with one or more second-order signifieds. In other words, the
image no longer illustrates the words. This is a historical reversal of the photo
as merely illustrative of the text. In turn, it is now the words which,
structurally, are parasitic on the image.

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b) The effect of connotation probably differs according to the way in which the
text is presented. The closer the text to the image, the less it seems to connote
it; caught as it were in the iconographic message, the verbal message seems to
share its objectivity, the connotation of language is ‘innocented’ through the
photograph’s denotation.
c) It is impossible, however, that the words duplicate the image. In the
movement from one structure to the other second, signifieds are inevitably
developed.
Barthes (1977:27) emphasizes that the relationship of the signifieds of
connotation to the image is to make explicit or to provide a stress because the text
most often simply amplifying a set of connotations already given in the
photograph. However, sometimes the text produces or invents an entirely new
signified which is retroactively projected into the image.
The first underlying theory that deals with stylistics and language of
advertisement will be suitable to analyze the styles of language in the Smirnoff
advertisements as the theory fives deeper views on how language styles are used
in advertising. While the second underlying theory, the Barthes’s views on
image’s connotation and denotation, will bring big values in analyzing denotative
and connotative messages brought by images especially in the analysis of visual
objects of advertisements as what is intended in this study. The Barthes’ view on
text and image connotation and denotation will also enrich the analysis of
Smirnoff’s advertisements because they contain texts that cannot be viewed
separately from the images.

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CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY

A. Object of the Study
This thesis deals with the application of language styles and supporting
visual objects in Smirnoff’s Advertisements. Smirnoff is a vodka brand that is
very popular worldwide. After the Second World War, it was virtually the only
vodka available outside communist Russia for almost 30 years. In January 26th,
2005, Smirnoff won the competition, held by New York Times, from the 20 brand
competitors. Each of Smirnoff’s advertisement is considered unique and has
deeper meaning used to persuade, attract, and “hypnotize” people to buy the
Smirnoff’s products. There are a lot of kinds of advertisements employed by
Smirnoff; one of them is magazine advertising in form of written texts and
images. This kind of advertising will be the object of the study as it is directly
related to language styles of written texts.
There are 10 Smirnoff’s advertisements that are going to be analyzed.
They are taken from some magazines’ advertisements from which some internet
resources get and share the advertisements, in form of images, freely. The 10
advertisements are chosen because they are considered relevant to the study, i.e.
containing written texts in form of slogans and virtual images that support the
t e xt s .

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The slogans in the advertisements are taken as data and the images are
then considered as the supporting and given values to construct complete analysis.

B. Approach of the Study
In analyzing the linguistic features applied in the chosen Smirnoff’s
advertisements, stylistics will be used as the approach. Stylistics is a critical
approach which uses the methods and findings of the science of language in the
analysis of literary texts (Barry: 2002:203). The literary texts here do not only
deal with literature as they include not only prose but also other non literary texts,
including advertisement. To deepen and specify the approach, the theory of
characteristics and stylistic features of advertising slogan will also be used as the
supporting approach.

C. Method of the Study
This study is considered as library research. The writer of the thesis works
and focuses on the Smirnoff’s advertisements which will be used as the data. The
theories used to analyze the data are taken from linguistics books. These theories
are then presented to make clear and understandable analysis.
There are some steps used in the analysis. Data collection was done first to
get the samples of the analysis. The data were collected from Smirnoff image
advertisements mainly taken from the internet. Those advertisements appear in
magazines, web pages, and other various media. The writer would use examples
and evidences to provide answers for the existing problem formulations

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mentioned in the Chapter 1. To reach the goal of the study, this thesis was
conducted by applying certain theories related to the study.
After data finding and collection were conducted, the writer did some
useful steps for the analysis. The first was to analyze the styles of language used
in the Smirnoff’s advertisements to answer the first problem in the problem
formulation. This step was done by reading the texts of the advertisements whole
fully and word by word to find out the language styles used. The texts were then
classified based on the linguistic features to see the most common features. The
amount of the frequency of occurrence of each linguistic feature was needed to
find out which linguistic feature occurs the most frequent.
The analysis of the Smirnoff’s advertisement images used Barthes’s theory
of image denotation and connotation mentioned in Chapter II. The second
problem was then answered by interpreting the virtual objects (images) combined
with the linguistic features of the texts to see how they create the whole contextual
meanings of the Smirnoff’s advertisements. The last step was drawing conclusion
of the analysis result.

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CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS AND RESULTS

This chapter will reveal the problem formulations mentioned in Chapter I,
i.e.: (a) language styles used in Smirnoff’s advertisements and (b) the contextual
interpretations used in written texts and the visual objects found in Smirnoff’s
advertisements.
A. Stylistic Analysis of Smirnoff’s Advertisements
As previously mentioned in Chapter I, Smirnoff are offered to the readers
who are segmented in particular class, i.e. the young people that love to have fun
in night clubs and parties. These people consider those activities as lifestyle. This
phenomenon is considered to be one of the effects of the Smirnoff’s
advertisements which are stylistically rich. Smirnoff advertisements engage
certain stylistic devices which produce certain effects to the readers. Thus, it is
first essential to explore the issue of stylistic systems in greater depth and higher
level of analysis. To illustrate how fundamental stylistics aspects work in
Smirnoff’s advertisements, ten Smirnoff’s advertisements have been investigated
to clarify the stylistic devices applied in Smirnoff’s advertisements. The data have
been purposely taken from the internet and chosen based on the category of
advertisements containing both texts and images. There are around four patterns
of styles found in the advertisements, i.e. sentence, clause, phrase, and
combination of sentence-clause. In this thesis, the theory of stylistics is assigned
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to reconstruct the manner of expression in Smirnoff’s advertisements. All
advertisements will be explored in stylistic viewpoints. This is devoted to answer
the first research question: the language styles used in Smirnoff’s advertisements.
The language styles in advertisements are unique and have their own
specifications. There are some main styles in the language used by advertisers in
advertising their products. Therefore, to narrow and to focus the analysis, it will
be based on the styles that deal with The Language of Advertising offered by
Angela Goddard.
Before presenting the stylistic analysis on each advertisement, there is one
thing important to be noted. As Smirnoff’s advertisements contain both texts and
images, they cannot be fully separated. Each Smirnoff’s advertisement has
graphology style which features text with visual aspects. Some images in
Smirnoff’s advertisements featur