A MULTIMODAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF FAST FOOD ADVERTISEMENTS IN ENGLISH

Abstract

Online advertisement is one of the various kinds of media advertisement which unavoidably surrounds people’s life these days. This paper presents the major findings of a recent study aiming at figuring out which verbal and non-verbal elements have been used in fast food ads in English and how effective they are on the consumption of the audience. The study drew on the Multimodal Interactional discourse analysis (Norris, 2004) as both theoretical and analytical framework. Two video ads of two well-known fast food chains in the world (Kentucky Fried Chicken andMcDonald’s) were analyzed. The findings of the study reveal that apart from language, there are many other communicative modes influencing people to consume fast food products such as proxemics, posture, gesture, gaze, head movement, music, print, and layout. Each mode weighs differently in the ads and has certain effects in persuading ad viewers.