Essay On Diesel

Submitted By vsf0095
Words: 1187
Pages: 5

Victoria Fernandez
Ms. Shields
English 1120
Diesel: Be Stupid
“Stupid might fail. Smart doesn’t even try.” really gets the mind thinking of a million possibilities. This Diesel advertisement shows a message to a person that being adventurous is something everyone should live by. “Be smart” is what our elders have been telling us since we were young. While Diesel, an international clothing company, takes “Be stupid” as their philosophy. Diesel shows that they want customers to take risks and enjoy life while wearing their clothing rather than the usual cliché of just a model looking good in a product. This Diesel advertisement shows a message to a person that being adventurous is something everyone should live by.
The surface meaning of this endorsement is just to make a viewer laugh at the frivolous image. This memorable ad shows a man sticking his head in the mailbox looking to be stuck at 160 degrees angle. Obviously Diesel doesn’t mean for the viewers to take this image literally they just want to get a quick giggle out of them. On the left of the image you read Stupid might fail. Smart doesn’t even try, I think this message is suitably aimed at edgy, adventurous, open minded, risk taking young adults. Diesel is aiming for people to know there are worse things than failure, like not even trying. This statement most likely means that Diesel wants customers to take fashion risks with their trendy clothing. The Diesel Company derives their endorsements towards young creativity. This modern endorsement approach is aimed towards young adults because it signifies the adventurous nature that should be lived when a person has their whole life ahead of him or her. Diesel is encouraging risk taking behaviors by making a statement in their advertisements. This statement seems corporately irresponsible by defying the average idea of logic the company is lacking the typical idea of logos. Although Diesel ignores the idea of fact, they create a great amount of pathos with their immense imagination.
In the far right corner of the poster “be stupid” is displayed, with this statement Diesel doesn’t mean go out and do something dangerous they simply mean be creative. This single advertisement is from a chain of almost forty separate ads all with the same meaning with statements such as; “Only stupid can be truly brilliant”, “Smart has the plans, stupid has the stories”, “Smart sees what there is. Stupid sees what there could be.” and more. This risky endorsement is saying that stupidity is the antidote to intelligence. The fact is if people didn’t have stupid thoughts there would be no interesting thoughts at all. Stupidity is bravery and with these advertisements Diesel shows the smart or in this case the stupid person takes the risk. This Company wants their customers to know in the end being stupid will end with brilliance.
Looking into the photo behind the bold yellow font, a customer may wonder “Why is this man in the mailbox? Why is the man in the photo being stupid in such an unrealistic manner?” The reason I come up with is that Diesel needed to depict something unrealistically stupid and slightly funny so that the company wouldn’t be put in a negative spotlight for a risky message. My opinion of the reason the man is getting into the mailbox is because the origin of this company is Italian and this advertisement was displayed internationally. The mailbox could possibly symbolize the travel of the company and its large international status. If a person is trying to get him or herself into a mailbox, it is likely for the desire of traveling, much like the company. According to Intradayfun.com “These advertisements portray sheer courage. It is rightly said that when the message is depicted in the raw form it meets the targeted audience in a far better manner.” Although the picture depicted is far from realistic and very far-fetched it really catches a viewer’s attention and gets the point of the ad across. The matter behind this