Interpretation Of The Contemporary Advertising Culture

Modern advertisement, as an approach of sales promotion, is essentially a commercial activity. On the other hand, it is also a kind of mass culturessince it occupies many culture elements. Therefore advertisement has both economical and cultural influence in our society. In this paper, I focus on the cultural aspect of advertisement; discuss its components and functions, and analyze its effects in our society.Besides making use of public media like TV and Internet, advertisement also combines various cultural elements. First, advertisement is aimed to act as the cultural and even spiritual interpretation of the product. To advocate people to accept this interpretation, consumer psychology is studied and feeling turns out to be the critical point that can persuade people. Also advertisement is represented in some aesthetic forms like poems to attract attentions. All these efforts and elements hide the business purpose inside, which means that the social cultures are affected and changed even without being noticed sometimes.As a cultural, advertisement culture has its social and cultural functions. Oriented to a specific culture community, e.g. a country (China, for example), or a group of people (students, for example), advertisement usually depends on the specific culture of its orientation audience. Therefore, the specific culture, e.g., ethnic culture, can be publicized through advertisement. Also advertisement usually represents fashion, guiding people adopt new products, accept new notions, etc.Any social and culture phenomenon has its affects to the social and culture. In this paper, I studied advertisement's culture affects. Influenced by advertisement, people become passive and apathetic, and consumption becomes the most popular pursuit.Based on my discussion and analysis, I proposed that advertisement, as a culture phenomenon, has its culture characteristics, culture functions and culture affects, and should take its responsibility to this society. On the other hand, our society should payattention to advertisement to guide it to proceed in a way such that culture, society, and advertisement can develop together.This paper is organized as below: Part I describes culture characteristics, which includes its culture interpretation, critical point of consumer psychology, and aesthetic forms, etc. Part II explains culture functions of advertisement like publicize ethnic culture, etc. Part III discusses the affects of advertisement, especially negative affects that should be paid attention to.