Analysis

= = = An﻿alysis =

 The Pepsi Max commercial aired on Fox Network during one of the most coveted time slots during the 2011 Superbowl. As the commercial kicks off you may be fooled into thinking you are watching a typical wife who simply wants her husband to eat right. After all, the commercial is for a calorie-free soft-drink.

 Surprisingly, the commercials sales pitch was not the controversial aspect of this advertisement. Rather the angle of the slapstick comedy and the conscious choice of using people of a specific race to portray the event is what opened it up to such intense critique. The married couple were two dark skinned African American's. One review of the commercial even went as far as to say that they believed they used dark skinned African American's rather then light skinned because there is more of a stereotype of such women being more abusive to their husbands. This is subject to opinion.

Pepsi Max attempts to reach out to ladies. They market the no-calorie soda as one way of keep their man in line. In doing so however, several cultures may feel marginalized. These cultures may include e ducated African Americans, Caucasians of both sexes, and husbands. Typically we expect domestic violence to be male to female. But the reversal makes it equally offensive. The play on power and abuse while done in a comedic way can still be portrayed as being insensitive and power related.

Something a little more subtle that I noticed when I was viewing the commercial through the lens of an English Language Speaker, was that power was also was depicted through dialect. Power is often times associated with language and dialect. Perhaps the play on power was unintentional on the part of the author, but I doubt it. If you notice, in the first scene, the husband (the active participant who is being marginalized) orders his fries by saying, "Can I have the french fries (kick), ahhh... I'll **have me** the fruit cup." Proper grammar (closely tied to white grammar) would have had him make the statement as follows... "I will have the fruit cup" NOT "I'll have me." Now flash forward to the final scene where the wife speaks. Notice the way she presents her lines, "Pepsi Max, Zero Calories," in perfect English. She even has this know-it-all arrogance about her.

= Where I was "Reading" From" =

Jones explains that we are each a part of a complex history that includes our experiences and expectations, family structures and friendship circles, powerful achievements, and marginalized realities. She goes on to say that our locations in this world color the lenses through which we read it. Whether reading the world or written words, both are impacted by what are lives are and what are lives have been (Jones, 2006). This statement is what prompted me to compose a quick list of my cultural locations. I wanted something concrete to remind me to look at the commercial from these varying lenses. Below I will discuss how some of the more prominent cultural locations impacted my experience when viewing this commercial. (For a more complete list of my Cultural Locations click HERE or on the side navigation bar.)

It would seem Pepsi was targeting an age demographic that included myself. Let's face it, I too am getting a little older, and am of the marrying age. Watching my weight along with many other Americans has become a necessary reality. In that respect, the commercials message was clear and effective. Don't waste calories eating and drinking junk, instead, drink Pepsi Max which has NO calories!

Going back to Jones' statement regarding the impact that our individual histories have on how we perceive a current literacy event, I am reminded of how my history has impacted how I read this commercial. Much like the wife in this advertisement, my x-husband was constantly picking on me about what I ate. My own personal // history //// t //// hat I brought with me while viewing this commercial // made me feel marginalized because while even though I am not a man, I was still able to better relate to the situation he was in than, to that of his wife's. It immediately brought me back to a feelings of powerlessness, that I so desperately hated.

**Where Others were "Reading" From**

== ** Sheila Jackson Lee Outraged Over "Racist" Pepsi Commercial during Superbowl ** == media type="youtube" key="9dFuWADnpIg" height="390" width="480" align="center"

Clearly I can't account for ALL the varying positions in response to this Pepsi commercial but I was very curious after reflecting on why I read the commercial the way I did... why other people may have read it similarly or all together different. I was amazed at how many people voiced an opinion about this commercial. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas was outraged by the Pepsi add She went as far as taking her views to the House floor to speak about the add she referred to as "demeaning." (see Youtube video above).

Dr. Boyce Watkins said "the man in him found the add hilarious," but expresses, "There is also the broader implication of a black woman physically abusing her man, as if domestic violence is funny. The man in me is willing to laugh it off, but there is another part of me that is disturbed. So, between the act of giggling away serious violence, perpetuating the image of the angry black woman, portraying the black couple to be violent criminals and re-igniting the stereotype of the black woman beating her man for wanting the white girl, this ad gives black America a whole lot to talk about."

To read a variety of other interesting responses to this highly controversial Pepsi Max commercial click HERE