Sushi Ad Analysis

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Iconicity in the sushi ad is evoked by the plastic wrapped around the sushi (=a sushi’s seaweed), the trash on the inside of the sushi (=the sashimi and other seafood ingredients), the rice in the sushi (=a real sushi’s rice), and the chopsticks on the side (=the chopsticks a person would normally eat sushi with). The sushi is metonymic of seafood in general because the issue that Surfrider Foundation is advocating for is saving fish from ocean pollution. We can infer that this ad is specifically calling attention to seafood risks because the only real food portrayed is rice, and rice is not grown in the ocean. The iconic mapping and metonymy of seafood allows us to reach the visual metaphor of TRASH IS INGREDIENTS OF SUSHI. The metaphor of…show more content…
The blends of HUMAN FOOD AS TRASH and OCEAN AS TRASHCAN are evoked. Then, from this blend, we can understand that just as the trash is harmful to the fish, eating the fish would be harmful for humans as well. The implicature from this metaphoric blend is human health will be compromised by eating fish grown in a polluted ocean. The compression in this metaphor also creates a sense of urgency because instead of claiming that humans eat fish that eat trash, it skips straight to saying that humans eat trash. The blend of OCEAN AS TRASHCAN also creates a sense of shame in viewers by showing them the direct consequences of their actions. It effectively simplifies the issue for viewers to understand. Normally, trash that is flushed down the toilet goes through the main sewer system. Then, it ends up floating out into the the ocean. Heavy rainstorms carry litter from the streets out into the ocean, or fishermen sometimes dump their trash into the ocean. This process is compressed in the ad, and not only does it show how humans treat the ocean directly like a trashcan, but it also raises the issue of humans thinking of their actions in isolation. Usually after we throw out

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