Some Advertisers Ruin Honest English Words

Northern Advocate, 18 June 1947, Page 2

Some Advertisers Ruin Honest English Words

OUTSPOKEN PROFESSOR

(Special) AUCKLAND, This Day. GOOD honest words like “romantic” and “glamorous” had gone down the drain through the work of some advertisers, Dr S. Musgrove, newly-appointed professor of English at Auckland University College told the Auckland Advertising Club yesterday.

Emphasising that he was speaking only of advertising that went beyond factual statements. Dr Musgrove said that the objects of the teacher of English and the advertising writer were almost diametrically opposed.

"You know how you have to persuade people they smell and things like that.” The word "thrilling'’ had been one of the most exact in the English language. Now it meant a lot of cowboys shooting off guns or people having their throats cut. A saga was a story of a family and had a Norse origin. It was not an adventurous story of the sea. “COME OFF IT” Dr Musgrove read the following recent picture theatre advertisement: "Its electrifying suspense, carefully built, step by step, will never allow you to relax for a moment. An emotional experience of tremendous impact, strength and power." “The only comment to that is ‘for the Lord's rake come off it’,” he said. In reading a cosmetic advertisement, Dr Musgrove said he was afraid he could not apologise to the writer if he

| Lr Musgrove was invited to speak : following his address to the Auckland Credilmcn's Club in which lie said much advertising copy was intellectually dishonest in its choice of words and frequently corrupted their meaning. VICTIM OF WORDS Words were exact, precise, sensitive tilings, said Dr Musgrove. The object of the English teacher was to teach their use as such so that the pupil would become a master of words and the words not master of him. The advertiser, trying to persuade people to do things, was a direct contrast. His language was rhetoric that very often disguised itself as a factual statement and attempted to make the reader a victim of words.

was present. Certain kinds of advertising must, because of the nature of advertising, have a bad effect on the English language.

"Our object is to teach pupils to think and act individually and make their own choice,” Dr Musgrove contin tied.

“The object of the advertiser is to make everyone think like ■ everyone else and buy Postelwaite's Universal Egg V/hisks.

He was aiming not only at New Zealand advertising, but the world’s advertising. As* a professor of English lie was perturbed about it. The first of two members to jump to their feet at the conclusion of tire address said he agreed with all that Dr Musgrove had said. The second agreed to a certain extent, but added there was much good advertising writing. Every word cost money and good writers chose carefully.

“Advertisers must make appeals to tlie baser instincts, such as sex appeal and snob appeal.

Cliches and hackneyed phrases were not good advertising. Tiie example given by Dr Musgrove might sell goods once, but not all the time. He felt New Zealand advertising was on a higher plane than overseas copy. THE DEFENCE

1 After mentioning tiie popularity of dance music, compared with classical music, the president (Mr E. H. .Whiting) said the type of words used in advertising appealed to more people 7 than the typo of advertisement written j. by Dr Musgrove. 1 It would be an excellent example of • English, but would it do its job? He ' agreed with Dr Musgrove but be felt that the criticism should be directed I at the social order in which people ]! lived by buying and selling things.'

[j “I would say Professor Musgrove believed in advertising,” Mr Whiting ■ added. “His new appointment was ndver- ! tised and I don't know whether he wrote the best advertising copy in his J application, but he got the job. There j must have been a bit of advertising ' selling in that application.'' | “That case would fall under the heading of i.he factual advertising I I spoke of,” replied Dr Musgrove. The jj advertising profession was an inevitable outcome of the social order.