2 Different Advertisements for Cars
Today, cars have come to represent status and culture, and thanks to advertisements, one gets to see what differentiates people based on their taste. Apollo and Dionysius are prominent Gods g Greek mythology. They are both honored with distinct characteristics; creativity and personality. Apollo is known to be the noblest of all, whereas, Dionysius is a rebel and represents wild unbridled emotion. They are like the two poles; similar in structure, but miles apart in characteristics. While spontaneity is associated with Dionysian, methodology and planning is what the Apollonian man adopts. It is in this context that one can look at how cars represent the Apollonian and the Dionysian style. The Apollonian style is represented by those who believe in systematic changes and are aristocratic. They look to stand apart from the crowd. According to Patterson (2013), Apollonian philosophy “is a malady that can be described as over-organization, bureaucracy, homogeneity, hierarchy, logo-centrism, and technocracy.” In other words, Apollonian culture “transforms humanity into an ‘organization man,’ and then into ‘the man in the gray flannel suit.’” They don’t believe in socializing with others below their social upbringing, and don’t expect others, other than those in their class, to be a member of their circle. When such a stature inferred to a car, it would obviously be one that is beyond the reach and imagination of the common man. In the advertisement denoting the Apollonian man, one sees a Phantom Vi parked next to a private jet. The car stands for aristocracy, and the person being driven in the car as noble, to say the least. These people do not believe in travelling with other people by commercial airlines. They are after all, the descendents of Apollo, is what they would like to believe, and so, buy cars that can only be dreamt by the majority of people. In the advertisement, one sees a steward or the captain perhaps, respectfully opening the passenger door. There is an airhostess waiting in attention for the passenger to board the plane. It is obvious that only a few people have the privilege of driving their car to the tarmac to board a plane. This shows that the passenger is of a noble standing and is an extremely important person who has the privilege of even avoiding security checks. This person undoubtedly belongs to the Apollonian society.
In contrast, the Dionysians are rebellious by nature. They believe in breaking rules and following their heart. Dr. Wilson (2013), in quoting Carl Jung, a prominent psychologist, says, “The Nietzsche Dionysian abandonment was led by creative dynamism.” According to Jung, “man, a natural creature; unbridled, and a raging torrent, “does not follow any specific rule that forbids him from doing the impossible.” They display inconsistent behavioral patterns and will not take ‘no’ for an answer. According to Patterson (2013), the businessmen of the modern age believe in showcasing their “inherited ideas and traditional practices not in reverence, but in high suspicion.” So suspicious are they of their surroundings that they even treat reason “as an enemy of true competitiveness; an out-of-date faculty to be scrupulously avoided by conscientious managers.” Dionysians believed in innovativeness and followed their heart. They were rebels in the sense that they were restless and looked to do things in the spur of the moment. This trait can be seen in the advertisement that shows a yellow-colored V-dub convertible van. The van is a prototype and designed to reflect a particular culture or trend. Such designs are not uncommon, but still, they are different from the other because of the differing ideology their owners have. “A 1990 book by Charles Handy, The Age of Unreason, substantiates this view when it states that, “man dwells in a time when ‘there can be no certainty.’ Therefore, “people should engage in ‘thinking upside down.’ using new ways of learning which are not disrespectful or downright rebellious.” The V – dub convertible comes nowhere near the Rolls Royce in terms of technology, price, and features and so on. However, what makes the V- dub stand out is its innovativeness. The owner portrays the Dionysian tend, where ideas are in keeping with trend and style. The one conspicuous thing about this new executive is that he is definitely not an ‘Organization Man,’ who attends church sermons. For today, the new executive believes in presenting his ideas and vision to the public, where, his innovativeness and ground breaking rules are the orthodoxy of the day. A few organizations that share similar sentiments and advertise their slogans in keeping with their ideas are, as Patterson (2013), illustrates:
- Sometimes You Gotta Break the Rules: Burger King
- If You Don't Like the Rules, Change Them: WXRT-FM
- The Line Has Been Crossed: The Revolutionary New Supra –Toyota
The Apollonian theory is based on individuality, and it strives to represent that individual as unique and distinctly different from all others. They have a polished outlook and see creativity through logical expression and thinking. The Dionysian man, on the other hand, harbors on frivolity and spontaneity. Their theory has no uniformity and is based on chaos. They are extremely instinctive. They do not believe in individualism and instead, submerge themselves in one whole. “The comparisons in the relationship between the Apollonian and Dionysian are obvious,” claimed Nietzsche, in The Birth of Tragedy. Since the names of Apollo and Dionysius are common to Greek mythology, it is a play on Greek tragedy. In the play, according to Patterson (2013), the protagonist struggles to make order of his unjust and chaotic fate, and dies an unsatisfied man. Here, the protagonist displays both the characteristics of Apollonian and Dionysian behavior. What this goes to show is that, claims Nietzsche, the underlying “Primordial Unity,’ which revives our Dionysian nature, is almost indescribably pleasurable” (Patterson, 2013). This view was later corrected by him when he said that, “it was burdened with all the errors of youth” (Attempt at Self-Criticism, §2). One sees today’s youth display Dionysian characteristics most conspicuously. This is because today’s youth is influenced by all kinds of media attractions. The influence is so strong that they tend to imitate what they see and go out of their way to go a step ahead of others. .
V-dub convertible van by Bob Patterson, http://www.opednews.com
http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_22688-Rolls-Royce-Phantom-VI-Prototype-PRH1500-1966.html
References
Patterson, B, (2013), Dionysian vs. Apollonian, Retrieved February 3, 2014, from
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Dionysian-vs-Apollonian-by-Bob-Patterson-Censorship_Journalism_Logic_Media-131004-19.html
Wilson, N. W. Dr., (2013), The Apollonian and Dionysian Struggle within the Human Personality, Part Two, Retrieved February 3, 2014, from http://epages.wordpress.com/2010/12/13/the-apollonian-and-dionysian-struggle-within-the-human-personality-part-two/
