Ethos, Pathos, and Logos - PALL MALL Smoking Advertisement

In Pall Mall’s old time Christmas smoking advertisement, the company uses the public figure of Santa Claus to promote smoking their product. Also within the advertisement, factual figures, or logos, are used to demonstrate how Pall Malls are better than any other of the cigarette brands. When this advertisement was made, companies could say nearly anything that would make their product sell. Actual facts were not necessary because then it would not be as persuasive or profitable to use any other type of truthful ad. Pathos, connecting to the emotions of the advertisements audience, is used by displaying the feeling that Santa Claus is having when he smokes a Pall Mall, which is joy and happiness; in addition, ethos is used by the literal use of the figure of Santa Claus himself. Using a figure such as Santa during the holidays creates an ad that can appeal to everyone, especially young children.


The, so called “facts” in the advertisement are that Pall Malls are the smoothest and most enjoyable cigarettes around. The ad displays that they last longer and, thus, are better; in addition, the fact that Santa Claus is smoking the product it makes the ad more appealing to the younger generation, as well as everyone else. The largest logo in the ad, however, is the headline of, “guard against throat-scratch.” This is the products biggest selling point. The pathos used within this ad is the feeling that is advertised by smoking a Pall Mall. Santa Claus, being a national figure for joy, demonstrates that his jolliness is defiantly not diminished by smoking a Pall Mall; therefore, who would it be a bad thing for anyone else to smoke?

I believe that the ethos is the strongest because Santa Claus ties in all of the other elements together to create the persuasive Christmas as for smoking Pall Mall Cigarettes. He is the largest figure on the ad and, especially during the holiday time, he is the biggest icon for young children; however, I do not believe that this ad is necessarily only targeted at children because when talking about the elements of the product the ad is more centered towards adults. Santa Claus, as the figure of Pall Mall, creates a strong message in this ad by basically saying that if a person is to smoke a Pall Mall that he or she will have no throat scratch, a longer cigarette and enjoy every moment of it. I think that the message may have been more effective when it was originally used, however, I do not believe that if an ad as such as this one was displayed for the public in present time that it would have the same impact; this is because now we have more anti-smoking ads rather than ads that promote smoking tobacco, also because ads have to be truthful that are made in the present. Most smoking ads that one would see currently would have a pretty girl or a handsome man on it smoking and the logo of the company. Therefore, this message, during the time of its display, could have had a very persuasive effect on its viewers.