A Model of the Cognitive and Emotional Processing of Rhetorical Works in Advertising

Abstract

This book chapter develops an extensive model of the processing of rhetorical works (i.e., figurative language and visual rhetoric). The model synthesizes two theories - experimental aesthetics, which has explained the processing of creative works (e.g., art, geometric shapes, music, and product designs), and the resource-matching perspective, which holds that processing approaches optimization when resource demand matches the resources that an audience is willing and able to make available. The model's combination of these two theories clarifies phenomena (e.g., the Wundt curve or the components of resource demand) that are otherwise unaccounted for. Further, the model subsumes previous research on advertising rhetoric into a single unified explanation. Additionally, extending the resource-matching perspective to encompass emotional appeals expands the scope of advertising rhetoric research into the unexplored emotional component of rhetorical works. This model should also make important contributions to the literature by suggesting theoretically supported hypotheses for future research.